---
title: "SXSW 2026 Winners List: 'Wishful Thinking' Takes Narrative Feature Prize"
date: 2026-03-19
source: Deadline
source_url: https://deadline.com/2026/03/sxsw-2026-winners-list-1236759957/
tags: [sxsw-2026, film, announcement, awards]
summary: SXSW announces Film & TV Festival Jury and Special Award winners, with 'Wishful Thinking' starring Lewis Pullman and Maya Hawke taking the top narrative feature prize.
---

# SXSW 2026 Winners List: 'Wishful Thinking' Takes Narrative Feature Prize

South by Southwest announced its 2026 Film & TV Festival Jury and Special Award winners, recognizing "superlative creativity and talent demonstrated by filmmakers and designers."

## Top Winners

**Narrative Feature Competition:**
- **Winner:** *Wishful Thinking* directed by Graham Parkes, starring Lewis Pullman and Maya Hawke — praised for balancing dramedy with a genre twist and "remarkable performances"
- **Special Jury Award for Performance:** Susan Kent in *The Snake*
- **Special Jury Award for Screenwriting:** *Plantman & Blondie: A Dress Up Gang Film*

**Documentary Feature Competition:**
- **Winner:** *Summer 2000: The X-Cetra Story* directed by Ayden Mayeri
- **Special Jury Awards:** *The Last Critic* (Matty Wishnow) and *Stormbound* (Miko Lim)

**Animated Short:**
- **Winner:** *Paper Trail* by Don Hertzfeldt — described as "visceral, nostalgic, and emotional"

**Midnight Short:**
- **Winner:** *Tongue* directed by Lim Da seul — a sharp satire praised for its meticulous sound design and expert acting

**Music Video:**
- **Winner:** Rawayana and Bomba Estereo – 'Fogata' directed by Paola Ossa

## Key Takeaways

- SXSW VP Claudette Godfrey noted the festival's emotional resonance: "Inside our theaters, something extraordinary happened. Strangers became collaborators."
- Audience Awards voting closes March 18, with winners announced later this week
- The festival continues to be a major launchpad for independent filmmakers across narrative, documentary, short, and music video categories