By six o'clock on Friday 16 October, the basement of the prestigious Savile Club in Mayfair (featured once in Craig Gillespie's Cruella, 2021) was filling with filmmakers, actors, jurors and film professionals from across Soho and Mayfair, many of them taking the dress code ("elegant, eccentric, glamorous and tasteful") as a personal challenge. Official photographer Kay Anthony was kept busy from the moment the doors opened, and the Club's canapés and refreshments did their part to set the festival mood.

© K-Anthony Photography
Peter Valentino

It was a well-attended evening. Among the winning filmmakers in the room were Peter Valentino, director of Bye-Bye, Sing Sing; Tim Heath and Tom Swash, co-directors of Theatre Royal Battersea Rise; and, from Muddled Meals, Anita Albrecht with her husband Martyn Ward, who also appears in the film, and Anja Cilia.

© SohoFilmAwards.com
Andrew Fish

The jury was represented too. Not every judge could be present, but Andrew Fish, the London actor, writer and critic who played the most active part in the judging, was there, as were Raymond Keene OBE, the chess grandmaster, and his wife Annette Keene, a former star of the ballet world with a keen interest in the film industry. David Shilling, the celebrated London milliner famed in Monaco, was unable to attend but sent warm greetings and words of support.

At a quarter past six, Ima von Wenden of Cinelion UK rose to give the opening address, Why We Need This Film Festival. Ima's answer rested on the conviction printed beneath the festival's name, The Spirit of Independent Cinema: that films made with modest budgets and immodest ambition deserve a stage, and that the qualities which make a picture endure – storytelling, performance, direction and artistic integrity – matter more than fashion.

The setting suited the argument. Curiously, the first ceremony of the Soho Film Awards was held not in Soho but in Mayfair: The Savile Club offered better terms than many of Soho's screening rooms and independent cinemas, though we hope to establish screening partnerships in Soho itself before long. This first edition took place, quite literally, underground, in a specially equipped room below stairs that feels more like a private home cinema with a large screen than a picture palace. We make no secret that a larger venue will be needed next time: the response to the call for entries far exceeded expectations, with around two-thirds of all submissions arriving as short films. Rather than let so much good work go unrecognised under a single Best Short Film heading, the jury introduced a family of genre categories – and several of those new honours were handed over on the night.

A world premiere and a shared triumph

The programme began at half past six and included the world premiere of Theatre Royal Battersea Rise (UK, 2026), directed by Tim Heath and Tom Swash and winner of the Best British Drama award. Set in May 2020, it follows two actors, one a student and the other semi-retired, as COVID-19 closes the theatres around them. Heath has spent more than forty years on stage, screen and television; this is his first film as a director, and it was a fitting work to unveil in a club with deep roots in the arts.

© K-Anthony Photography
Tim Heath

He later reflected on the event: "I thought the night was great fun, and thank you again for hosting such a splendid evening. It has been a pleasure liaising with your festival. Your selection policy and helpful communication with contributors put many a film festival to shame. This event should go from strength to strength, and I wish you the very best of luck. May I suggest that you list the Soho Film Awards on the IMDb festival list. Then lucky award winners can add their awards to their IMDb page. This would attract even more talented contributors. I hope the rest of the 2026 season of screenings goes well."

Muddled Meals (UK, 2026) proved one of the evening's most decorated entries. Christie Arnold took Best Director for this seven-minute drama about a worn-out daughter caring for her mother through dementia, while Rula Lenska, Anita Albrecht – who also wrote the script based on her real-life personal experience – and Anja Cilia received the Outstanding Performance award, a team honour for three leading actresses whose work the jury simply declined to separate. Rula Lenska was unable to attend in person but addressed the audience in a recorded video message from "sunny Spain", which was warmly received in the room.

"I know it's special and it touches everybody who sees it," she said of Muddled Meals, "and I'm so grateful and touched that it has gone to a special award created especially for us."

Adam Bouabda’s darkly comic Tania, a semi-finalist, gave audiences Stephen Tompkinson, best known for the classic film Brassed Off and hit television series Ballykissangel, as Alan, a secretive man with a month to live and a mannequin wife nobody knows about. Meena Ayittey's The Call collected an Honourable Mention, and Lawton Charman's The Man Who Spoke Twice, a finalist for Best Comedy Feature, was also on the bill.

