Celebrating Global Excellence in Creative Storytelling
Shortlist includes Becoming Madonna, The Anatomy of a Moment, Live Aid at 40: When Rock ‘n’ Roll Took on the World, NCIS Sydney, Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, Eurovision Song Contest 2025 in Basel, The Song, and The Kimberley
New York Festivals Television and Film Awards is proud to announce the 2026 TV & Film Awards Shortlist.
Exceptional content from globally recognized storytellers and filmmakers across six continents was thoughtfully evaluated by the New York Festivals TV & Film Awards Grand Jury.
The 2026 TV & Film Awards Shortlist honors a wide variety of compelling work, spanning primetime drama. documentary, investigative journalism, sports coverage, promos, streaming entertainment, and brand image films.
Documentary
New York Festivals has become a global destination for documentaries. For 2026 documentary work once again delivered powerful storytelling that resonated with audiences worldwide. Al Jazeera, the 2025’s Broadcaster of the Year, saw several entries shortlisted among them 101 East – The Sea is Mine, Witness – Please Enjoy Our Tragedies, and People & Power – Forever Chemicals: A Toxic Legacy.
Many of Mediacorp Pte Ltd’s documentary work advanced across multiple categories, including One “Orphan” Every Hour, Vapours of Death, Addicted: The Synthetic Curse, Chinese Matchmakers, Inside the Women’s Prison Parts 1-3, The Nuclear Option, and Southeast Asia’s Big Problem with Microplastics.
Additional documentary storytelling shortlisted includes Live and Let Dai (South Pacific Pictures), Rebuilding Notre-Dame: The Last Chapter (Windfall Films), Live Life Laughing – A Place with Purpose (Shizuoka Broadcasting System Co., Ltd.), Shells: Shaped by Nature (Terra Mater Studios GmbH), Becoming Madonna (All3Media International), The Indigenous, (Wa Wa Pictures Pte Ltd), The Kimberley (Wild Pacific Media), The Disappearance of Miss Scott (4th Act Factual LLC), Richard Burton: Wild Genius (Yeti Television, )The Atom Araullo Specials: Golden Tree) (GMA Network Inc.), Hiroshima Ground Zero: Eyewitness Accounts of 78 A-Bomb (NHK, Japan Broadcasting Corporation), Ending Wars and Making Peace (ZDF), Penguin Baywatch, Episode 1: Tuxedo Summer Bash (Terra Mater Studios GmbH), Live Aid at 40: When Rock ‘n’ Roll Took on the World (Brook Lapping – Zinc Media Group), Survival of the Beast (Beach House Pictures PTE LTD), The Resurrection Quest (Storytellers Films), New Old Boy: Dir. Park (SBS), Gaza Remains in Frame (TRT World), Amazônidas (Globo News), Rob and Rylan’s Passage to India (Rex – a Zinc Media Group company), Fabulous Insects – Ants (nautilusfilm GmbH), The Nonfiction: For Mom, With Love (Fuji Television Network, Inc.), Goebbels and the Führer (Zeitsprung Pictures GmbH), and One Day In September (ZDF).
Drama
Drama entries showcased a wide spectrum of storytelling, those advancing include Black Tide Island (Public Television Service Foundation (Hakka TV)), , Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light (Banijay Rights), The Anatomy of a Moment (Movistar Plus International), RFDS Season 3, (Endemol Shine Australia), NCIS: Sydney Season 3 (Endemol Shine Australia), The Assassin (All3Media International), The Song (Movistar Plus International), The Newsreader S3 (Werner Film Productions), The Winning Try (SBS), The Brokenwood Mysteries Series 11 (South Pacific Pictures), Blinded (All3 Media International), Hija del Fuego Quebranto (The Walt Disney Company LATAM), A Second Chance of Life (Tzu Chi Culture and Communication Foundation), Sins & Roses (Kanal D International), and The Role of a Lifetime (Sparkle Pictures Pty Ltd).
Entertainment
Drama, performing arts, children’s and culinary entries highlighted exceptional craft and performance across diverse formats. Works advancing include Big Night of Musicals by the National Lottery (TBI Media), Cold Haven (SPI S.A.), Queen of Mars (NHK), 2025 China Media Group Mid-Autumn Festival Gala (China Media Group), Bestemming X (Geronimo Entertainment), A Date with Goddess (Television Broadcasts Limited), A Capitol Fourth 2025, and the 2025 National Memorial Day Concert (Capital Concerts). Children’s programming showcased imaginative storytelling for younger audiences, including The Dung Beetles (Taigi TV Station), Magic Moves (ZDF), My Favourite Dead Person (thedownlowconcept), Red Moon, and New Generation Season 1 (SIC Television). Culinary highlights include Be My Guest and Pioneer Woman (Pacific Television).
