‘Fruit’ Wins Best of the Best of the Fest at Palm Springs International ShortFest; More Oscar-Qualifying Wins Announced

PALM SPRINGS, CA (June 28, 2026) – The 2026 Palm Springs International ShortFest announced its Festival juried and audience award winners as part of the Awards Ceremony at the Hilton Palm Springs. Awards and cash prizes worth $30,000 including five Academy Award® qualifying awards were presented to the winners selected from the 328 short films that were part of the official selection. Sponsored by the City of Palm Springs, ShortFest took place June 23-29, 2026. Bennett Awards is the Official ShortFest Awards Provider.

Oscar-Qualifying Awards:
The winner of these awards may be eligible to submit their short to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for Oscar® consideration.

Best of the Festival Award — Winner received $5,000 cash prize.
Jury: Dana Ledoux Miller (Moana 2); Gus Van Sant; Julia Aks (Jane Austen’s Period Drama); Kayla Foster (Your Monster)

● Winner: Fruit (Singapore), Directed by Jen Nee Lim
● Special Mention: Hyena (USA/China), Directed by Altay Ulan Yang

Best Animated Short — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: John Kelly (Director at Dolphin’s Barn Pictures); Wilson Chapman (Animation Editor at IndieWire);William  D. Caballero (Director/Producer at Colibri Creative Media)

● Winner: Fačuk (Croatia/Slovenia), Directed by Maida Srabović
● Special Mention for Craft: Venezia Diorama (Belgium), Directed by Nicolas Piret

Best Documentary Short — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Ash Cook (Founder, Video Store•Age); Micah Gottlieb (Artistic Director at Los Angeles Festival of Movies); Rebekah Louisa Smith (Film Festival Strategist at The Film Festival Doctor)

● Winner: Water Cooler (USA), Directed by Emma V.F.
● Special Mention: Plumped (USA), Directed by Faye Tsakas, Nora DeLigter

Best Live-Action Short Over 15 Minutes — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Jesy Odio (Production Manager at FUJIFILM); Maura Towey (Director of Development at Love & Squalor Pictures); Talia Shea Levin (Director, Writer, Producer)

● Winner: Marga en el DF (Mexico/USA/Dominican Republic), Directed by Gabriela Ortega
● Special Mention: Concrete Kids (Lithuania), Directed by Saulius Baradinska

Best Live-Action Short 15 Minutes and Under (Sponsored by SAGindie) — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Alana Ford (Agent at Gersh); Mia McNiece (Senior Editor, News and Awards at Gold Derby); Peter Van Steemburg (Talent Manager at XYZ Films)

● Winner: We Were Here (India), Directed by Pranav Bhasin
● Special Mention: Captive Audience (Singapore), Directed by Kew Lin

Student Short Awards:
Best Student International Short — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Adam Keresztes (Lead Shorts Programmer at Calgary International Film Festival); Séverine Tibi (Co-Founder, Producer at Sevana Films); Zegan Doyle (Programmer at AQUA Film Club, SXSW, Film Independent)

● Winner: Daddy’s Little Meatball (Australia/USA), Directed by Yael Grunseit
● Special Mention: Orla (Czech Republic/Slovakia) , Directed by Marie Lukáčová

Best Student U.S. Short, Best Student Animated Short & Best Student Documentary Short — Each winner received a $1000 cash prize, ties split
Jury: Ambriehl Turrentine (Programming Manager at Denver Film); Edda Manriquez (Program Director, Femtastia Fest); Noah Baldwin (Executive Assistant/Internship Coordinator at Tremolo Productions)

Student U.S. Short:
● Winner: Pankaja (USA/India), Directed by Anooya Swamy
● Special Mention: Not Valid for Travel (USA), Directed by Jiaying Lin

Student Animated Short:
● Winner: The Undying Pain of Existence (Germany), Directed by Oscar Jacobson
● Special Mention: Hunting (Switzerland), Directed by Lea Favre

Student Documentary Short:
● Winner: Sole (USA), Directed by Haneol Lee
● Special Mention: California is Burning (USA), Directed by Bennett Curran

Special Jury Awards:

Vimeo Staff Pick Award — Winner received a $5,000 cash prize provided by Vimeo

● Winner: A Crime Across Four Landscapes (USA), Directed by Aidan Weaver

Best International Short — Each winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Ernie Quiroz (Film Programmer Santa Barbara, the Loft, Phoenix Art Museum); Irene Suico Soriano (Short Film Programmer at Sundance Film Festival); Eleanor Wilson (Writer/Director)

