The San Jose International Short Film Festival is marking nearly two decades of championing short-form cinema, and this year’s Opening Night slate proves the event has lost none of its edge. With a Slamdance Grand Jury Prize winner leading the charge and an Academy Award nominee in tow, the festival is positioning itself as a vital launchpad for filmmakers seeking Oscar glory.
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Featuring 150+ films &80+ visiting filmmakers – Oct. 22 through Oct. 25 – Celebrating 18 Years of World-Class Short Films in the Heart of Silicon Valley
SAN JOSE, CA, UNITED STATES, October 12, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — The San Jose International Short Film Festival (SJSFF) has unveiled the six films that will kick off its 18th edition on Thursday, October 22, at Cinemark CinéArts Santana Row. The lineup draws from five different countries, headlined by Panther Pat, a documentary that took home the Grand Jury Prize at Slamdance and chronicles the first woman to play professional football, alongside I Will Be Alright, the latest work from Oscar-nominated filmmaker Cyrus Neshvad, known for The Red Suitcase. The program also features Signal (UK), We Were Here (India), Aftertouch (Netherlands), and The Piano (USA).
The festivities commence with a red carpet at 6 p.m., followed by the 7 p.m. screening, an audience Q&A with the visiting directors, and a celebratory after-party starting at 9 p.m. As the Bay Area’s sole festival devoted exclusively to short films, SJSFF will continue its run through October 25, showcasing more than 150 shorts from across the globe.
Adding to the excitement, the festival has announced its 2026 jury panels, featuring Academy Award-winning producer Andrew Carlberg, Disney Legend Andreas Deja, and director-actor Carlson Young, whose directorial debut The Blazing World premiered at Sundance and who is known for her role in Scream: The TV Series.
“Opening Night sets the tone for the whole festival, and this year we’re opening with a Slamdance prize-winner, the newest film from an Oscar nominee and four more stories from around the world that audiences will be talking about all weekend,” said Bill Hargreaves, SJSFF Co-Founder and Festival Director. “Eighteen years in, San Jose has become a place where filmmakers from all over the world want their work to be seen, and being an Oscar-qualifying festival means our winning filmmakers have a real shot at Academy consideration, and we’re proud to offer that here in Silicon Valley.”
OPENING NIGHT FILMS
The 80-minute Opening Night program runs the gamut from a true sports story and a refugee drama to a railway rescue, a comedic protest against automation, and a family tale told through music.
Panther Pat (USA, 12 min.), directed by Ashley Brandon, is the 2026 Slamdance Grand Jury Prize winner for Documentary Short and an official selection at the 2026 Tribeca Festival. The film blends archival footage with stop-motion animation to recount the story of Pat Palinkas, a schoolteacher who made history in 1970 as the first woman to play professional football with the Orlando Panthers.
I Will Be Alright (Luxembourg, 18 min.), from Academy Award nominee Cyrus Neshvad, follows a young woman who has escaped Iran’s regime and disguises herself as the Statue of Liberty to earn money.
Signal (UK, 13 min.), directed by Zak Jarvis, centers on a railway signalman whose routine night shift turns urgent when he spots a distressed young man named Billy trespassing on the tracks.
We Were Here (India, 14 min.), directed by Pranav Bhasin, is set in a decaying Indian town where three retired men protest the automation of jobs by posing as household appliances.
Aftertouch (Netherlands, 15 min.), directed by Levi Verspeek, explores a couple’s ordinary movie night that takes a dangerous turn when the man asks his girlfriend to hit him with consent.
The Piano (USA, 8 min.), directed by Avery Kroll, tells the story of a young girl who discovers her father playing piano late at night, a bond built through music that lasts a lifetime and is passed on to her own son after his death.
Filmmakers and guests will walk the red carpet starting at 6 p.m., participate in a Q&A after the screening, and continue the celebration at the Opening Night After-Party at 9 p.m.
THE 2026 JURIES
Two distinct juries will decide this year’s winners. The “Best of Fest” jury will select the festival’s Best Short Film, a title that comes with Academy Award qualification. A separate Best Animation jury brings decades of experience from Walt Disney Animation Studios, Don Bluth Productions, and the international independent animation scene. Collectively, the jurors’ work has been honored by the Academy Awards, the Annie Awards, Sundance, SXSW, and Tribeca.
“Best of Fest” Oscar-Qualifying Jury
Andrew Carlberg is the producer behind Skin, which won the 2019 Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film, and is also an Emmy winner. Named one of Variety’s “Hollywood’s New Leaders,” Carlberg’s credits span film, television, Broadway, and Los Angeles stage productions, including Sun Dogs (Netflix), Sundance selection The Blazing World, Neil LaBute’s Some Girl(s) and Dirty Weekend, Broadway’s Romeo and Juliet and Side Show, and ABC’s Castle.
