Canadian short film Will, directed by Clara Altimas and starring Ed Pinker, emerged as the major winner at the inaugural Movie & Short Festival International Stars Edition in Locarno, taking home awards for Best Film, Screenplay, Direction, and Soundtrack.
Hosted by actor Elijah Knight at Spazio Elle, the ceremony celebrated an international slate of short-form cinema featuring established and rising talent, including Jacob Elordi, Sydney Sweeney, and Allegra Fulton. The event was organized by entertainment magazine Dailybloid.com.
At the center of the evening was Will, a sharply observed relationship comedy following its titular character, a lovable yet chaotic children’s entertainer. When Will arrives at his girlfriend’s prestigious charity fundraiser clad in medieval armor after misreading the dress code, an argument unfolds that reveals deeper fractures within the couple’s relationship.
Pinker’s performance in the film also earned him the Best Actor prize. The Canadian actor is known for appearances in Murdoch Mysteries, Locke & Key, and The Handmaid’s Tale.
Imogen Whist received the Best Actress award for her role in Sprout, directed by Allie Yonick and Mara Da Costa Reis. The film, which also features Allegra Fulton, centers on Maggie and Jules, a mother and daughter confronting the emotional aftermath of losing their sprout farm.
Sprout also secured the Online Audience Award, determined by viewers through the Dailybloid.com portal. The filmmakers dedicated the work to Mara Da Costa Reis.
Mauro Nigro was honored with the Best Cinematography award for Amigdala, a moving short about a young woman haunted by memories of her late sister. The prize was awarded ex aequo with Will.
The Fellini Foundation presented its Maestro Prize to Raul Quagliata’s La prima spiaggia, a seaside story of youthful love. The Foundation praised the film “for its humanistic dimension, poetry, and humor which, beyond its modernity, recall the tradition of great Italian masters, including Fellini.”
Marcel Büchi’s The Truth received a Special Mention from the Foundation, recognized for similar qualities of humanity, poetic sensibility, and a contemporary spirit informed by the legacy of Italian cinema’s great auteurs.
The festival’s first edition assembled a notable selection of shorts with prominent international cast members. Emma Zander’s Bad Dream featured Jacob Elordi, while It Happened Again Last Night, by Roze and Gabrielle Stone, starred Sydney Sweeney. Alongside its award-winning creative team, Sprout brought Allegra Fulton to the competition lineup.
The jury included actor, playwright, and director Marco Calvani; actress and director Giovanna Nodari; internationally bestselling thriller author Glenn Cooper; actor Giuseppe Bonifati; and Nicole Muj, founder of the French Riviera Film Festival in Cannes and an international entertainment public-relations specialist.
The 2026 edition was further supported through partnerships with Transmedia Group, the longstanding film-industry public relations firm, and the Fellini Foundation, the cultural institution dedicated to preserving and advancing Federico Fellini’s cinematic legacy.
