The San Diego Streaming Film Festival (with in-person screenings and awards ceremony) is the first of its kind in San Diego where award winners will stream their content on the Roku and Amazon Fire TV platforms.
BACKGROUND
The San Diego Indie Film Network (SDIFN) streaming channel serves as a valuable resource for local filmmakers, providing a platform for showcasing their work to a wider audience. The channel is hosted on Roku and Amazon Fire TV, which boasts combined over 180 million viewers on the platform.
By curating and streaming a diverse selection of independent films, the SDIFN aims to support and promote the artistic endeavors of San Diego's indie film community. The film festival is an extension of this mission, allowing award-winning films to reach a larger viewership and gain well-deserved recognition.
UNIQUE TO SAN DIEGO
The festival boasts bold categories unique to San Diego such as "Cosplay," "Surf and Turf," "Honoring our Military," and "Best of San Diego."
AWARDS CEREMONY
The festival will culminate in a prestigious awards ceremony, where the winners in each category will be announced and honored for their outstanding contributions to the world of independent film. In addition to the recognition, award-winning films will receive promotional support from the SDIFN, further extending their reach and impact.
Film enthusiasts are encouraged to join the San Diego Indie Film Network's streaming channel to enjoy the film festival and discover inspiring works by local filmmakers. The festival provides an opportunity to connect with the vibrant indie film community in San Diego and support emerging talent in the industry.
PRIZES
Category and Recognition Award winners will have the option to place their film on the San Diego Indie Film Network streaming channel at no charge while retaining exclusive ownership of their intellectual property. This gives filmmakers an opportunity to showcase their work on the Roku platform, which boasts 80+ million viewers, even as they pursue distribution deals with major networks.
AWARD CATEGORIES
The festival offers a variety of categories, including narrative features, documentaries, animated films, and short films, ensuring a diverse lineup that appeals to a wide range of tastes. Each category will have its own award, recognizing excellence in storytelling, cinematography, acting, and other aspects of filmmaking. Categories are:
-- Cosplay Feature
-- Cosplay Short
-- Best of San Diego (Feature or Short)
-- Surf and Turf Feature
-- Surf and Turf Short
-- Honoring our Military Feature
-- Honoring our Military Short
-- Paranormal Feature
-- Paranormal Short
-- Web Series
-- TV Pilot
-- Proof of Concept or Experimental
-- Animated Feature
-- Animated Short
-- Student Feature
-- Student Short
-- Narrative Feature
-- Narrative Short
-- Documentary Feature
-- Documentary Short
In addition to category winners, Recognition Awards will be given for the following:
-- Best Actress
-- Best Actor
-- Best Ensemble
-- Best Director
-- Best Cinematography
-- Best Editing
-- Best Binge Worthy
SELECTION PROCESS
Judges will select 3 films from each category as contenders for category and recognition awards -- that's 60 Official Selections. Official Selections will be announced March 1, 2026.
Category and Recognition awards are announced April 11, 2026 during the Awards Ceremony held at the beautiful Grand Ritz Theatre in downtown Escondido. Email notifications will be sent shortly afterward.
All Official Selections receive 1 free ticket to the Awards Ceremony. A 50% discount is available for all in their party.
JUDGES
Proud of the support of our dedicated and influential film industry leaders, from Hollywood to San Diego alike:
Julia Ling
Actress best known for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, House (FOX), ER, Grey's Anatomy, The OC, 8 Simple Rules (Disney), The Deep End (ABC), and the critically acclaimed Aaron Sorkin series, Studio 60 On the Sunset Strip (NBC). She starred as the popular “nerd-herder” Anna Wu on the NBC hit show “Chuck.”
Mark Moore
Former Head of Physical Production at Digital Domain (Armageddon, Titanic, Interview with a Vampire, True Lies, Color of Night and Apollo 13)
Carly Luther
Scripted Coordinator, Prime Video & Amazon Studios
Taher Abunadi
Talent Agent, Engage Artists Agency
SAG AFTRA & WGA Franchised
Ana Toro-Mancilla
Head of Production at TIS
Former Head of Physical Production, Amazon Studios
Works with Paramount Pictures
Jena Block
TV Development, ABGO Pictures (Everything Everywhere All at Once, Assassination Nation, Bridges, Mosul, Relic, Extraction, Cherry)
Janet Lessnau
Theatre Director, Grand Ritz Theatre
Executive Producer, 76 Days Adrift
Jesse Gonzalez
Jesse is the Community Advancement Manager at the California Center for the Arts, Escondido, where he is leading the development of the organization’s inaugural film Hidden City Film Festival. With a background in film and television studies and past experience supporting festival marketing and production, Jesse brings a deep love for the medium and a passion for community-driven storytelling to his work in the nonprofit arts space.
Beth Accomando
Beth covers arts and culture in San Diego for KPBS and hosts the Cinema Junkie podcast and blog. With a background in film studies from UCSD, her work spans decades, including editing Attack of the Killer Tomatoes sequels and serving on film selection committees for local festivals. As a longtime film critic, she has contributed to NPR and Public Radio International, championing independent and international cinema. She also volunteers with Film Geeks SD, bringing bold genre filmmaking to the Media Arts Center San Diego. Her passions include Hong Kong cinema, Japanese monster movies, horror, and film noir.
Aaron Roberts
Aaron is an industry lifer, starting work as a PA on his father’s award-winning commercial sets as early as 10 years old. Since then, Aaron has helped build multi-million dollar creative agencies routinely working with publicly traded tech and hospitality brands, and is working with the city of Chula Vista on developing a next-generation film studio and creative campus to re-ignite the film industry in San Diego again.
Our judging panel also includes a well-rounded selection of San Diego industry related individuals who bring their expertise, knowledge and acumen to review submissions. These include Theatre Directors, Producers, Actors and and more.