Carlson Young is a director, writer, and actor who appeared in two seasons of Scream: The TV Series. Her feature directorial debut, The Blazing World, which she wrote, directed, and starred in, premiered at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival. She also directed Amazon’s Upgraded starring Camila Mendes and Marisa Tomei and recently completed work on Trust with Sophie Turner.
Bonnie Discepolo is a filmmaker and actor whose project Neo Dome won audience awards at SXSW, Series Fest, and the Nashville Film Festival, as well as jury prizes at Nashville and Woods Hole. Her acting work includes roles in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and Shazam! Fury of the Gods.
John Trefry is a writer and producer whose work has competed at over 100 festivals including SXSW, Tribeca, and Raindance, with distribution partners like HBO. His credits include Souls of Totality (Tatiana Maslany), How to Be Alone (Joe Keery, Maika Monroe), and 5150 (Jovan Adepo, executive produced by David Oyelowo).
Best Animation Jury
Andreas Deja is a Disney Legend who animated some of the studio’s most iconic characters, including Gaston, Jafar, Scar, Hercules, and Lilo. He wrote to Disney at age 10 asking for a job and was hired in 1980, beginning a 30-year career. A noted historian of hand-drawn animation, Deja has authored books including The Nine Old Men. His 2023 directorial debut, the hand-drawn short Mushka, screened at SJSFF, making this year a return to the festival.
John Pomeroy is an animator, producer, and character designer whose career includes work on many of Disney’s and Don Bluth’s most famous films. After starting at Disney in 1973, he co-founded Don Bluth Productions, producing The Secret of NIMH and animating the laserdisc classic Dragon’s Lair, which was recently featured in Netflix’s Stranger Things. He served as directing animator and producer on An American Tail and The Land Before Time, then returned to Disney as supervising animator on Pocahontas, where he designed John Smith, and on Fantasia 2000.
David Chai is a two-time Annie Award nominee for Best Short Subject. His independent animated films have screened at more than 300 festivals worldwide, including Annecy, Ottawa International Animation Festival, Sundance, and Cinequest, as well as in Spike and Mike’s Festival of Animation. Chai’s career spans television animation, commercials, educational software, and independent film.
THE FESTIVAL
This year’s 150+ official selections span documentary, drama, world cinema, comedy, science fiction, horror, animation, and family-friendly shorts, ranging from 2 to 30 minutes, with several World Premieres, West Coast Premieres, and Bay Area films in the mix. Over 80 filmmakers from Spain, Italy, South Africa, Ireland, and across the U.S. are scheduled to attend and participate in post-screening Q&As. Programmed blocks include The World Beyond (sci-fi), I’ve Got a Bad Feeling About This (suspense), Make ‘Em Laugh and Make ‘Em Laugh: After Dark (comedy), and three World Cinema blocks.
Audience voting will take place throughout the festival. Winners, including the “Best of Fest” Best Short Film award, which carries Academy Award qualification, and Best Animation, will be announced on Saturday, October 24. The festival closes Sunday with a screening of the “Best of the Fest” winners.
Ranked by MovieMaker Magazine among the Top 50 Film Festivals “Worth the Entry Fee,” SJSFF has a history of showcasing Academy Award-nominated and BAFTA-winning shorts while introducing Bay Area audiences to emerging filmmakers from around the world.
WHEN & WHERE
Thursday 10/22: Opening Night red carpet at 6 p.m.; screening at 7 p.m.; after-party at 9 p.m.
Friday 10/23: Screenings from 11 a.m. until late
Saturday 10/Oct. 24: Screenings from 11 a.m. until late; Awards
Sunday, Oct. 25: Closing day from 11 a.m., featuring “Best of the Fest” winners
Venue: Cinemark CinéArts Santana Row, 3088 Olsen Drive, San Jose, CA 95128
Tickets: VIP All Access Pass $175 (all screenings, Opening Night and after-party, VIP Lounge, Awards event, festival T-shirt); Day Passes $30 to $50; individual blocks $10 to $15. Available at sjsff.com/tickets.
ABOUT THE SAN JOSE INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM FESTIVAL
Founded in 2009, the Oscar-qualifying San Jose International Short Film Festival is the Bay Area’s only film festival dedicated exclusively to short films. Each October in the heart of Silicon Valley, SJSFF presents more than 150 shorts from over 24 countries, showing work by new and established filmmakers in every genre. Learn more at sjsff.com and follow @sjisff on Instagram and Facebook.com/SJSFF.
Festival Contact: Bill Hargreaves, Co-Founder / Festival Director, SJSFF | bill@sjsff.com
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Official 2026 SJSFF Festival Trailer
Why it matters: As one of the few Oscar-qualifying festivals dedicated solely to short films, SJSFF’s selections can directly influence which filmmakers get Academy recognition, making its jury picks and audience favorites a bellwether for the upcoming awards season.