Sports
Sports documentaries, entertainment, and features captured the energy and emotion of competition. Shortlisted works include Believers: Boston Red Sox and The Kingdom (ESPN+) and Full Court Press (ESPN+), alongside ESPN Films’ Empire Skate and Big Dreams: The Little League World Series 2024. Additional entries advancing include B1G Trailblazers and The Journey: Big Ten Basketball 2025 (Big Ten Network), The Wagner Brothers – Chasing the Dream (ZDF), Extreme Planet – Guatemala, and Lielson’s Jumps and Dreams (TV Globo), Wishbone (SEC Network), When Dreams Bounce Back (CGTN), Off the Grid (beIN Sports Asia Pte Limited), Iceland Cricket: Chasing the Dream | Beyond the Game (TRT World). Sports promos entries spotlighted major global sporting moments, including Olympics Milano Cortina 2026 (France Télévisions), FIFA 2025 Club Championship (Mediaset España), World Athletics Championships 2025 (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation), Wimbledon 2025 Grass Image and Tennis Open 2025- All You Need is Love (MakerVille Company Limited), and Formula 1 2026 – Timeless Speed (TV Globo).
News & Investigative Journalism
Broadcast journalism entries highlighted breaking news coverage, in-depth reporting, and investigative storytelling. Shortlisted entries include Addicted: The Narco Plague and Thailand’s Political Turmoil (Mediacorp Pte Ltd), Undercover Asia S12: Inside the Illegal Dunki Route (Zabar Services), Hong Kong’s Landmark Deepfake Scandal Uncovered in Limbo (BBC World Service Hong Kong Ltd), Traces of China Series (China Global Television Network Europe), Thailand’s Political Turmoil (Mediacorp Pte Ltd), Tracks East: Russia’s New Normal (ZDF), Natural Disaster or Human-made Catastrophe (Phoenix Satellite Television Company Limited), Focal Point: DRC – An Elusive Peace (TRT World), Somewhat Familiar with Pedro Andrade (Producing Partners), Time is King: Centenarian Lives (Globo News) and Panama Reverse Migration and Haiti Malnutrition (MediaLinks TV LLC).
Streaming
A wide variety of excellent work in streaming and brand image entries advanced, titles include Congo’s War (SBS Australia), Maria e o Cangaço (The Walt Disney Company LATAM), Miniclips: Reading Strategies (ClickView), Planet Sofia – Diary of a Sustainable Girl (Rai Radiotelevisione Italiana), En el barro / In the Mud (Telemundo Streaming Studios / Underground Producciones), Cycling to China: The Journey of a Moroccan (CGTN), Scandal Eve (Abema TV), Start Here (Al Jazeera English Online), and Silken Strands of Fate (opera edition) (CGTN).
Corporate Image
This year’s corporate and brand films reflected company vision, values, and identity through powerful storytelling. Work advancing includes The Day That Time Stood Still (The Edge, a Zinc Media Group company), Back to the Beginning (BBDO Hong Kong), Christmas Special 2024 (Mediaset España), Writer’s Room (SIBUR Istanbul Uluslararası TLC), CAL FIRE – Fighting Wildfires with GIS and Location (Esri), Staying Power (FORTUNE Brand Studio), The Entertainer 25th Anniversary (Ti22 Films), Better Together (Kaleidoscope Productions), Goose Mine: Building Canada’s Newest Gold Mine (B2 Gold Corp), True Financial Crime – Human Trafficking (Media Zoo Ltd), Wild Spaces (Plastic Pictures), From Berlin to the World (Final Frame GmbH), The Story of Sara Klomps – Access Solutions for Every Place (dormakaba), Cogitations (Radio One, Radio Television Hong Kong), and Globo and Volkswagen: A 60-Year Partnership (TV Globo, Doc Albany Short Documentary (Publicis Sapient), Waiting for the Game l UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 (Switzerland Tourism).
Promotional work demonstrated bold creative approaches to audience engagement. Shortlisted companies include BBC Studios Distribution Limited, ZDF, Public Television Service Foundation (Hakka TV), Mediaset España, MakerVille Company Limited, Mediacorp Pte Ltd, Transatlantic Production ET Services, Telefónica Audiovisual Digital SLU, TV Globo, and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
For storytellers who are using their talents to change the world, New York Festivals and JusticeAid are partnering on the JusticeAid Award, which will recognize the highest-scoring entry across all Social Justice categories in the Radio and TV & Film competitions.
The WaterBear Award is presented to the highest-scoring documentary across Climate Change & Sustainability, Environment & Ecology, and Nature & Wildlife. This award is a partnership between WaterBear Network and New York Festivals, a free streaming platform dedicated to the future of our planet.
Winning entries for both these prestigious awards will be announced during the 2026 Storytellers Gala on May 21, 2026.
NYF will honor distinguished news leader Stephen Capus, President of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and former President of NBC News, with the New York Festivals 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award at the annual New York Festivals Storytellers Gala.
All entries in the 2026 competition were judged by the NYF TV & Film Awards Grand Jury, comprised of producers, directors, writers, and creative professionals from around the world. Award winners will be announced during the 2026 Storytellers Gala on May 21, 2026.
For more information about New York Festivals TV & Film Awards 2026 competition visit: HERE