And that’s a wrap on St Kilda Film Festival 2026

Published 16 June 2026
The curtain fell on the 42nd edition of the St Kilda Film Festival with a packed Awards Ceremony and Closing Night Party at the St Kilda Town Hall.

St Kilda Film Festival 2026 (SKFF) presented more than 190 short films across 10 days and five venues, from the Palais Theatre to St Kilda Town Hall.

As Australia’s longest-running short film festival, SKFF continues to champion the short film format and the filmmakers who define it.

This year’s festival celebrated an incredibly talented group of filmmakers, along with the passionate community of cinemagoers who turned out in droves to support Australian film.

A special shout-out to the 2026 award winners, who stood out among an outstanding and expansive program.

Congratulations to 'Writers in Love', winner of Best Short Film, and 'While We Still Have Time', named Best Documentary. Both films have earned Academy Awards® accreditation.

Full list of award winners:

Best Original Score – Sponsored by AKG and the Australian Guild of Screen Composers
Winner - Kenneth King - Fracture

Best Achievement in Sound Post-production – Sponsored by JBL and the Australian Screen Sound Guild
Winner - Noah Kiely, Gus Threlfall, Keith Thomas - Headphones

Best Achievement in Editing – Sponsored by Roar Digital and Adobe
Winner - Phoebe Taylor - The Shirt Off Your Back

Best Achievement in Screenplay – Sponsored by Cinema Nova and the Australian Writers’ Guild
Winner - Annelise Hickey - Stranger, Brother

Best Achievement in Indigenous Filmmaking – Sponsored by CitiPower
Winner - Bringing His Spirit Home

Best Achievement in Cinematography – Sponsored by Panavision and the Australian Cinematographers Society
Winner - Jaclyn Paterson - The Shirt Off Your Back

Best Young Actor – Sponsored by City of Port Phillip
Winner - VANDALS - Conor Weir and Tobias Cichero

Best Actor – Sponsored by Chameleon Casting
Winner - Nat Damena - Question 57

Best Animation – Sponsored by Deakin University
Winner - The Fling

Best Documentary – Sponsored by Shaun Miller Lawyers
Winner - While We Still Have Time

Best Director – Sponsored by the Australian Directors’ Guild and the Australian Film Television & Radio School
Winner - Celeste Diep - Interview With A Hero

Innovation Award – Sponsored by VicScreen
Winner - INFINIT3

Best Achievement in Production Design – Sponsored by City of Port Phillip
Winner - Imogen Walsh - Headphones

Best Youth Short Film – Sponsored by JMC Academy and City of Port Phillip
Winner - Emile Burford - Manca

Best Short Film – Sponsored by City of Port Phillip
Winner - Writers In Love

To learn more about the award winners, visit St Kilda Film Festival 2026 Award Winners