Fantastic Fest 2026 crowns Girl in the Night, Ghost in the Cell and Adult Supervision
Girl in the Night, Ghost in the Cell and Adult Supervision have taken the top feature honours at Fantastic Fest 2026, according to the winners list published by Variety. The three titles led the festival's three main feature strands: Main Competition, Horror Features and Next Wave.
In Main Competition, Best Picture went to Girl in the Night directed by Luka Marčetić. Best Director went to Bertrand Mandico for Roma Elastica. A Special Mention, an extra recognition alongside the main prizes, went to Five More Minutes directed by Javier Ruiz Caldera, as reported by Variety.
In Horror Features, Best Picture went to Ghost in the Cell directed by Joko Anwar. Best Director went to Nikias Chryssos for Bloody Tennis, with a Special Mention for The Cycle directed by Jordan Downey. Ghost in the Cell is a 106-minute film from Indonesia that had its North American premiere, its first screening in North America, at the festival, as listed by IndieWire. The festival's own guide places the film in Horror Competition.
In Next Wave, a strand focused on newer voices, Best Picture went to Adult Supervision by Alex Schulman. Best Director went to Agata Trzebuchowska for Sick, while the Special Mention went to Jollyface directed by Justin Floyd. Performance honours in the strand went to Konrad Karol and Katarzyna Lubik, both recognised for Sick, and to Cole Asher Phillips for Phreaker, according to Variety.
The crowd had its own favourite. The Audience Award, voted by festivalgoers rather than a jury, went to Five More Minutes directed by Javier Ruiz Caldera. That gave the film two prizes on the night, adding to its Special Mention in Main Competition.
Beyond features, Fantastic Shorts Best Picture went to Jimmy's Custom Coffin directed by James P. Gannon. The top award in Fantastic Pitches, a live session where makers present new projects to potential backers, went to Father Figure by writer and director Connor Martin and producer Josh Farnworth, as reported by Variety.
What makes this stand out is the overlap. Five More Minutes connected with both a jury and the wider audience. Sick also took multiple mentions, with prizes for direction and two of its performers.
