#TIFF: FINAL AWARD CATEGORIES AND JURORS ANNOUNCED FOR 2026 TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

TIFF today revealed the remaining 2026 award categories, jury members, and prizes that will honour the year’s most exceptional cinematic works. In addition to juried prizes across Canadian feature films, FIPRESCI, NETPAC, and Short Cuts award categories, Festival audiences will once again cast their votes to determine the winners of the iconic People’s Choice Awards, presented by Rogers. Unfolding during a landmark year for the Platform Prize, all awards will be announced during an in-person press conference and livestreamed globally on the morning of Sunday, September 20, the final day of the Festival.

Launched in 1978, TIFF’s People’s Choice Award highlights the pivotal role the TIFF audience plays in signalling awards season. Over nearly five decades, films such as Chariots of Fire, The Princess Bride, and Slumdog Millionaire have shown how audience enthusiasm at the Festival has served as an Oscars bellwether. Most recently, Chloé Zhao’s Hamnet saw Jessie Buckley win Best Actress at the 2026 Academy Awards.

The four audience‑voted awards are the People’s Choice Award, the People’s Choice Documentary Award, the People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award, and the International People’s Choice Award. All feature films and series in TIFF’s Official Selection are eligible.

2026 Best Canadian Discovery and Best Canadian Feature Film Awards

The Best Canadian Discovery Award celebrates works of emerging filmmakers who contribute to enriching the Canadian film landscape. All Canadian first or second feature films in Official Selection are eligible for this award. The winner will receive a cash prize of $10,000 CAD. Last year’s winner was Sophy Romvari’s Blue Heron.

Jury

Zarrar Kahn is a Canadian-Pakistani writer, director, and producer whose debut film In Flames (TIFF ’23) was Pakistan’s entry for the 2024 Academy Awards, a New York Times Critic’s Pick, and premiered at the 76th Cannes Film Festival, where it was nominated for the Caméra d’Or. Based in Toronto, his sophomore film, Suffering Is Optional, is slated for a 2028 release.

Justine Pimlott is a Peabody Award–winning producer most recently honoured with the Rogers-Doc Luminary Award, recognizing over 30 years of creative excellence and dedication to strengthening the industry. Pimlott has produced more than 40 features and shorts, including the award-winning films Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story (Canada’s Top Ten, TIFF ’24) and Parade: Queer Acts of Love and Resistance (2025).

Sophy Romvari is a Canadian-Hungarian filmmaker based in Toronto. Since 2015, her critically acclaimed short films have screened at festivals internationally. A collection of her short films is currently available on the Criterion Channel, as well as select films on MUBI and The New Yorker. Her debut feature, Blue Heron, won the Swatch First Feature Award at Locarno and the Best Canadian Discovery Award at TIFF ’25.

The Best Canadian Feature Film Award honours the unique craft and storytelling in Canadian cinema. All Canadian feature films in Official Selection — excluding first or second features — will be considered for the award. The winning filmmaker will receive a $10,000 CAD cash prize. Last year’s prize went to Zacharias Kunuk’s Uiksaringitara (Wrong Husband).

Jury

Hubert Davis is one of Canada’s leading documentary directors, known for work defined by emotional honesty, visual craft, and cultural depth. Davis’ impact has been widely recognized: he was named one of the Visionary Directors on ADWEEK’s 2022 Creative 100 list, and he was the first Black Canadian nominated for an Oscar in 2005.

Deepa Mehta is an Indo-Canadian Oscar-nominated filmmaker whose work is internationally renowned. Her emotionally resonant films include the Elemental Trilogy: Fire (TIFF ’96), Earth (TIFF ’98), and Water (TIFF ’05), an Oscar nominee for Best International Feature Film; Midnight’s Children (TIFF ’12); and Canadian Screen Award winner Funny Boy. Her most recent film, I Am Sirat, premiered at TIFF ’23. Mehta is an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Christina Rogers is Director of Original Film at Netflix, where she oversees a slate of Original Films that has become a mainstay of the service’s romantic comedy and holiday programming. Over her decade at Netflix, she also oversaw Independent Film Licensing. Prior to Netflix, Rogers was Head of Sales at Magnolia Pictures, and Head of Sales at the National Film Board of Canada.

2026 FIPRESCI Prize

The FIPRESCI Prize is presented by an international jury selected by the International Federation of Film Critics. Founded in 1925, the Federation awards the prize at international film festivals to promote film art and to encourage new and young cinema. Last year’s FIPRESCI Prize went to Lucía Aleñar Iglesias’ Forastera. The jury will award the Prize of International Critics, dedicated to emerging filmmakers, to a debut feature film having its World Premiere in TIFF’s Discovery programme.

