VQFF Announces 2026 Award Winners, Celebrating Queer Filmmaking with $51,380 in Prizes

The Vancouver Queer Film Festival (VQFF) is pleased to announce the esteemed group of 2026 Award recipients. $51,380 CAD in cash and in-kind prizes will be distributed to 2SLGBTQIA+ filmmakers.

This year’s People’s Choice Awards winners include:

The Canadian Feature winner is LUNAR SWAY directed by Nick Butler, who will receive $6,000 of color correction and finishing services from 24 Frames and $2,500 of mentorship sponsored by Hollywood Suite.

The Canadian Short winner is EGG YOLK CUSTARD BUN directed by Soya Wu, who will receive $2,500 in-kind post-production services from Elemental Post and $2,500 of mentorship sponsored by Hollywood Suite.

The International Feature winner is AGAIN AGAIN (USA) directed by Mia Moore Marchant.

The International Short winner is FIRST DEATH (USA) directed by Alyssa Lerner.

The winning team of the second annual VQFF Pitch Competition are Medha Gautham, Ritisha Jhamb, Jasmine Hans and Swarndeep Gill for their short film pitch PREETHIYA SAANVI, a comedy-drama connecting two generations of South Asian women through a magical encounter, exploring queer love, family expectations, cultural inheritance, and the courage to choose your own future.  The 2026 Pitch Competition judges were T Bannister, Morgana Duque and Kathleen Hepburn.

The winning project will receive a 5 full day in-kind Studio & Production Services at CC Productions ($3,000 value), directing mentorship from Jem Garrard, producing mentorship from Sara Blake from Ceroma, a free all-access industry pass to VQFF 2027 and a submission waiver for VQFF 2027!

Winners of our jury awards were announced during the Opening and Closing Presentations of the Festival and include:

The second annual Matriarch of the Year (MOTY) Award winner is Rosie Johnnie-Mills (she/they), a Cowichan and Haida producer of Indigenous stories told by Indigenous peoples across all genres and all formats. The MOTY Award, introduced by 2025 Artistic Director Mary Galloway, honors an Indigiqueer or Two Spirit (2S) Matriarchal leader in film and television across Turtle Island who has made a significant impact on Indigenous and 2SLGBTQIA+ storytelling. Nominated by community members and selected by a committee of Indigiqueer filmmakers including Mary Galloway and Tristin Greyeyes. Rosie will receive a $2,500 cash prize sponsored by Hollywood Suite and a publicity package from Pender PR to amplify their positive impact and support their work.

The jury said:

“Rosie was chosen as our Matriarch of the Year because for many years she has been in spaces where Indigenous Peoples have been excluded for so long, advocating for trans, Indigi-queer, and two-spirit kin, leaving no stone unturned at those same tables. She amplifies our needs and empowers our voices by taking a stand, with unwavering strength; her heart never misses a beat, and she has persevered through many adversities.”

The Narrative Change Award winners are directors Tainá Müller and Ísis Broken for APOLO, an intimate, moving, and joyful documentary following Ísis Broken and Lourenzo Gabriel as they navigate an unexpected pregnancy as a trans couple in Brazil. This award comes with a $2,500 cash prize sponsored by Hollywood Suite and a 1 year subscription to Act Write Here and was determined by an international jury, honouring a Canadian or International feature film that uses the power of cultural strategy to overturn outdated narratives, inspire change, and expand the audience’s perception of 2SLGBTQIA+ identities. This year’s jurors were Kate Bove, Robert Ríos and Karter Masuhara.

The jury also recognized SAVING ETTING STREET with an honourable mention in this category.

Masuhara presented the award on Opening night on September 10, 2026 and said:

“The winner of the Narrative Change Award is an artful ode to boldly embracing queer futures that overcome daunting political realities. This film disproves harmful narratives, instead offering a warm invitation into the lives of a trans family with nuance, depth and vulnerability.”

The Gerry Brunet Memorial Award: Best British Columbia Short winner is director Jess McLeod for their film SHE’S NONBINARY, a short centering a tense conversation between a non-binary character named Max and their straight partner, Jake, following a reaction to Max getting top surgery. The Gerry Brunet Memorial Award was established in 1997 in recognition of Brunet, a lifelong contributor to the arts and an early board member of Out On Screen. The award includes a $2,500 cash prize, a $20,000 camera package prize from Keslow Camera, and a $5,000 gear package prize from Cinelease. This award was determined by a jury of local and Canadian film professionals, Sarah-Tai Black, Alisa Luke and Fredy Mendoza.

Mendoza presented the award on Opening night on September 10, 2026 and said:

“Balancing dark-comedy and social urgency, the winning film ignites a much-needed discussion on performative allyship, gender-affirming care, desirability and what life-saving care really means.”

Out In Schools, VQFF’s award-winning sibling education program, has acquired four films that screened at VQFF 2026 to add to our Film Catalogue. These films will be available online to educators starting in the fall 2026 semester with lesson plans and other teaching tools. They will additionally be screened within Out In Schools presentations in schools and communities across BC in the 2026-2027 school year.

Jusqu’à ce que l’orage nous sépare (Canada) dir. by Thierry Grandbois

Moon Cycle (Canada) dir. Ayilya Thampuran

They . Them (Canada) dir. Diesel Lanier

I wanna hold your hand (Canada) dir. Conor Larsen and Zachary Kornblum