Greatest Motion pictures of Sundance 2026: IndieWire Critics Survey

Some years, the outcomes of our Sundance Critics Survey are extremely shut and divisive, as critics from around the globe advocate for a wide selection of favorites. In different years, a transparent favourite emerges instantly.

Rely 2026 among the many latter class, as contributors in IndieWire’s annual ballot overwhelmingly supported “Josephine.” Beth de Araújo’s sophomore hitwhich received each the Grand Jury Prize and the Viewers Award on the competition, remarkably got here in first place in each single class it was eligible for, together with Greatest Characteristic MovieGreatest Directing, Greatest Screenwriting, and Greatest Efficiency (the place stars Mason Reeves and Channing Tatum took first and second place, respectively).

William Greaves’ posthumous remaining documentary “As soon as Upon a Time in Harlem” (co-directed together with his son David, who assembled the footage of Harlem Renaissance luminaries reconnecting at a 1974 cocktail social gathering organized by Greaves) was additionally a favourite of critics, being chosen as Greatest Documentary Characteristic and coming in third place within the total Greatest Characteristic class.

The survey included critics from a number of continents and dozens of various retailers who coated Sundance in individual or through the competition’s digital platform. Hold studying for the complete outcomes of IndieWire’s 2026 Sundance Critics Survey.

Greatest Characteristic Movie

1. “Josephine”
2. “The Weight”
3. “As soon as Upon a Time in Harlem”
4. “The Invite”
5. “If I Go Will They Miss Me”
6. “The Buddy’s Home Is Right here”
7. “Gail Daughtry and the Celeb Intercourse Cross”
8. “Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!”
9. “Leviticus”
10. “Nuisance Bear”

Greatest Efficiency

1. Mason Reeves, “Josephine”
2. Channing Tatum, “Josephine”
3. Ethan Hawke, “The Weight”
4. Will Poulter, “Union Nation”
5. Son Sukku, “Bedford Park”
6. Chris Pine, “Carousel”
7. Astrit Kabashi, “Disgrace and Cash”
8. Rinko Kinkuchi, “Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty”
9. Olivia Wilde, “I Need Your Intercourse”
10. Maria Petrova, “Maintain Onto Me”

Greatest Documentary

1. “As soon as Upon a Time in Harlem”
2. “Give Me the Ball”
3. “Nuisance Bear”
4. “Closure”
5. “The Historical past of Concrete”
6. “When a Witness Recants”
7. “Public Entry”
8. “Everyone to Kenmore Avenue”
9. “Joybubbles”
10. “The AI Doc: Or How I Turned an Apocaloptimist”

Greatest Directing

1. Beth de Araújo, “Josephine”
2. William and David Greaves, “As soon as Upon a Time in Harlem”
3. Padraic McKinley, “The Weight”
4. Olivia Wilde, “The Invite”
5. Makoto Nagahisa, “Burn”
6. Louis Paxton, “The Incomer”
7. Walter Thompson-Hernández, “If I Go Will They Miss Me”
8. Josef Kubota Wladyka, “Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!”
9. Kogonada, “Zi”
10. Adam Meeks, “Union County”

Greatest Screenwriting

1. Beth de Araújo, “Josephine”
2. Rashida Jones and Will McCormack, “The Invite”
3. Padraic McKinley, “The Weight”
4. Louis Paxton, “The Incomer”
5. Hossein Keshavarz and Maryam Ataei, “The Buddy’s Home Is Right here”
6. Josef Kubota Wladyka, “Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty”
7. Stephanie Ahn, “Bedford Park”
8. Rachel Lambert, “Carousel”
9. Gregg Araki, “I Need Your Intercourse”
10. Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor Wilson, “Wicker”

Greatest Worldwide Characteristic

1. “Leviticus”
2. “The Incomer”
3. “The right way to Divorce Through the Conflict”
4. “Burn”
5. “Disgrace and Cash”

Greatest Worldwide Documentary

1. “Closure”
2. “Everyone to Kenmure Avenue”
3. “To Maintain a Mountain”
4. “Birds of Conflict”
5. “Jaripeo”

Greatest First Characteristic

1. “The Weight”
2. “The Historical past of Concrete”
3. “Evening Nurse”
4. “The Incomer”
5. “Nuisance Bear”