SXSW revealed its 2025 award winners Thursday night, celebrating a dynamic slate of independent films and emerging talent that filled movies houses in Austin throughout the week-long event.

Amy Wang’s satirical thriller “Slanted” claimed the top prize in the Narrative Feature Competition, with jurors praising its bold directorial vision. In the documentary category, Benjamin Flaherty’s quietly searing exposé “Shuffle” got the top nod.

“I’m thrilled to celebrate our jury and special award winners — they truly represent what makes this festival so special,” said Claudette Godfrey, VP of Film & TV for SXSW, noting that theaters have been consistently packed with enthusiastic filmgoers.

The narrative competition also recognized industry veteran Amanda Peet for her frank performance in “Fantasy Life,” while multi-hyphenate Annapurna Sriram earned special recognition for her work on “Fucktoys” as the film’s director, writer, executive producer, and star. 

In the documentary category, Benjamin Flaherty’s “Shuffle” emerged victorious, as he uncovered the exploitation and fraud in the addiction treatment industry.  Documentary special jury prizes went to Xander Robin’s “The Python Hunt” and Paige Bethmann’s “Remaining Native.”

In the shorts categories, Alexander Farah’s “One Day This Kid” and Juan Vicente Manrique’s “Looking for a Donkey” took top narrative and documentary honors respectively. The always-entertaining Midnight section crowned Matty Crawford’s “Stomach Bug” with top honors noting its “seamless blend of practical and visual effect.”

The Independent TV Pilot Competition — an increasingly important SXSW category — awarded “F*ckups Anonymous” from showrunner Joe Tierney and director Kat Whalen its grand prize.

Music video enthusiasts celebrated Maceo Frost’s win for directing BIJI’s “ZIGIDI,” which jurors praised for its stunning visual approach.

Festival attendees can still participate in the Audience Award voting through Saturday, March 15, with winners to be announced on the SXSW website shortly afterward.

See the complete list of winners below.

FEATURE FILM GRAND JURY AWARDS 

NARRATIVE FEATURE COMPETITION
Winner: “Slanted” directed by Amy Wang

Special Jury Award for a Multi-Hyphenate: Annapurna Sriram, “Fucktoys”

Special Jury Award for Performance: Amanda Peet, “Fantasy Life”

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE COMPETITION

Winner: “Shuffle,” Benjamin Flaherty

Special Jury Award: “The Python Hunt,” Xander Robin

Special Jury Award: “Remaining Native,” Paige Bethmann

SHORT FILM COMPETITION GRAND JURY AWARDS Presented by Vimeo

NARRATIVE SHORT COMPETITION
Winner: “One Day This Kid,” Alexander Farah

Special Jury Award: “I’m The Most Racist Person I Know,” Leela Varghese

DOCUMENTARY SHORT COMPETITION 
Winner: “Looking for a Donkey,” Juan Vicente Manrique

Special Jury Award: “Welcome Home Freckles,” Huiju Park

ANIMATED SHORTS COMPETITION
Winner: “Retirement Plan,” John Kelly

Special Jury Award: “My Wonderful Life,” Calleen Koh

MIDNIGHT SHORTS COMPETITION
Winner: “Stomach Bug,” Matty Crawford

Special Jury Award: “Whitch,” Hoku Uchiyama

MUSIC VIDEO COMPETITION 
Winner: BIJI – “ZIGIDI,” Maceo Frost

Special Jury Award: Sarah Klang – “Other Girls,” Rose Bush and Kirsten Bode

TEXAS SHORTS COMPETITION
Winner: “Harvester,” Charlie Schwan

Special Jury Award: “Newbies,” Kimiko Matsuda-Lawrence and Megan Trufant Tillman

INDEPENDENT TV PILOT COMPETITION
Winner: “F*ckups Anonymous,” from showrunner Joe Tierney and director Kat Whalen

Special Jury Award: “Denim,” from showrunner and director Tedra Wilson

POSTER DESIGN COMPETITION
Winner: “Resolution: A Cinephonic Rhapsody for the Soul”
Designers: Scott Berman, Anthony Francisco Schepperd and Micah Buzan

Special Jury Award: “Glorious Summer”
Designer: Patryk Hardziej

XR EXPERIENCE COMPETITION
Winner: “In the Current of Being,” Cameron Kostopoulos

Jury Award: “Reflections of Little Red Dot,” Chloé Lee

Special Jury Award: “Proof as If Proof Were Needed,” Ting Tong Chang and Matt Adams

SXSW Special Awards 

Redbreast Unhidden Award
Winner: “Brief Somebodies,” directed by Andy Reid, produced by Alessandra Sconza

Vimeo Staff Pick Award
Winner: “Familiar,” Marco Novoa

SXSW Best of Texas Award
Winner: “Butthole Surfers: The Hole Truth and Nothing Butt,” Tom Stern

Janet Pierson Champion Award 
Winner: Lindsey Dryden

NEON Auteur Award for Uncompromising Visionary in the Visions Section
Winner: Grace Glowicki, director, writer and star, “Dead Lover”

Howl of Fame Award
Winner: Indy from “Good Boy,” directed by Ben Leonberg and produced by Kari Fischer, his humans.