The HBCU Week NOW
Student Film Festival

The "Top Ten" 2026 Award Winning Films Playlist & Filmmakers list.

"HBCU Week NOW honors the enduring history, legacy and cultural heritage of HBCUs. Our new film festival gives emerging filmmakers from these institutions a national stage and the momentum to turn student work into the next wave of public media.“
Travis E. Mitchell, MPT senior vice president and chief content officer

The 2026 Award Winning Filmmakers

The Winners were selected from a pool of 36 submissions from across the nation. Each winning project received a $5,000 award and inclusion in the festival produced by HBCU Week NOW, a public media partnership spearheaded by Maryland Public Television (MPT), and Black Public Media (BPM), the Harlem-based national media arts nonprofit.

From Rodeo to Polo

What is the Black Body

Spelman College - 25

The Award Winning Films

The winning films run the gamut of genres, from documentary and experimental to animation and sci-fi. They were directed by students and recent graduates of Hampton University, Howard University and Spelman College. The shorts are:

For Me, By Me by Hannah Koonce (Spelman College ’28)

From Rodeo to Polo: The First HBCU Polo Team by Kendi King (Spelman College ’25)

The Hale Academy by Audra Davison (Spelman College ’22)

Lady T by Nia Lambert (Spelman College ’25)

One and Only by Zachary Ramseur (Hampton University ’28)

Paralysis by Analysis by Jolene Carter (Howard University ’25)

Shotgun by Quaran Ahmad (Howard University ’25)

StarChild by Miya Scaggs (Spelman College ’25)

What Is The Black Body? by Amira Barrett (Spelman College ‘25)

Whispers of White by Kennedy Rome (Spelman College ’26).

HBCU Week NOW Student Film Festival

The HBCU Week NOW Student Film Festival

The 2026 Award Winning Filmmakers

From Rodeo to Polo

What is the Black Body

The Award Winning Films

The HBCU Week NOW
Student Film Festival