Jury

Pragya Mishra, a seasoned writer and columnist, has been penning a weekly column while covering leading international film festivals for the past 14 years. She is from India and based in the UK. She writes in Hindi, blends insightful film criticism with cultural commentary, and offers readers a nuanced perspective on global cinema, emerging voices, and the ever-evolving landscape of the film industry.

Cătălin Olaru has been a film critic since 2009. His roles include Artistic Director of Taifas Film Festival (from 2023), European Film Festival (from 2022), Divan Film Festival (2017–2018), and HipTrip Travel Film Festival (2016–2018). His selected juries include goEast Wiesbaden (FIPRESCI Jury, 2024), the Golden Globes (2022), Romania’s Oscars committee (2020–2022), Warsaw Film Festival (FIPRESCI Jury, 2020), and Locarno Film Festival (FIPRESCI Jury, 2017).

Savina Petkova (PhD) is a Bulgarian film critic and programmer based in London. She works in various capacities at film festivals such as Locarno and the Cambridge Film Festival. Petkova is a member of the London Critics’ Circle, FIPRESCI, and the European Film Academy. Her writing bylines include The Guardian, Sight and Sound, Cineuropa, Reverse Shot, and Variety.

Enoe Lopes Pontes (PhD) is a member of ABRACCINE, FIPRESCI, and the Brazilian Film Academy, and was a voting member for the Golden Globes for five years. She coordinates the Critics’ Lab at the Brazil African Film Festival (Mostra de Cinemas Africanos) and is the creator and coordinator of the Brazilian School of Criticism and Audiovisual Studies. She works as a PR in the cultural sector, as well as a journalist and film critic for the websites Coisa de Cinéfilo and Aratu On.

Victor Stiff is a Toronto-based entertainment journalist, film critic, and film festival programmer. A member of the Toronto Film Critics Association and a Golden Globe International Voter, he has appeared on ET Canada, Global News, and CBC Radio. His writing has been published in POV Magazine, Exclaim!, Global News, CBR, That Shelf, andThe Playlist.

2026 NETPAC Award

Presented by the Network for the Promotion of Asian Pacific Cinema, the NETPAC Award recognizes films specifically from the Asia-Pacific region. The jury consists of three international community members selected by TIFF and NETPAC, who award the prize to the best Asian film by a first or second-time feature director. Last year’s award went to Jitank Singh Gurjar’s In Search of The Sky (Vimukt).

Jury

Mara Matta (Chairperson) is Associate Professor of South Asian Studies at Sapienza University of Rome. Her work explores cinemas, diasporas, visual cultures, gender, and human rights across South and East Asia, focusing on marginalized communities and independent filmmaking. She is the author of Glimpses of South Asia: Fragments of Love, Hope, Fear and Belonging in South Asian Cinema (Rome, 2026) and a NETPAC jury member since 2006.

Richard Fung is a Trinidad-born artist and writer, and Professor Emeritus at OCAD University. Many of his experimental videos, documentaries, and installations explore connections between Asia, the Caribbean, and Canada, and the intersections of race and queer sexualities. They include Sea in the Blood (TIFF ’00) and Islands (TIFF ’02).

Panagiotis Kotzathanasis is a film critic specializing in Asian cinema and owner of Asian Movie Pulse. A FIPRESCI, Greek Cinema Critics Association, NETPAC, Hellenic Film Academy, and Online Film Critics Association member, he writes for international publications, collaborates with Thessaloniki Cinematheque, contributes to film releases, and served as an Erasmus+ Asian Cinema Education expert.

As previously announced, TIFF through its Platform Prize is one of only six international festivals with a direct pathway to the Oscars. Building on this newly established status, Platform returns with an expanded lineup of 12 films and a five‑member international jury: Pablo Trapero (President), Amma Asante, Sylvia Chang, Luc Déry, and Albert Lee. The winning film will receive $20,000 CAD and, if it is a non‑English‑language film, will be eligible for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film.

Also previously announced are the 2026 Short Cuts jurors: Joecar Hanna, Chris Lavis, and Iris Ng, who will determine the Short Cuts Awards for Best Animated Short Film, Best International Short Film, and Best Canadian Short Film.

Awards descriptions including eligibility can be found at tiff.net/awards.

The 51st edition of the Toronto International Film Festival, presented by Rogers, runs September 10–20, 2026.

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