Sun Valley, Idaho (November 11, 2026)—The Sun Valley Film Festival (SVFF), taking place December 2–6, 2026, today announced its 2026 honorees and film lineup, featuring an exciting slate of awards-season contenders and special screenings. This year’s honorees and Coffee Talk guests include Jessica Lange (Vision Award), Bill Pullman (Pioneer Award), and Seth Rogen and Lauren Miller Rogen (Impact Award), who will each be recognized for their outstanding contributions to film and the entertainment industry. In addition, Stephen Beresford (High Scribe Award, co-presented by Deadline) and Luke Davies (Deadline Disruptor Award) will also be recognized. Director Peter Farrelly will participate in a Q&A after a special screening of I Play Rocky. Among the films screening at this year’s festival are All of a Sudden, The Debut, Elsinore, Everybody Digs Bill Evans, Long Day’s Journey Into Night, A Long Winter, The Row, Tangles, Tenzing, and more.
“This year’s lineup brings together artists who have shaped film and television across generations, from Jessica Lange and Bill Pullman to Peter Farrelly,” said Teddy Grennan, executive director and co-founder of the Sun Valley Film Festival. “Sun Valley is a place where audiences can get close to the craft, whether through a screening, a Coffee Talk or a conversation over dinner, and we’re thrilled to welcome these remarkable talents to the mountains this December.”
2026 Honorees
Screenwriter Stephen Beresford will receive the High Scribe Award, co-presented by the festival and Deadline, recognizing his exceptional contributions to screenwriting and his ability to bring compelling, deeply human stories to the screen. The award will be presented on Thursday, December 3, following a screening of Elsinore. The film stars Andrew Scott as celebrated Scottish actor Ian Charleson, alongside Olivia Colman and Billie Piper. Beresford is best known for writing the critically acclaimed film Pride (2014), which earned him a BAFTA Award for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer and a Golden Globe nomination for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.
He has also established an accomplished career in theater where he recently worked on the stage/musical adaptation of Pride, which opened at The National Theatre and recently transferred to The Bridge theatre. His other plays include The Last of the Haussmans, which premiered at the National Theatre, Three Kings at the Old Vic, Fanny & Alexander and The Southbury Child.
Luke Davies will receive the Deadline Disruptor Award, presented by Deadline, which recognizes creative talent whose innovative and impactful work is helping shape the entertainment industry. The award will be presented following the screening of his most recent film, Tenzing, directed by Jennifer Peedom and starring Tom Hiddleston, Willem Dafoe and Genden Phuntsok, which tells the extraordinary true story of Tenzing Norgay and his historic ascent of Mount Everest alongside Edmund Hillary. Davies served as screenwriter, story co-creator and producer on the film. Davies received an Academy Award nomination and won the BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for Lion. His other screenwriting credits include Candy, based on his own novel, Life, News of the World, Beautiful Boy, and the miniseries Catch-22. His additional literary work includes the novels Isabelle the Navigator and God of Speed, as well as several poetry collections.
Actor Bill Pullman will be honored with the Pioneer Award on Saturday, December 5, during a Coffee Talk, an intimate setting where award-winning filmmakers and industry insiders share their war stories with festival audiences. The Pioneer Award is given in recognition of an industry innovator whose on-screen or behind-the-camera work reflects a trailblazing spirit. Pullman will also attend the festival screening of Everybody Digs Bill Evans on Friday, December 4, in which he plays Harry Evans, the father of jazz pianist Bill Evans.
Pullman is known for iconic roles across film, including Spaceballs, Independence Day, While You Were Sleeping, Sleepless in Seattle, The Battle of the Sexes and The Accidental Tourist, as well as television, including The Sinner (SAG Award nomination), Halston and The Murdaugh Murders: The Movie. He began his career in New York theater in 1983 and has remained active on stage, most recently in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s The Cherry Orchard; his Broadway credits include the Tony Award-winning The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia? and The Subject Was Roses. His recent work includes Netflix’s The Boroughs and Paul Schrader’s The Basics of Philosophy. His upcoming projects include Spaceballs: The New One scheduled for release on April 23, 2027.
Seth Rogen and Lauren Miller Rogen will receive the Impact Award, recognizing their significant contributions to entertainment and their extraordinary philanthropic work. The couple will join the festival for a special Coffee Talk, and screen their latest film, Tangles, an acclaimed hand-drawn animated feature directed by Leah Nelson and adapted from Sarah Leavitt’s graphic memoir Tangles: A Story About Alzheimer’s, My Mother and Me.
Featuring Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Abbi Jacobson, Bryan Cranston and Seth Rogen among its voice cast, the film follows a young artist whose life is upended when her mother is diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s. The film was produced by Lauren’s LYLAS Pictures, Seth’s Point Grey Pictures and Giant Ant, with Rogen and Miller Rogen serving as producers. The couple’s commitment to Alzheimer’s advocacy is deeply personal as they co-founded Hilarity for Charity (HFC), a national nonprofit dedicated to supporting families impacted by Alzheimer’s in 2012.
Seth Rogen has built an acclaimed career as an actor, writer, producer and director, with credits including The Studio, The Fabelmans, Pam & Tommy, Platonic, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Knocked Up and Pineapple Express. Alongside longtime collaborator Evan Goldberg, he also co-founded Point Grey Pictures. Lauren Miller Rogen is an accomplished screenwriter, director and producer. Her latest film, Babies, starring Anna Kendrick and Seth Rogen — which she wrote, directed and produced — premiered at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival. Lauren previously starred in, co-wrote and produced the indie comedy For a Good Time, Call… and wrote and directed the Netflix original film Like Father.
