SHREVEPORT, La. — The Prize Foundation has announced finalists for Prize Fest 2026, which will bring competitions in film, food, music, comedy and photography to downtown Shreveport from Oct. 14-18.
The Louisiana Film Prize will feature 20 narrative short films competing for a grand prize of up to $50,000. Filmmakers were required to shoot a five- to 15-minute narrative short in Louisiana to qualify.
The Film Prize carries a $25,000 grand prize, which doubles to $50,000 if the winning film was shot in Caddo Parish. The winner will be determined through a combination of audience voting and evaluations from a panel of film industry judges.
Film Prize screenings are scheduled for Oct. 16-17 at venues in downtown Shreveport and Bossier City following a red carpet event Oct. 15. Films also will be available for online viewing and voting.
The 20 Film Prize finalists are “Abnegation,” directed by Niko Kochalidze; “Carolina Blue,” directed by Mark D. Bonner; “The Day I Met Aretha Franklin,” directed by Brian Egland and Carlos Jimenez; “Doom Lift,” directed by David Culotta; “Fruits of Our Labor,” directed by Taylor Deville; “Grad Night,” directed by Travis Bible; “The Great White Wolf,” directed by Zac Cino; “Harvested,” directed by Justin Livingston; “Hours to Minutes to Seconds,” directed by Catalina Cielo and Stevie Cavalier; “Inhumation,” directed by Austin Gorski; “The Jade Stallion,” directed by Devon Johns; “The King of Time,” directed by Erinn Hayes; “The Man I Love,” directed by Kai Tan; “Max Capacity,” directed by April Yanko; “Smoke,” directed by Gian Smith; “Someday They’ll Go Down Together,” directed by Taylor Bracewell; “Spatial,” directed by Paul Petersen; “Stalling,” directed by Xander Topich; “Tannenbaum,” directed by Matthew Spriggs; and “Winter Wind,” directed by Heath Hill.
Food Prize will feature six finalists selected through the Golden Fork Dinner Series. They are Darrielle Stephens of BPCC Culinary Arts, Jacob Mouser of Chop Shop, Chelsea Girard of Fat Calf Brasserie, Abelardo “Lalo” de los Santos of El Cabo Verde, Jasmine Cherry of The Noble Savage and Sanela Tomic of Bella Fresca/Sauvage.
The chefs will compete during Come and Get It on Oct. 14, with three advancing to the Battle for the Golden Fork on Oct. 17. The winner will receive $5,000 and the Golden Fork trophy.
Five mixologists also will compete for the Golden Shaker: Audrey DeLaune of Heron Mae & Co., Chase Boytim of Fatty Arbuckles, Dakota Craig of Bear’s, Paul Loggins of Zuzul Coastal Cuisine and Walker Adams of Fat Calf Brasserie.
Music Prize will feature 11 finalists performing during live showcases Oct. 16-17 at the Remington Garage. The competition carries a $10,000 grand prize, while an Audience Choice winner will receive $1,000.
The Music Prize finalists are Ado Soul of New Orleans; Before the Mountain and Jesse Rawlinson of Shreveport; Dezi 5 and J. Isaiah Evans & the Boss Tweed of Dallas; Elijah Delgado of Buda, Texas; Gran Moreno of Canyon Lake, Texas; Madame Radar of Wimberley, Texas; Parker Woodland and Rococo Disco of Austin, Texas; and The Family of Florence, Alabama.
Eight stand-up comedians will compete for $2,500 in Comedy Prize. The finalists are April Boddie, Gary Simmons, Philipp Kostelecky, Rachel Williams and Tatiana Frank of New York; John Novosad of Denver; Papp Johnson of Oakland, California; and Shane Bianchi of Los Angeles.
Photo Prize will feature up to 30 photographers competing for a $1,000 Golden Lens Grand Prize and a $500 People’s Choice Award. The Prize Foundation said photography finalists will be announced later.
Prize Fest is organized by the Shreveport-based nonprofit Prize Foundation and is designed to use creative competitions to support talent development, tourism and economic activity in Northwest Louisiana.
“Every year, we think Prize Fest can’t get any bigger, and every year these artists prove us wrong,” Prize Foundation founder and Executive Director Gregory Kallenberg said. “This year’s finalists are a remarkable group of filmmakers, chefs, musicians, photographers and comedians who are bringing their best work to Shreveport.”