The 42nd Haifa International Film Festival has announced its award winners in a ceremony that took place on October 2, 2026.
Israeli Cinema Awards
Hager (Land), directed by Shmuel Beru, was awarded Best Film.
The jury award for Best Narrative Feature was awarded this year to two films: Double Panther, by Marco Carmel and Yoav Shutan-Goshen, and Blue Marks, directed by Dina Zvi-Riklis.
The jury award for Best Documentary Film was awarded to I Want to Tell My Story, directed by Tomer Heymann.
The Amit Peled Award for Best Debut Feature was awarded to Stay! directed by Reut Akkerman.
The Best Screenplay Award for Narrative Feature was awarded to Dina Zvi-Riklis for Blue Marks.
Best Research for Documentary Film was awarded to Tali Shamir-Wertzberger and Dan Pines for the film I Want to Tell My Story.
Best Acting in a Narrative Feature was awarded to two actors this year: Yaakov Daniel Zada for his role in Double Panther, and Noa Ohayon for her role in Blue Marks.
The Best Artistic Achievement Award was awarded to Itzik Portal, Ori Ackerman, Ran Aviad, and Yoram Milo for their cinematography in the film Hager (Land).
An Honorable Mention in memory of Pnina Blayer was awarded to Nitzan Gilady for the film Thou Shalt Love.
Carmel – The International Cinema Competition
Queen at Sea, written and directed by Lance Hammer won the Best Film Award.
An Honorable Mention was awarded to the film All of a Sudden, directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi.
Golden Anchor Competition
A Girl Unknown, directed by Zou Jing, won the Best Film Award.
An Honorable Mention was awarded to the film Everytime, directed by Sandra Wollner.
