Spanish documentary Filthy, co-directed by Bàrbara Mestanza and Marc Pujolar, has won the grand jury award of the international competition at this year’s Sheffield DocFest.
The film follows actress Mestanza as she pursues the man who assaulted her through years of legal proceedings, while turning her trauma into a theatre play.
See full list of winners below
The jury credited the documentary for its “courageous storytelling and remarkable creative vision” and for transforming “personal trauma into a collective reckoning.”
The jury added: “Its disciplined and compelling editing weaves together years of artistic creation and legal pursuit, creating a gripping journey that challenges audiences to look inward and examine their own narratives.”
Roman Liubyi, and Volodymyr Tykhyy’s Time Machine Maidan, about Ukraine’s Maidan revolution, received a special mention in the international competition.
DocFest’s international first feature competition was won by Magma directed by Mia Bendrimia. Spanning Algeria and France, Magma follows the director as she sets out to understand how colonialism tore her family apart.
There was a special mention for US doc A City in the Forest by Lev Omelchenko and Nolan Huber, about a grassroots movement fighting moves to raze an urban forest for the country’s largest police training facility.
Among the pitch session winners were Children Of Honey directed by Jigar Ganatra and Emanuel Musa Marco, which won The Whickers Pitch, Film & TV Funding Award with a prize of £120,000 while the Whickers development prize of £25,000 went to Welcome To Our Bathhouse directed by Tommaso Barbetta.
The Sheffield DocFest ran from June 10 - 15.
Sheffield DocFest key winners 2026
International First Feature Competition
Magma (Le Magma), dir. Mia Bendrimia (Fr-Alg-Qatar)
Special mention: A City in the Forest, dir. Lev Omelchenko, Nolan Huber (US)
Youth Jury Award
Crocodile - The Critics, dir. Pietra Brettkelly (NZ-Nigeria)
Tim Hetherington Award
The Long Cuban Night, dir. Sergio Fernandez Borras (Sp-Col-Cuba)
Special mention: Birds Of War, dirs. Janay Boulos, Abd Alkader Habak (UK-Syria-Leb)
Shine Global Children’s Resilience Award for Documentary
One In A Million, dirs. Itab Azzam and Jack MacInnes
Sheffield DocFest Football Documentary Awar
Cantona, dirs: David Tryhorn and Ben Nicholas for Cantona
Pitch Session winners
The Whickers Pitch, Film & TV Funding Award 2026
Children Of Honey, dirs. Jigar Ganatra and Emanuel Musa Marc
Welcome To Our Bathhouse, dir. Tommaso Barbetta
Channel 4 First Cut Pitch
Flora Stewart
Climate Spring Digital-First Pitch
Ruben Against The Machine, dir. Ruben Reuter and Rosie Baldwin
The MeetMarket Awards
AIDC Award
Disruption, dir. Sarvnik Kaur (India-Fr), prod. Monisha Thyagarajan and Sarvnik Kaur
DAE Talent Encouragement Award (Switz-Peru)
Rebellion Of Memory, dir. Joël Jent, prod. Sophia Rubischung and Claudia Chávez Lévano
Tokyo Docs Award
Taxi Driver, dir. Sarah Chishti (US), prod. Sarah Chishti
East Doc Platform Award
Slavik’s Journey to Forever, dir. Vladyslav Vasylchenko (Ukr), prod. Bohdanna Semen / Babylon’13
MEDIMED Award
Anywhere but Here, dir. Emilio di Stefano (Sweden), prod. Daniéla Frykstrand and Elin Kamlert
Ji.hlava Award
SUDAN - The Invisible War
Bird Street Productions Award
The Bologna Trial, dir. Paolo Fiore Angelini (Bel-It), prod. Thierry Detaille, Serena Gramizzi, Thierry Detaille, Serena Gramizzi
The Farm Post-Production Award
Upstream, dir. Moira Fett, Natalie Berger (US), prod. Martha Gregory, Sean Weiner
#DocsConnect Conscious Filmmaking Award by Taskovski Training
Before Our Diaspora, dir. Theo Panagopoulos (UK-Fr), prod. Nadja Lapcevic
Taskovski PR & Publicity Award
Rebellion of Memory, dir. Joël Jent (Switz-Peru), prod. Sophia Rubischung and Claudia Chávez Lévano
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