Event

Screening the Top 17 films and Best School Film from the 2026 Vista Foundation 48Hours.

The Vista Foundation 48Hours heads to Wellington for its Grand Finals, with the country’s top short films competing for the 2026 national title.

Published on:

October 1, 2026

48HOURS

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The annual 48Hours filmmaking competition has once again captured the creative spirit of Aotearoa, with thousands of filmmakers across the motu writing, shooting, and editing short films in just two days. Now, as the nation looks ahead to the Grand Finals, anticipation is building for which team will be crowned the Vista Foundation 48Hours 2026 Grand National Champion, with the top prize of $15,000 cash from WingNut Films.

This year’s competition has shown an increase of teams signing up, with a wide range of films showcasing the innovation, humour, and ingenuity of New Zealand’s filmmaking community. In its 23rd year, the competition offers an exhilarating platform for both emerging and established filmmakers and is NZ's largest guerrilla filmmaking event. Teams from all corners of New Zealand are tasked with writing, shooting, and editing a short film within a 48-hour window on 31st July to 2nd August, 2026.

In 2026, we had 594 teams register for the competition and 529 eligible films submitted. Nationwide there were 194 School Teams and 105 Tertiary Teams signed up!

All will come to a head when filmmakers are acknowledged for their efforts and compete for the prestigious title of Grand National Champion at a spectacular Grand Finals event, which will be held at the Embassy Theatre in Wellington on 17th October.

The top seventeen films will screen alongside the 3 Sir Peter Jackson Wildcards. The awards will go out to the teams who stood out among the rest and shone at a national level. Tickets for this fun and thrilling evening are available on the Eventfinda website or via the 48Hours website.

The 2026 National Judging Panel features an extraordinary lineup of filmmakers, actors, and producers from New Zealand and around the world, including: Sir Peter Jackson, Cliff Curtis, Jen Yamamoto, Ben Wheatley, Lorcan Finnegan, Jarod Neece, Adam Reynolds, Chris Callus, Chelsie Preston Crayford, Andy Starke, and Amy Nicholson.

Dame Gaylene Preston is judging the National WIFT Outstanding Female/Gender Diverse Filmmaker Award. Wētā FX Animation Supervisor Anneka Fris is judging the Best Animation films.

National Finalists:

An Evening With - A Product of My Imagination

Busby Films - Plan B

Enormous Head LLC - EAR WORM.

Froblin - Mother of all Heists

Glitter Swarm - The Last Train to Pound Town

Glowtime - Hiccupocalypse - Sir Peter Jackson Wildcard

Inclusive Performance Academy - Hacked Off

Lukewarm Lunch - Headspace

MO3PEPS ™ - The Dap

Peaked in Film School - RUIN

Permanently Confused - Twin Flame - Sir Peter Jackson Wildcard

Pikitia Rangihaeata - Koera - Sir Peter Jackson Wildcard

rip focus: Tokyo Drift - love you, baby

Sealami - Nudity - Sir Peter Jackson Wildcard

Taste of Kiwi - NAN!

The Horny Owls - RaveYard

Twotors & Co. - Defiance

Typhoid Films - The Apparishioners - Sir Peter Jackson Wildcard

Grand National Champion 2026 - Supported by WingNut Films

The Grand National Champion APEE
$15,000 cash prize from WingNut Films
$20,000 worth of post production services from Park Road Post Production
$15,000 worth of gear hire from Portsmouth Film Equipment Rental
An exclusive pitch opportunity for the VF48Hours Level Up Grant ($25,000) with Te Tumu Whakaata Taonga / New Zealand Film Commission.
x1 year Digital Pigeon Freelancer subscription