Independent filmmakers honoured at local film festival Buzz Cinema’s first awards ceremony

Leighton Buzzard film festival, Buzz Cinema, celebrated its first-ever awards ceremony last night, bringing together emerging filmmakers, industry professionals, actors, and audiences to recognise outstanding independent film.

Teacher Ash Williams and young filmmakers from Burnham Market Primary School, Norfolk, who won the Young Filmmakers Award at last night's awards event. | Buzz Cinema

placeholder image — Teacher Ash Williams and young filmmakers from Burnham Market Primary School, Norfolk, who won the Young Filmmakers Award at last night's awards event. | Buzz Cinema

Hosted at The Library Theatre in Leighton Buzzard, the awards evening recognised standout films from Buzz Cinema’s 2026 festival programme from across five categories: Fiction, Documentary, Experimental, Young Filmmakers, and Local Film.

Winners received trophies crafted by local artist Steve Hewitt and were selected by a panel of industry experts. This year’s lineup of judges included Olivier Award-winning actor Michael Jibson; BBC, ITV and Channel 4 Documentary and Factual TV Producer, Felicity Cross; Photographer and Creative Director, Fiona Garden, who has worked with successful music artists such as Rag’n’Bone Man and Bullet for My Valentine. Completing the judges line-up also included former member of the famous 80s band Kajagoogoo, now a successful filmmaker, Stuart Neale, and BAFTA-winning Broadcast Editor Nick Read.

Filmmaker Chris Consentino won the award for Best Local Film for his short animation Tidy Away. | Buzz Cinema

Speaking about the festival’s growing impact, judge Michael Jibson described what makes Buzz Cinema so special: “The effort, craft, and range of films at the festival have been incredible — from filmmakers who could easily go on to win major awards in the future, to local filmmakers who simply want to have fun and tell a story, and some were even made by schoolchildren, which was so inspiring to see.”

“Nowadays we all walk around with incredibly powerful cameras in our pockets, which means anyone can create a story, and that’s what is so exciting about the festival: they’ve given people in the area and others who want to get involved the opportunity to take part. I’m really excited to see where the festival goes over the next few years.”

The winners of Buzz Cinema’s first awards included RISE by Jessica J Rowlands, a short film about a young boy who lives on a rubbish dump in Zimbabwe and must convince a reclusive boxing coach to teach him how to fight. Marisco Mayhem by Crusco Weston won Best Documentary and explored the dual impact of climate change and youth migration in Galicia, rural villages in north-western Spain. Amen by filmmaker Joao Pedro Santos Destro won Best Experimental Film. The film is a deep and introspective analysis of the maker’s relationship to the Catholic God he grew up worshipping. Exploring themes like guilt, shame, and repressed desires. Best Local Film was awarded to local filmmaker Chris Cosentino for his short animation Tidy Away, and the Young Filmmakers Award was awarded to S:I Super Intelligence, created by 20 young people from Burnham Market Primary School in Norfolk.

Held during the final few days of Buzz Cinema’s ten-day festival, running from Friday 8 May to Sunday 17 May, the awards evening marked a significant milestone in the festival’s continued growth, following a notable rise in both audience attendance and film submissions compared to previous years.

The Buzz Cinema awards trophies were created by local artist Steve Hewitt.

Noting the success of the first awards night, Artistic Director Lobke van Eijk said: “The response to our first awards night, and to the 2026 festival programme as a whole, has been incredible. Welcoming filmmakers and industry professionals who have travelled from across the UK and beyond to be part of the festival demonstrates the growing appetite for independent film and the strength of regional cinema audiences.

“Film should be accessible to everyone — both to watch and to take part in and forms a core part of our mission. At Buzz Cinema, we are committed to breaking down barriers by bringing screenings directly to local communities through pubs, cafés, and independent theatre spaces, while keeping ticket prices affordable and inclusive.”

As the film festival approaches its final weekend, film enthusiasts still have the opportunity to take part in Buzz’s upcoming 48-hour film challenge, where local filmmakers have just 48-hours to create a short film based on a selection of prompts. Returning for its fifth year, all submitted films will be screened at The Golden Bell pub in Leighton Buzzard at 7:30pm, with all films in with a chance of winning an award, selected by another line-up of industry experts.

To take part in Buzz Cinema’s 48-hour challenge, please click here.

To view Buzz Cinema’s 2026 programme and to buy tickets for remaining events, please click here.