The 25th Annual Tribeca Festival, presented by OKX, named “Cotton Fever,” “Labrador — Autopsy of Silence,” and “Jail Time Records” among its top winners, with multiple awards across narrative, documentary, shorts, and Tribeca X categories. Festivalgoers’ audie
By Thursday, the 25th Annual Tribeca Festival had already started to look like a year-end conversation—only this time, it was happening in real time, with filmmakers moving from stage to credits while juries made their calls.
“Cotton Fever,” “Labrador — Autopsy of Silence” and “Jail Time Records” landed among the winners at the festival, presented by OKX. The New York-based festival announced its prize holders on Thursday, with juries that included Benedict Wong, Haley Lu Richardson, Mira Nair and Janicza Bravo.
Festival Director and SVP of Programming Cara Cusumano framed the sweep as more than a tally of awards. In a statement. she said: “This year’s award winners embody the spirit of Tribeca: fearless work that crosses borders. expands the form and reveals the power of storytelling to uncover humanity in unexpected places. ” adding. “As we celebrate our 25th year. these artists remind us that powerful stories do more than entertain. they deepen our empathy. broaden our perspective and bring us closer together.”.
For several titles, the night wasn’t a single hit—it was a run of recognition. A selection of the films. such as “Labrador. ” “Summer of Three” and “Jail Time Records. ” received multiple awards at the festival. Performance awards across U.S. and international narrative went to Marcel Ruiz. Paolo Schoene and Kiki Montilla (“Summer of Three”). as well as Christopher Angatookalook (“Labrador — Autopsy of Silence”).
Audience awards for Tribeca, voted on by festivalgoers, have yet to be announced as votes are being tallied.
Across the competitions, the winners were as follows:
In the U.S. Narrative Competition, “Cotton Fever,” directed by Daniel Blake Schwartz, won the Founders Award for Best U.S. Narrative Feature Sponsored by OKX. “Here I’m Alive,” directed by Joshua Z Weinstein, earned the Special Jury Mention for Best U.S. Narrative Feature. Marcel Ruiz, Paolo Schoene, and Kiki Montilla won Best Performance in a U.S. Narrative Feature for “Summer of Three.” The film also picked up Best Screenplay in a U.S. Narrative Feature, credited to Carlitos Ruiz-Ruiz, Marcel Ruiz, and Mariana S. Belaval. Tom Acton Fitzgerald received Best Cinematography in a U.S. Narrative Feature for “Cotton Fever.”.
In the International Narrative Competition, “Labrador — Autopsy of Silence,” directed by Rodrigue Jean (Canada), won Best International Narrative Feature. Christopher Angatookalook (Canada) took Best Performance in an International Narrative Feature for “Labrador — Autopsy of Silence. ” and Mathieu Laverdière won Best Cinematography in an International Narrative Feature for the same film. A Special Jury Mention for Best Performance in an International Feature went to Duda Santos & Mc Nem for “Funk” (Brazil). Alex Camilleri won Best Screenplay in an International Narrative Feature for “Zejtune” (Malta, Germany, Qatar).
The Documentary Competition went to “Jail Time Records” for Best Documentary Feature. directed by Dione Roach and Steve Happi (Cameroon. United States). “Time Warp,” directed by Allison Berg (United States), received a Special Jury Mention for Best Documentary Feature. The same documentary was also recognized for Best Cinematography in a Documentary Feature. credited to Dione Roach. Urberto Rapisardi. and Steve Happi (Cameroon. United States). Other craft nods included a Special Jury Mention for Best Cinematography in a Documentary Feature to Lukas Gut for “Siege of Paradise” (Ireland. Switzerland). Editing honors went to Rebecca Adorno and Viridiana Lieberman for Best Editing in a Documentary Feature for “Jean-Michel” (United States). while Christopher A. Peterson and Peter Norrey earned a Special Jury Mention for Best Editing in a Documentary Feature for “American Zoo” (United Kingdom).
In the Viewpoints Award category, “Crocodile,” directed by The Critics and Pietra Brettkelly (Nigeria, New Zealand), won. Sarah Karei received a Special Jury Mention for Viewpoints Award for “One Woman One Bra” (Kenya, Nigeria).
