2026 AWARD NOMINATIONS

NORTHEAST FILM FESTIVAL 2026 AWARD NOMINATIONS

 
BEST DOCUMENTARY
Colors & Curves
Growing Up Slowly
Love. [nonfiction] - Episode One: Soulmates.
Once Upon A Time In Jersey
The Valley Between Us

BEST ACTRESS IN A SHORT
Cameran Bellamy (Intertwined)
Destiny Leilani Brown (Sapphire)
Alicia Giangrisostomi (Cahill's Lanes)
Kathryn Hunter (Jasmine. Home. Mother.)
Sarah Joy Byington (I Guess this is Goodbye)
Amber Paul (The Drive)

BEST ACTOR IN A SHORT
Gil Damon (The Current State of the Backyard Pool Industry)
Dan Gregory (Archangel)
Chad Mathews (I Guess this is Goodbye)
James Naughton (Sit with Me While I Die)
Owen Teale (Something Pointless)
Jim Thalman (A Son's Burden)

BEST SCREENPLAY
Marco Jo Clate (Cahill's Lanes)
Neil Graham and David Cormican (Something Pointless)
Lenny Mandel (The Bowl)
Leah Bedrosian Peterson (Brave Little Hawk)
Brian Russell and Ross Popick (Sit with Me While I Die)
John Schwert and Cameran Bellamy (Intertwined)

BEST DIRECTOR OF A SHORT
David Arrow (The Drive)
Asa Bailey (Something Pointless)
Marco Jo Clate (Cahill's Lanes)
Brian Russell (Sit with Me While I Die)
John Schwert (Intertwined)
Joe Thayer (Dead Birds)

BEST CONCEPT
Dead Birds
Hide
Love Beyond Dreams
Pencils
Some Things Change
Upside Down on Long Island

BEST THRILLER
A Son's Burden
Hide
It's Pumpkin Season
Sapphire
Shift

BEST DRAMATIC SHORT FILM
I Guess this is Goodbye
Intertwined
Silent Harmony
Some Things Change
The Bowl
The Rocket

BEST SHORT FILM
Archangel
Cahill's Lanes
Jasmine. Home. Mother.
Sit with Me While I Die
Something Pointless
The Drive

BEST UNPRODUCED SCREENPLAY
Christmas Choir Cruise (written by Scott Segal)
Goodbye, Sugar Planet (written by Will Roane)
I'm Fine (written by Amy Van Horne)
The Last Call (written by Adam Lamparello)
Timeless Love (written by Simin Vaswani)

BEST ACTRESS IN A FEATURE
Denisse Juliana Jimenez (Legado)
Haley Kastler (It's Always Almost Over)
Jaime Pressly (Last Shot)

BEST ACTOR IN A FEATURE
Ricky DeRosa (It's Always Almost Over)
Dylan Friedman (Last Shot)
Christopher Mormando (Judge No Book )

BEST ENSEMBLE
Judge No Book 
Last Shot
Legado

BEST DIRECTOR OF A FEATURE
Jay Leonard (It's Always Almost Over)
Christopher Mormando (Judge No Book )
Andy Palmer (Last Shot)

BEST FEATURE FILM
Judge No Book 
Last Shot
Legado

AUDIENCE CHOICE
TBD