The Banff World Media Festival (BANFF) has announced the nominees for the 2026 Rockie Awards International Program Competition, spotlighting outstanding achievements in television and digital media worldwide. This year’s edition received submissions from 45 countries, resulting in 151 nominees from 21 nations competing across 29 categories—underscoring the breadth, diversity and creative excellence shaping today’s global content landscape.
The awards ceremony will be hosted by Emmy Award-winning multi-hyphenate Allana Harkin (Full Frontal with Samantha Bee) and will take place on Tuesday, June 16 at 6:00pm MT (8:00pm ET) in Banff. The event will be held alongside the Banff Gala Awards, bringing together a celebration of both creative talent and leading industry executives.
Nominees include some of the industry’s most acclaimed performers, with recognition in categories such as Best Performance in a Drama and Best Performance in a Comedy. “At a moment of incredible transformation for the global entertainment industry, the creativity behind this year’s nominated projects is truly remarkable,” said Jenn Kuzmyk, Executive Director of the Banff World Media Festival. “The programs and talent selected as standouts by our international jury exemplify what it means to be pushing boundaries, taking risks, and proving that original ideas continue to thrive even in times of great change.”
Of special note are new categories introduced in 2025 that recognize outstanding drama and comedy performances. Nominees in these categories include:
Best Performance in a Drama: Malin Åkerman (The Hunting Wives), Jacob Elordi (The Narrow Road to the Deep North), James Nelson-Joyce (This City is Ours), Narges Rashidi (Prisoner 951) and Amanda Seyfried (Long Bright River).
Best Performance in a Comedy: Suranne Jones (Film Club), Mawaan Rizwan (Juice), Nabhaan Rizwan (Film Club), Timothy Spall (Death Valley) and Aimee Lou Wood (Film Club).
In addition to the Grand Jury Prize, the $25,000 Rogers Prize for Excellence in Canadian Content and other special prizes will be awarded. A total of 29 awards will be bestowed during the ceremony, as well as special awards recognizing innovation, storytelling, and cultural impact.
Leading nominations by company are:
● BBC – 26 nominations
● National Geographic – 10 nominations
● Hulu – 8 nominations
● Disney Television Studios – 6 nominations
● HBO International (Europe) Ltd – 4 nominations
● Gaumont Ltd – 4 nominations
● Sphere Media - 2 nominations
● Trio Orange - 2 nominations
Leading nominations by country are:
● USA – 55 nominations
● UK – 39 nominations
● CANADA – 28 nominations
● AUSTRALIA – 7 nominations
● TAIWAN – 6 nominations
● THE NETHERLANDS – 5 nominations
● NORWAY – 4 nominations
● SOUTH KOREA – 4 nominations
Additional countries represented in the nominations are:
● BELGIUM
● DENMARK
● FINLAND
● FRANCE
● GERMANY
● ICELAND
● IRELAND
● JAPAN
● MALAYSIA
● NEW ZEALAND
● POLAND
● SINGAPORE
● SPAIN