The short-film honours

Best Short Film went to Something Pointless (UK, 2026), a philosophical drama from the Welsh virtual-production pioneer Asa Bailey, starring BAFTA winner Owen Teale and Olivier Award winner Sophie Thompson, with Sule Rimi and Leo Harris. Ireland's Edelle Kenny earned Best Short Film Screenplay for her comedy The Race; Kate Lloyd's fantasy-comedy Dead to Door won Best Short Sci-Fi / Fantasy; and Drop Number 8, a dark comedy by Ryan and Chad Chamberlain, was named Best Short Thriller. Michalis Langas's surrealist This Will Make You Sleep Instantly took the Best Short Indie / Alternative / Arthouse prize – and, we are pleased to report, failed to live up to its title.

The 2026 roll of honour

  • Best Feature Film: Last Supper (USA, 2026), Sonny Corona III
  • Best Comedy Feature: Rest In Peace, If You Can (France, 2025), Charly Ongolo and Michel Nogara
  • Best Indie / Alternative / Arthouse Feature: Beyond Mamushi (UK, 2025), Martin Daniels
  • Best Director: Christie Arnold, Muddled Meals (UK, 2026)
  • Best Leading Actor / Actress: Yekaterina Molostova, Bye-Bye, Sing Sing (USA, 2026), directed by Peter Valentino
  • Best Short Film: Something Pointless (UK, 2026), Asa Bailey
  • Best Short Drama: Empathy Rehearsals (Italy, 2026), Jacopo Cullin
  • Best Short Thriller: Drop Number 8 (USA, 2025), Ryan and Chad Chamberlain
  • Best Short Romance: We Are Where We Are (UK, 2026), Clara Planelles
  • Best Short Sci-Fi / Fantasy: Dead to Door (UK, 2026), Kate Lloyd
  • Best Short Indie / Alternative / Arthouse Film: This Will Make You Sleep Instantly (Greece, Romania, UK, 2025), Michalis Langas
  • Best Short Film Screenplay: The Race (Ireland, 2026), Edelle Kenny
  • Best Short Film Cinematography: A Girl Called Alice (UK, 2026), Tristan Loraine
  • Best British Drama: Theatre Royal Battersea Rise (UK, 2026), Tim Heath and Tom Swash
  • Outstanding Performance: Rula Lenska, Anita Albrecht and Anja Cilia, Muddled Meals (UK, 2026)

Part two: early November

One evening could never hold every winner, and the feature-length works in particular demand a sitting of their own. The top prize was nonetheless celebrated on the night: Andrew Cortez, one of the filmmakers behind Best Feature Film winner Last Supper, could not travel to London, being in the middle of filming in Texas, and sent a recorded video address to the audience instead.

The second part of the festival's screenings and celebrations is therefore expected to take place in early November; the date is now being established and will be announced on our Programme page.

The second programme will include:

  • Last Supper (USA, 2026) – Sonny Corona III's Best Feature Film winner, a Southern noir tragedy in which a hit becomes a slow reckoning over dinner
  • We Turn (USA, 2026) – Roberde Madhere's psychological drama, a finalist for Best Feature Film, about a woman released after two years of wrongful imprisonment
  • We Are Where We Are (UK, 2026) – Clara Planelles's Best Short Romance
  • Bye-Bye, Sing Sing (USA, 2026) – Peter Valentino's short, for which Yekaterina Molostova won Best Leading Actor / Actress
  • Beyond Mamushi (UK, 2025) – Martin Daniels's psychological thriller, winner of Best Indie / Alternative / Arthouse Feature
  • A Girl Called Alice (UK, 2026) – Tristan Loraine's criminal thriller, winner of Best Short Film Cinematography

As before, places will be limited by the capacity of the venue, so filmmakers and guests wishing to attend are encouraged to contact us in good time.

With thanks

None of this would have been possible without our partners: The Savile Club, for the screening room, canapés and refreshments; the Eccentric Club, our ticketing and audience-curating partner; SohoMag, our Official Information Partner; BOW PR, our Marketing and Public Relations Partner; Kay Anthony, our Official Photographer, and AllSports Trophies, our preferred trophy provider. Our thanks, above all, go to every filmmaker who trusted us with their work in our first year. The house lights are up for now – but not for long.

© SohoFilmAwards.com