BFI & Chanel Filmmaker Awards 2026 winners announced
Rich Felgate, Olive Nwosu, Imran Perretta and Rachel Taparjan each receive £20,000 at a London luncheon on 14 October 2026.
The BFI has announced the four winners of its fifth annual BFI & Chanel Filmmaker Awards. Rich Felgate, Olive Nwosu, Imran Perretta and Rachel Taparjan each receive a £20,000 prize, according to deadline.com.
The awards were presented at a luncheon at Claridge's in London on 14 October 2026. Felgate is director-producer-cinematographer of We, The Hated; Nwosu is director-writer of Lady; Perretta is director-co-writer-composer of Ish; and Taparjan is director-writer of Something Familiar.
The jury was led by Edward Enninful, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of EE72; Marie-Louise Khondji, founder of Le Cinéma Club; and BFI CEO Ben Roberts. Jessie Buckley and Gwendoline Christie joined the jury to announce the winners.
Previous recipients include Kathryn Ferguson, who won the Filmmaker Award in 2022 with her debut documentary Nothing Compares, about Sinead O'Connor, and has since directed Bogart: Life Comes in Flashes for Universal. Savannah Leaf won in 2023 with Earth Mama and went on to win the 2024 BAFTA for Best Debut British Writer, while Pinny Grylls won in 2024 as co-writer and co-director of Grand Theft Hamlet, which won the Raindance Maverick Award at the British Independent Film Awards that year. Pillion director Harry Lighton was among the winners last year.
Quick answers
Who won the 2026 BFI & Chanel Filmmaker Awards?
Rich Felgate, Olive Nwosu, Imran Perretta and Rachel Taparjan.
How much is the BFI & Chanel Filmmaker Award prize?
Each award comes with a £20,000 prize.
When and where were the 2026 awards presented?
At a luncheon at Claridge's in London on 14 October 2026.