Congratulations to the award-winning artists of the 2026 West Virginia Mountaineer
Short Film Festival:

Earth and Sky Award:
In its fertile shade, Andrés Dávila,
Colombia 

Body and Spirit Award:
All of This Must Be Paid For, Gabi Rudin,
United States

Time Theme Award:
fracture summer, Kym McDaniel,
United States

Best Regional Work:
CosmonautOpRemix, Timothy Nohe,
United States

Best Experimental Work:
The Story of the Cricket Queen, Natalie Peracchio
United States

Honorable Mention:
Hurricane Season, Michelle Trujillo,
United States

Best Short Narrative:
PAPA, Florias Welch Gallay,
Switzerland

Honorable Mention:
10 52, Amirmohammad Zand,
Iran

Best Documentary:
On Camera, Jackie Mishol,
United States

Honorable Mention:
Voices of the mountains,
Laboratory for visual storytelling,
Tajikistan

Best VR Project:
Midst the Sky, Kiley Brandt,
United States

Best Animation:
Facuk, Maida Srabovic,
Croatia/Slovenia

Honorable Mention:
Dollhouse Elephant, Jenny Jokela,
Finland

Best Student Experimental Work:
Fumble, Mahsa Talebiani,
United States

Honorable Mention:
Petty People, Yang Yi,
United States

Best Student Animation:
Service Bus, Elmer Lodemel,
Denmark

Honorable Mention:
Project Selkie, Ryleigh Moule,
United States

Best Student Narrative:
Miracles Happen Day, Sloane Ren,
United States

Honorable Mention:
Black Saturday!, Alexander Colt Young,
United States

Best Young Filmmaker Award:
The Bunny,
Isaiah Supadi & Oscar Smith,
Australia

Honorable Mention:
The Red Thread, Peyton Rhian Fitz,
United States

Best WVU Student Work:
I fear what's in my cells, Aiden Crawford, United States

Honorable Mention:
You Look Familiar, Brooke Haller,
United States

Organized by the Digital Art & Animation area in the WVU School of Art and Design and founded in 2010, the WVMSFF has been a hub for independent and experimental filmmakers worldwide, bringing diverse cultural and artistic perspectives to West Virginia and the Appalachian region.