● Winners: Agapito (Philippines/France), Directed by Arvin Belarmino and Kyla Romero
● Special Mention: The Last Song (Spain), Directed by María Lorente-Becerra

Best U.S. Short — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Steven Snyder (Producer at Cienega Films); Hayley Marie Norman (Filmmaker); Daniel Cardone (Senior Manager, Nonfiction Programs & Fiscal Sponsorship at Film Independent)

● Winner: See You, Soon (USA), Directed by Jay Pendarvis Jr.
● Special Mention for Linus the dog: XOLO (USA), Directed by Matthew Serrano

Best Comedy Short — Each winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Max Geschwind (Media Finance Coordinator at CAA); Rika Dharmesh Bhakta (Independent Producer); Alex Huston Fischer (Writer/Director).

● Winners: We Were Here (India), Directed by Pranav Bhasin
● Special Mention for Ensemble: Borderline (Norway/Finland/Sweden), Directed by Johannes Vang

Best LGBTQ+ Short — Each winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Abby Wright (Founder/Festival Director at Femme Filth Fest); Dino-Ray Ramos (Founder, Diaspora); Ro Haber (Director)
● Winners: Delay (China), Directed by Wang Han-Xuan
● Special Mention: Sandra (Brazil), Directed by Camila Márdila

Best Midnight Short — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Ashleigh Snead (Producer); Pip Ngo (EVP of Sales and Acquisitions at XYZ Films); Yulissa Morales (VP of Distribution and Creative at Epic Pictures | Dread)
● Winner: Hyena (USA/China), Directed by Altay Ulan Yang
● Special Mention: Flock (United Kingdom/Wales), Directed by Mac Nixon

Local Jury Awards:

Desert Views Local Jury Award—Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Kendall Balchan, Yvonne Buchanan, Craig Canestrari, Valerie Fury, Elizabeth Reyes

● Winner: Agapito (Philippines/France), Directed by Arvin Belarmino and Kyla Romero
● Special Mention: The Barbershop (Denmark), Directed by Diêm Camille

Young Cineastes Award—Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Carolina Ava Hyatt, Lillian Lorraine Lynd, Bethany Mikrut

● Winner: La Tierra del Valor (The Home of the Brave) (USA), Directed by Cristina Costantini
● Special Mention: Guardian’s Grove (USA), Directed by Rachel Moss

Kids’ Choice Award — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: The Boys and Girls Club of Cathedral City

● Winner: Four Square (USA), Directed by Eli Staub

• Winner: i have a (United Kingdom), Directed by Rory Waudby-Tolley

• Winner: I Got My Brother (USA), Directed by Victor Gabriel

• Winner: América (Peru), Directed by Javier Arias-Stella

• Winner: Half-Moon (Switzerland), Directed by Hae-Sup Sin

In addition to this year’s awards, the Parker Palm Springs is pleased to introduce the inaugural Parker Filmmaker Award, created in partnership with ShortFest and the Palm Springs International Film Society. For more than 22 years, Parker Palm Springs has proudly served as the host estate for the Palm Springs International Film Festival Awards.

Conceived in the spirit of discovery, storytelling, and creative mischief, the award celebrates emerging filmmakers while deepening Parker’s connection to the Palm Springs creative community. The selected filmmaker will be invited to create original narrative shorts and brand reels that embody a commercial sensibility while feeling like a distinctive piece of storytelling inspired by Parker Palm Springs — cinematic, stylish, witty, whimsical, and unmistakably Parker. Following a review of the award winners and interest from the potential student filmmakers, the Parker Palm Springs will announce the recipients later this summer.

About the Palm Springs International Film Society
The Palm Springs International Film Society is a 501(c)(3) charitable non-profit organization whose mission is to cultivate and promote the art and science of film through education and cross-cultural awareness. The Film Society produces the Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF) and Film Awards every January and Palm Springs ShortFest in June. In addition to curating the best in international cinema, PSIFF’s Film Awards has come to be known as the first stop on the campaign trail for the Academy Awards®, and our Oscar®-qualifying ShortFest is the largest short film festival and market in North America. Our festivals, year-round member screenings and educational programs manifest our organization’s mission by nurturing and encouraging new filmmaking talent, honoring the great masters of world cinema, and expanding audience horizons. The City of Palm Springs is the title sponsor of both festivals.