Success For NFTS Alumni At British Short Film Awards 2026

The 2026 British Short Film Awards ceremony took place last night, hosted by the legendary Claudia Winkleman, and the National Film and Television School (NFTS) is incredibly proud to see so many alumni rewarded for their outstanding work.

​Sean Connery Talent Lab short Gowk, written and directed by Ryan Pollock and produced by Kitty McMurdo-Schad and Katriona Tweedie, took home the coveted prize for Best Student Short and The Pigeon, produced by Stephanie Faucher, won Best Live Action Short.

Kitty McMurdo-Schad and Ryan Pollock with Best Student Short trophy

Editor Paco Sweetman was awarded Best Editing for his work on A Sisyphean Task, which also took home Best English Short and Best British Short Film. NFTS graduation fiction film Oneiros took home two awards, with Cal Ola winning Best Cinematography and William Mansell winning Best Production Design. Alumni-led Ovary-Acting, written by Laura Jayne Tunbridge, won Best Screenplay.

Check out the full list of alumni behind these award-winning productions!
 

Best Live Action Short

The Pigeon
Producer Stephanie Faucher

Best Student Short

Gowk (Sean Connery Talent Lab)
Writer/Director Ryan Pollock, Producers Katriona Tweedie and Kitty McMurdo Schad, Cinematographer Vasilieos Kapnis, Editor Fraser Ballantyne

The Craft Nominations

Best Cinematography

Oneiros (NFTS) - Cal Ola
Additional alumni include Director Junbo Qiu, Producer Paola Dominique Delfuego, Screenwriter Tyler Frech, 1st AC Gabrielle Scobie, 2nd AC Ran You, Grip Support Ralph Simmons, Production Designer Will Mansell, Production Manager Luke Asco, Production Coordinator Anton Bogolepov, Assistant Directors Sean Frost, Chloe Andrews, Toby Gregory, Veronica Ceci de Carli, Isabella Trottini, Scenic Painter Sarah Lewis, Production Sound Mixer Andrew Ford, 1st Assistant Sound Ava Doyle, Editor/Online Editor Bert Welsh, Sound Designer/Dubbing Mixer Jingman Anita Xu, Composer Katie Ellwood, VFX Supervisor Jordan Streete, CG Lead Manraj ‘Manny’ Deol, CG Artists Manraj ‘Manny’ Deol, Jordan Streete, Lead Compositor Jamaal Hassan, Compositors Emilio W. Gotterbarm, Savani Mohite, Jamaal Hassan, Stewart Jameson, VFX Editor Savani Mohite, Digital Matte Painting Artist Stewart Jameson, Colourist Cameron Ward

Best Editing

A Sisyphean Task - Paco Sweetman
Additional alumni include Boom operator: dailies Bethany White

Best Production Design

Oneiros (NFTS) - William Mansell

Best Screenplay

Ovary-Acting - Laura Jayne Tunbridge
Additional alumni include composer Alastair McNamara, director Ida Melum, composer Joseph Stevenson, editor Lesley Posso, colorist Marco Valerio Caminiti, producer Michelle Brondum, sound designer Miles Sullivan, animator Rich Farris

Huge congratulations to all our alumni behind this outstanding work!

Want to train to make award-winning work?
Places are available on National Film & Television School courses, starting January 2027!
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