Joburg Film Festival 2026: ‘Silent Rebellion’ takes top honours while young filmmakers make their mark

Khaya Dube’s “Umxoxiso” won the Young Voices Competition at the 8th Joburg Film Festival Awards. The2026 Joburg Film Festivalheld a glittering awards gala, attended by the industry’s finest, which honoured the top films of the year, at Theater on the Square. South African Film and Television Award-winning actress Jo-Anne Reyneke was the night’s MC, guiding the audience along the evening’s festivities.

Swiss historical drama film “Silent Rebellion” (À bras-le-corps) won the night’s coveted Nguni Horns for Best Feature Film and Best Cinematography. Directed by Marie-Elsa Sgualdo, the engrossing World War 2-era drama stars Lila Gueneau, Sasha Gravat Harsch, and Cyril Metzgerbout. The film is shaped by the restricted social mobility and female subjugation of Swiss society in 1943.

“Silent Rebellion” was awarded in absentia, with there being no one to accept and deliver an acceptance speech.Winners were chosen by a jury made up of Keith Shiri, Dorothee Wenner, Sia Stewart, Bongiwe Selane, and Cait Pansegrouw. “Silent Rebellion” was awarded in absentia, with there being no one to accept and deliver an acceptance speech. Winners were chosen by a jury made up of Keith Shiri, Dorothee Wenner, Sia Stewart, Bongiwe Selane, and Cait Pansegrouw. The jury this year was so moved by how well “Silent Rebellion” spoke to the festival’s ‘Feel The Frame’ that they gave the film a special mention for Best Actress performance.