As previously announced, two-time Academy Award-winning actress Jessica Lange will receive the prestigious Vision Award on Friday, December 4, at the Vision Award Dinner, recognizing her extraordinary contributions to film, television and theater. The Vision Award pays tribute to industry icons whose groundbreaking contributions have transformed the art of cinema. She will also participate in a Festival Coffee Talk that morning. Her film Long Day’s Journey Into Night, featuring Lange as Mary Tyrone opposite Ed Harris, will screen on Thursday, December 3.
Opening Night, Closing Night & Film Selections
SVFF will open with A24’s The Debut, written and directed by Jesse Eisenberg. The film follows Mona Friedman as she is cast in a bit part at a small community theater, transforming from a shy, unassuming housewife into a zealous method actor willing to do anything to protect the artistic integrity of her marginal role—even if it means waging war against the show’s domineering director. The musical comedy stars Julianne Moore, Paul Giamatti, Halle Bailey, Eisenberg, and Bernadette Peters, with music and lyrics by Eisenberg.
Academy Award winner Peter Farrelly will attend the festival screening of I Play Rocky on December 5. The film is an electrifying true story about an unknown actor with an unshakable belief that he wasn’t just meant to write Rocky—he was meant to be Rocky Balboa. Told “no” at every turn, Sylvester Stallone bets everything on himself, holding the line on playing the lead against seemingly impossible odds. The result is the ultimate underdog story behind the ultimate underdog movie.
Andrew Garfield stars as Sam Altman in Neon’s Artificial, which will close the festival on December 6. From director Luca Guadagnino comes the story of OpenAI and a two decade artificial intelligence arms race. When a computer scientist and AI pioneer Professor Geoffrey Hinton (Mark Rylance) makes a breakthrough they are certain will alter humanity forever, Sam Altman, Elon Musk (Ike Barinholtz) and the most prominent figures in Silicon Valley race to become part of their vision. As the technology becomes more powerful and more valuable than anyone ever imagined, a battle wages over who should control the tech that could change the fate of humanity. The film also stars Yura Borisov, Monica Barbaro, Cooper Hoffman and Jason Schwartzman, with original score and songs by Damon Albarn.
The Festival’s feature film line-up with attending talent also includes:
● The Caged with director Jeffrey Scott Collins in attendance
● Caity with director Lindsay Calleran in attendance
● Everybody Digs Bill Evans with Bill Pullman and Executive Producer Ron Yerxa and Albert Berger in attendance
● Go Deep: The DeSean Jackson Story with director Mandon Lovett, DeSean Jackson and Byron Jackson in attendance
● Jollyface with director Justin Floyd in attendance
● Long Day’s Journey Into Night with Jessica Lange in attendance
● Moving Joy with director Brittany Lee Sanders in attendance
● The Row with director Bryan Fogel in attendance
● Stealing Magic with director Matthew Testa in attendance
● Under Fire with director Brandon Kapelow in attendance
In addition to the above, the festival will also be screening All Of A Sudden directed by Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, Ink directed by Danny Boyle, and A Long Winter directed by Andrew Haigh as part of the line-up.
Shorts Programming
SVFF will also showcase 30 short films throughout the festival including:
● Allies In Exile (Directors Hasan Kattan and Fadi Al-Halabi)
● Baby Teeth (Director Will Lowell)
● Bluebird (Director Amanda Woods)
● Burn Line (Director Evan Wishloff)
● Can I Put You on Hold (Director James Cutler)
● CHIDDI 2020 (Director WC Pijoan)
● Chuura (Director Evgenia Arbugaeva)
● COUTURE to the MAX (Director Dori Berinstein)
● featherCOVER (Director Collin Insley)
● Fletcher Street (Directors Jannat Gargi and David Darg)
● Green Bean (Director Viktoria Crawford)
● He Drives At Night (Director Conor Sullivan)
● Idaho (Director Weskley Kimmel)
● Lawful Evil (Directors Chuck Norton and Victoria Horn)
● Marga en el DF (Director Gabriela Ortega)
● Moths (Director Annie Rhodes Kane)
● My Billionaire (Director Aidan Brezonick)
● Numinous with (Director Cynthia Matty Huber)
● Plant Life (Directors Brett Marty and Josh Izenberg)
● Pretend I’m Someone You Care About (Director Kira Compton)
● The Righteous Road Trip (Director Vanessa Roth)
● Run Club (Director Lauren Lyle)
● Saint (Directors Jamie Elias and Sean Brennan)
● A Sheet From Naked (Director Jack Wade)
● A Short Documentary About A Giant Pencil (Director Daniel Straub)
● A Skijoring Life (Directors George Mullinix and Noah Woo)
● Smoked (Director Alice Gu)
● Tainted by the Visual (Director Laura Calzada)
● Trial 670 (Director Hailey J Boucher)
● VITA 2.0 (Director Vita Stoikova)
● We Were Here (Director Pranav Bhasin)
● Welcome to Tool Shed (Directors Daniel Talbott and Andrew Klaus-Vineyard)
Tickets for the 2026 Sun Valley Film Festival are available now. For additional information, visit sunvalleyfilmfestival.org
About the Sun Valley Film Festival Since 2012, the Sun Valley Film Festival (SVFF) has invited filmmakers and audiences to connect through the power of cinema in the scenic mountain town of Sun Valley, Idaho, America’s first ski resort with deep ties to Hollywood. SVFF features cutting-edge film and television premieres, industry panels, and engaging discussions with entertainment luminaries, including Coffee Talks presented by Scout, the Official Vehicle of SVFF. Beyond the annual Festival, SVFF enhances the cultural fabric of the community through year-round programming, including film screenings, educational initiatives, and workshops such as SVJr Film, Shop Talks and the Screenwriter Lab Residency. The Sun Valley Film Festival is a 501(c)(3) charitable non-profit organization dedicated to fostering the art of storytelling and supporting filmmakers.
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