AFF 2026 Feature Fiction and Feature Documentary Award Winners Announced
The winners of the AFF 2026 Feature Fiction and Feature Documentary Awards have been announced!
South African filmmaker John Trengove's The Smell of Apples has won the AFF Feature Fiction Award, while The Balkan Cowboy, directed by Dublin-based artist and filmmaker Dragana Jurišić, has taken home the AFF Feature Documentary Award.
Selected by the AFF 2026 Official Competition Jury, the two award-winning films have each received a $10,000 prize, recognising distinctive filmmaking and bold storytelling from around the world.
The Jury also awarded Special Mentions to Fruit Gathering, directed by Aung Phyoe, and Tehran, Under the Skin, directed by Afsaneh Salari.
AFF Feature Fiction Award: The Smell of Apples
Set in apartheid-era South Africa, The Smell of Apples follows 11-year-old Marnus, whose idyllic childhood begins to unravel as he confronts the violence and inequality surrounding his privileged family. Adapted from Mark Behr's acclaimed novel, the film explores family, secrecy and the gradual awakening of a young boy to the realities of apartheid.
South African writer and director John Trengove co-wrote the film with Christopher Ciancimino. His debut feature, The Wound (2017), premiered at Sundance and Berlin, won the Sutherland Award for Best First Feature at the BFI London Film Festival and was shortlisted for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. His second feature, Manodrome (2023), premiered in competition at Berlin.
In awarding The Smell of Apples the AFF Feature Fiction Award, the Official Competition Jury said:
“Among the Feature Fiction films, the jury was especially impressed by a film made with both visual and narrative precision. For its devastating story of family, secrets and violence seen through the unblinking eyes of a child, the jury awards the Feature Fiction Competition Prize to The Smell of Apples, directed by John Trengove.”
On receiving news of the award, Trengove said:
“I’m humbled and delighted by this news. The Smell of Apples was a labour of love, and I owe everything to the incredible team who took this journey with me. To see our film resonate with audiences far and wide is immensely gratifying. Thank you to the Adelaide Film Festival for this recognition, it is deeply appreciated.”
Established in 2007, the AFF Feature Fiction Award recognises international filmmaking that embraces distinctive voices, bold storytelling and creative risk-taking. The $10,000 award is sponsored by the Nunn Dimos Foundation.
See The Smell of Apples at AFF 2026: Saturday 24 October, 12:00 pm at The Piccadilly.
AFF Feature Documentary Award: The Balkan Cowboy
The Balkan Cowboy, from artist, photographer and filmmaker Dragana Jurišić, has won the AFF Feature Documentary Award.
Growing up in the former Yugoslavia, Jurišić was captivated by Westerns, particularly those of the mysterious local filmmaker Hari Džekson. Returning to the region decades later, she sets out to uncover the story of the filmmaker who inspired her childhood fascination, confronting the lasting divisions and difficult histories left by the Yugoslav wars.
Blending archival material, personal memories and unexpected humour, The Balkan Cowboy takes audiences on a journey through cinema, history and the communities shaped by conflict.
Born in the former Yugoslavia and now based in Dublin, Jurišić is an award-winning visual artist, photographer and filmmaker, and an assistant professor at Dublin City University's School of Communications. The Balkan Cowboy marks her directorial debut and screened in competition at Sarajevo Film Festival.
In recognising the film, the Official Competition Jury said:
“The Jury awards the Best Documentary Prize to a film that takes an inventive, long-view approach to the wounds of history and the enduring divisions left by violent religious ethnonationalism. Archival, innovative, and often unexpectedly funny, Balkan Cowboy turns a deeply personal journey into a moving exploration of the Yugoslav wars and their aftermath. With wit, humanity, and a keen eye for the absurd, the film reminds us that confronting the past may open new ways of understanding one another.”
Jurišić, who joined us in Adelaide for the Festival, shared:
“I spent the most welcoming, fun and wonderful days at the Adelaide Film Festival 2026. I am so grateful to learn of the Best Documentary Award for The Balkan Cowboy. My heartfelt thanks to the Jury and the brilliant team at Adelaide Film Festival.
“The Festival was a warm and inclusive space and I am so fortunate to have had a chance to attend. I would like to use this opportunity to thank our funders: Screen Ireland, Coimisiún na Meán, RTÉ and the Irish film tax credit and the Croatian Audio Visual Centre. Thanks also to my producers Zlata Filipović, Anna Rodgers and co-producer Oliver Sertić, the brilliant cast and crew, the family of Hari Džekson and the people of Bijeljina where we shot this film. The documentary was inspired by a film lover and a dreamer who brought people together through the process of filmmaking and I hope it will continue to do that as it goes on to screen to the audiences around the world.”
Introduced in 2013, the $10,000 AFF Feature Documentary Award celebrates original and distinctive voices in factual filmmaking.
See The Balkan Cowboy at AFF 2026: Saturday 24 October, 12:00 pm at Palace Nova Eastend.
Special Mentions
The AFF 2026 Official Competition Jury also recognised two films with Special Mentions across the Feature Fiction and Feature Documentary competitions.
Feature Fiction Special Mention: Fruit Gathering
The Jury awarded a Special Mention to Fruit Gathering, directed by Aung Phyoe.
Set against the backdrop of civil war in Myanmar, the film follows a young woman working in a textile factory whose plans for a new life are complicated by an unexpected connection with a fellow worker. A tender and provocative exploration of forbidden love, the film previously won the Grand Prix Crystal Globe at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
The Jury said:
“For its insightful portrait of a young woman embarking on a journey of quiet but intense passion, the jury awards a special mention to Fruit Gathering, directed by Aung Phyoe.”
Feature Documentary Special Mention: Tehran, Under the Skin
Afsaneh Salari's Tehran, Under the Skin also received a Special Mention from the Official Competition Jury.
Exploring the widespread popularity of plastic surgery in Iran, the documentary offers an intimate look at the personal, cultural and economic pressures surrounding beauty in contemporary Tehran.
The Jury said:
“The Jury awards a Special Mention to Tehran, Under the Skin, a memorable film offering the viewer startling access to the hectic, culturally complex world of plastic surgery in Tehran. Intimate and probing, it takes an unjudgmental look at the hopes, anxieties, and economics of beauty.”
See Tehran, Under the Skin at AFF 2026: Thursday 22 October, 12:30 pm at Palace Nova Eastend.
AFF 2026 Official Competition Jury
The AFF 2026 Feature Fiction and Feature Documentary competitions were judged by five members of the Official Competition Jury, bringing together international perspectives and expertise across filmmaking, performance, production and film exhibition.
The 2026 Official Competition Jury comprises:
Cameron Bailey, CEO of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
Xavier Samuel, internationally acclaimed South Australian actor, whose credits include Elvis and Send Help.
Sandeep Ray, filmmaker and academic, and Head of the School of Humanities at the University of Nottingham Malaysia.
Tilda Cobham-Hervey, Adelaide-based actor, writer, director and producer, known for I Am Woman and Apple Cider Vinegar.
Anna Vincent, Australian producer whose work across fiction and documentary has screened at major international film festivals, including Cannes, Sundance, Berlin and Tribeca.
AFF thanks the Official Competition Jury for their time, expertise and commitment to recognising outstanding filmmaking in the 2026 program.