The Ray of Light Awards celebrate the transformational power of art and the responsibility of storytellers to shape realities — especially for the next generation — with integrity and wisdom. Set against the magnetic backdrop of Ibiza, the festival honors creators whose work expands awareness, bridges generations, and transcends political, cultural and social boundaries.

Water guided us through ROLA’s first edition, teaching us trust, surrender, and flow — the art of aligning with something greater than ourselves. Now, in our second edition, we are ready to water our roots and savor the first fruits of what ROLA is becoming.

We live in a time of merging, where boundaries once thought unbreakable are dissolving. On our path back to remembering our oneness, we are reminded that only when diverse elements meet can fertile ground be prepared for a thriving future. This year’s theme, When Water Meets Earth, reflects the alchemy of that union. From it, raw clay is born — a symbol of infinite potential, ready to be shaped into new realities.

The theme celebrates the richness of fluidity and grounding, the interplay of creativity and structure, of emotion and the tangible world. It honors the moment of conception. It celebrates artists who fearlessly shape their visions for us all, while humbly remembering that creation begins beyond them and flourishes when rooted in the elemental building blocks of nature.

To complete and bring balance to our award list, this year we introduce the Fatherhood Award, honoring stories that illuminate the profound journey of fatherhood and the healing of lineage.

Awards & Prizes

🌟 Ray of Light Award - Expanding Consciousness
Inspired by Ray Stevenson’s fearless journey beyond the veil, the Ray of Light Award honors creators whose content expands the boundaries of perception and consciousness.
This award celebrates those visionaries who dare to dive into the unknown — illuminating realms beyond the empirical, the explainable, and the safe. Their content doesn't just inform or entertain; it awakens — activating new neural pathways, stirring the imagination, and challenging the viewer to ask deeper, more daring questions.

These are the artists who alchemize story, sound, and symbol into medicine — leaving their audiences not only transformed, but with a renewed sense of wonder, fulfillment, and hope. They remind us that art is a portal. And that through it, we remember who we truly are.

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🌍 Gaia Award – Honoring the Creative Feminine
In a world long shaped by patriarchal systems, the Gaia Award honors the rising tide of the creative feminine — the force of life, intuition, regeneration, and deep connection.
This award is dedicated to content that celebrates and helps us understand Mother Earth and the wisdom she carries, inviting us to live in greater harmony with the planet and all her beings. It also honors storytelling that uplifts women’s voices, histories, and their vital role in shaping a more balanced, compassionate world.

As the global paradigm shifts, the Gaia Award recognizes those creators who align with this tide — offering narratives that heal, empower, and reimagine our relationship with nature, with each other, and with the feminine source of life itself.

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🤍Fatherhood Award – Healing the Lineage
The Fatherhood Award, inspired by the late Ray Stevenson — a radiant and supportive father — recognizes creators whose work explores the profound journey of fatherhood.
This award honors films, stories, and creative works that shed light on the emotional terrain between fathers and children — a space often shaped by silence, misunderstood roles, and intergenerational wounds. We celebrate storytellers who courageously bring forward narratives of healing, forgiveness, and reconnection.

Through their work, these creators help us understand the complexity of paternal love and invite us to see fatherhood not just as a duty, but as a sacred, transformative relationship. A relationship whose healing is essential to the thriving of life on Earth.

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🌱 Next Generation Award – Most Motivating & Empowering
For inspirational content that speaks directly to the new generation.
The Next Generation Award honors creators who understand the profound influence stories have in shaping the minds, dreams, and subconscious of those who will inherit the world. These storytellers embrace the sacred responsibility of guiding tomorrow’s leaders, artists, and changemakers.

We celebrate content that is fun, engaging, entertaining, and inspiring — created with full awareness of the lasting impact stories have on young, forming lives. These creators uplift, motivate, and empower young audiences to know themselves, discover their gifts, and share them with the world.

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🌍 Youth Award – Fresh Perspectives
At ROLA, we trust in the voices and ideas of the next generation. This award creates space for the most powerful and compelling youth voices to be heard — their concerns, their perspectives, and their solutions.

The Youth Award celebrates groundbreaking content by creators aged 25 and under. Through their work, they invite us to see the world through fresh eyes, to question established narratives, to imagine new possibilities, and to move forward together.

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🎵 Music Award
Honoring music as the most divine of the arts, the Music Award celebrates artists who serve as its truest vessels on Earth. This award recognizes music’s power to transcend boundaries, elevate the human spirit, and connect cultures across the globe. We celebrate both the diversity of high-frequency music and the enduring potential of ancestral sounds, while embracing innovation, cultural exchange, and global collaboration.

The award is divided into two categories:

1. Growth of Consciousness Award
For artists who expand awareness and elevate consciousness through a fusion of modern technology, insightful lyrics, and live instrumentation.

2. Roots and Ancestors Award
For artists inspired by traditional, medicinal, and world music, showing deep respect for cultural traditions and ancestral knowledge.ions will continue to inspire, be celebrated, and shared with future generations.

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🏝️ Ibiza Award – Most Impactful & Revolutionary
This award recognizes island-born initiatives that model new ways of thinking and being — projects worthy of global recognition (by nomination only).
Ibiza has always been a melting pot for original thinkers, and today the island is home to conscious leaders and organizations challenging convention across sectors such as agriculture, education, medicine, art and commerce.

The Ibiza Award celebrates those who strive to implement sustainable systems and circular economies, enhancing the lives and experiences of the local community while protecting the wider island ecology.

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🕊️ Legacy Award
The final award of the ceremony, presented with our deepest respect and gratitude, honors an individual for their lifelong service and contribution to the human experience.
The Legacy Award honors the most meaningful grandmasters of our era — those whose wisdom, guidance, and work have touched hearts, shaped minds, and impacted lives. Their timeless contributions will continue to inspire, be celebrated, and shared with future generations.