The Best New Narrative Director Award went to Miiku Sakanishi for “Memorizu” (Japan), with Elisee Junior St. Preux earning a Special Jury Mention, Best New Narrative Director, for “The Tropic Sun and His Eyes” (Haiti).
The Albert Maysles Award for Best New Documentary Director was also awarded to Dione Roach and Steve Happi for “Jail Time Records” (Cameroon, United States). Natalie Baszile and Hyacinth Parker received a Special Jury Mention, Albert Maysles Award, for “Harvest” (United States).
For the Nora Ephron Award, Dina Duma won for “Skateboarding Is Not for Girls” (North Macedonia, Belgium, Slovenia, Croatia).
The Shorts Competition roster included “32B. ” directed by Mohamed Taher (Egypt). as Best Narrative Short. while “So. Boom. ” directed by Abby Pierce (United States). earned a Special Jury Mention. Narrative Short. “Listen. ” directed by Taliesin Black Brown (United States). won Best Documentary Short. and “The Baddest Speechwriter of All. ” directed by Ben Proudfoot and Stephen Curry (United States). took a Special Jury Mention. Documentary Short. Best Animated Short went to “Violet and Marlowe Rob a Bank,” directed by Wesley Wang (United States). “Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe,” directed by Andrea Szelesová (Czech Republic, Slovakia), received a Special Jury Mention, Animated Short. Best New York Short went to “Insufficient Fare,” directed by Michael Gugger and Varvara Kanellakopoulou (United States). The Best Music Video award went to “Fingers Crossed” — The Moth & The Flame, directed by Rebecca Thomas (United States). Student Visionary Award went to “Found&Lost,” directed by Reza Rasouli (Austria).
Other competitions added their own momentum: Tribeca Games Award went to “There are No Ghosts at the Grand,” directed by Anil Glendinning and Rachel Glendinning (United Kingdom).
In Tribeca Podcasts Competition, “The Fastest Girl in Somalia,” directed by Teresa Krug (United States), won Audio Nonfiction Reporting Award. “THE DOUBLE[S],” directed by Winnie Kemp and Alexander Kemp (United States), won Audio Fiction Award. “The Most Wanted Olympian. ” directed by Michelle Shephard (Canada). won Audio Investigative Nonfiction Award. while “Reaching Out. ” directed by Sayre Quevedo (United States). earned Audio Memoir Award.
AT&T Presents Untold Stories recognized Sid Gopinath, Aditya Joshi and Alifya Ali for “Minnesota Goodbye.”
In Tribeca X Award Competition. Best Feature went to “Meal Ticket” from McDonald’s. and Best Short went to “The Book of George” from Stio. Best Commercial was “Last Coke in the Desert” from Coca-Cola. with Best Commercial Honorable Mention going to “Bang Bang” from Safe School Las Vegas. Best Episodic was “Built to Move” from Autodesk, while “Partners” from Carvana received Best Episodic Honorable Mention. Best Content Creator/Influencer went to “The Master of Speed & Stability” from Beats. and Best Audio/Podcast went to “To Catch a Thief: China’s Rise to Cyber Supremacy” from Rubrik. Social Impact Award went to “The Philipstown WireCar Grand Prix” from Accenture / Philipstown WireCar Co. and Environmental Impact Award went to “The Theory of Spice” from Yogi Tea. Director of the Year was awarded to A$AP Rocky.
What ties the winners together isn’t just volume—it’s a wide stretch of categories. from narrative and documentary to shorts. podcasts. and branded storytelling. And as the remaining audience vote results are still being tallied. the festival’s 25th year is shaping up to be a full-spectrum showcase. not a single-lane celebration.
Tribeca Festival OKX Cotton Fever Labrador — Autopsy of Silence Jail Time Records Cara Cusumano Benedict Wong Haley Lu Richardson Mira Nair Janicza Bravo Marcel Ruiz Paolo Schoene Kiki Montilla Christopher Angatookalook documentary winners shorts winners