Rules & Terms

Rules & Terms
- We accept all video formats (feature, short, documentary, animation, web) as long as they align with the festival’s mission.
- The chosen category must be clearly stated.
- A project may be submitted to multiple categories (evaluated separately).
- Every submission must include a trailer of max. 2 minutes.
- Submissions close 6th February 2026
- Finalists announcement: May 1, 2026
- Fee can be waived under special circumstances. Please contact submissions@rayoflightawards.com.

Subtitles (Mandatory)
- All films must include english subtitles.

If your film is selected for the shortlist (shortlist announcement on March 2, 2026), you will be required to provide before March 15, 2026:
- A high-resolution screening file
- Spanish and English .srt subtitle files
🚨 Submissions without subtitles will not be considered.

Rights
- Submitters must hold all rights and copyrights.
- By submitting, you authorize ROLA to use excerpts for promotion.
- The Jury may reassign the project to another category if more suitable.

Music Award Specific
- Submission format: Only one track may be submitted at a time, accompanied by a video.
- The video should show the performing artist(s) — ideally performing the same song being submitted — and must include English subtitles for the lyrics.
- If no video of the artist(s) is available, please share a link where we can view them (e.g., a live session, performance, or music video), and upload the full lyrics

Submission Fee
- Earlybird submissions (until October 5, 2025): Free of charge — to encourage creators worldwide to share their light with us.
- From October 6, 2025: €26
- From November 21, 2025: €52
Your contribution is not just a fee: it directly sustains the ROLA Foundation, helping us nurture young voices, empower creators, and expand the impact of our mission.

Under-25 Fee Exemption
If the submitter (director or producer) is under 25 on the date of submission, the fee is waived. To claim the exemption, please email submission@rayoflightawards.com with:
- Your full name and film title (and FilmFreeway link/ID if applicable)
- A photo of an ID showing name and date of birth (you may cover other personal data)
If this verification is not received, the submission will be processed under the standard fee schedule and may not be considered if the applicable fee is unpaid.
5 Reviews
Overall Rating
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  • Vittorio Caratozzolo

    Your nomination was very precious for our pluri-awarded and beloved «They Saw You». Thanks so much for you generous consideration!

    September 2025
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Thank you Vittorio!
    We are opening the new submissions soon, we have a little surprise for our previous submitters.

  • Sourya Dipta

    This festival is as close to real life White Lotus as it gets. This is the first time I am writing a bad review for any film festival, but this festival was so weird.
    It's just rich celebrities pretending to care about the environment or some sandy beach in some Thailand or something.

    July 2025
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Dear Sourya,

    Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts. We are truly sorry to hear that your impression of ROLA was not a positive one.

    One of our main intentions with the festival is to create a space of genuine sharing, dialogue, and collaboration — bringing together voices from different backgrounds, from artists to scientists, from community leaders to creators. We would love to better understand your experience: were you able to attend the festival in person and take part in the conversations and activities that took place? Many participants have described the atmosphere as open and collaborative, and your perspective is valuable for us in making sure we continue to build on that.

    We deeply appreciate your feedback, and we hope there may be an opportunity in the future for you to experience firsthand the spirit of community and exchange that we strive to nurture.

    Warm regards,
    The ROLA Team

  • Farid Naser

    I was selected, but the festival did not contact me.

    June 2025
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Dear Farid,

    Thank you for reaching out and for submitting your work to ROLA. We truly value the creativity and effort of every filmmaker who shares their film with us.

    We would like to clarify how the process works on FilmFreeway: films marked as “Selected” have passed the initial stage of our review. However, after this first step, only a smaller group of finalists is confirmed for the public program and screenings. This is why not all films listed as “Selected” appear in the final festival lineup.

    We understand how important clarity is, and we will continue to work on making this process as transparent as possible for all participants. We deeply appreciate your participation in the festival and your contribution to our first edition.

    Warm regards,
    The ROLA Team

  • Majid Farzolahi

    Thank you to the festival organizers. I hope that the Ray of Light Awards festival will continue in the coming years so that independent filmmakers from all over the world can showcase their films.

    June 2025
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Dear Majid,

    Thank you so much for your kind words. It means a lot to us to know that the Ray of Light Awards can serve as a platform for independent filmmakers worldwide. Supporting and giving visibility to diverse creative voices is at the heart of our mission, and your encouragement inspires us to keep growing year after year.

    We truly hope to continue welcoming filmmakers like you in the next editions, and to keep building together a community where stories can shine and connect across cultures.

    With gratitude,
    The ROLA Team

  • Nêio Mustafa

    Dear Ray of Light Awards team,
    Thank you sincerely for the opportunity to share my work through your inspiring festival.
    My film — "SEEING BEYOND SIGHT – The Journey of Ednilson Sacramento" — challenges viewers to confront the complex realities of blindness, racism, and social invisibility. It’s not an easy or conventional narrative, but one that seeks to illuminate truths often left in the shadows.

    By welcoming this story into your program, the Ray of Light Awards affirms its commitment to bold, socially engaged cinema that dares to question and to reveal. I’m truly honored to be part of a space that values both artistic courage and human dignity.

    With deep gratitude,
    Nêio Mustafa

    June 2025
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Dear Nêio,

    We are deeply grateful for your words and, above all, for the strength of the story you chose to share with us. Seeing Beyond Sight embodies exactly the kind of courageous, truth-seeking cinema that can shift perspectives and touch hearts.

    Your film added depth and humanity to our program, and we are honored that ROLA could serve as a stage for your voice and vision. Thank you for trusting us with such an important work — its resonance continues well beyond the screening.

    With appreciation and respect,
    The ROLA Team