Brad Bird, Andrew Haigh and Aleshea Harris to Be Honored at 2026 Austin Film Festival

Brad Bird, Andrew Haigh and Aleshea Harris will be honored at Texas’ 2026 Austin Film Festival on Oct. 31. Bird, who is the creator of “The Incredibles” franchise and the filmmaker behind “Ratatouille,” “The Iron Giant” and “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol,” will receive the Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award. The festival will also premiere Bird’s new animated feature, “Ray Gunn,” starring Scarlett Johansson and Sam Rockwell.

Haigh, the writer-director behind “All of Us Strangers,” “Weekend,” “45 Years” and HBO’s “Looking,” will receive the Writer’s Writer Award. There will also be a screening of his latest film “A Long Winter,” starring Fred Hechinger, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Caitríona Balfe, Kit Connor and D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai. Harris is the recipient of the New Voice Award.

She first made her directorial debut with “Is God Is,” followed by “What to Send Up When It Goes Down.” She will also participate in the panel “On ‘Is God Is’: A Conversation with Aleshea Harris,” where she discusses the process of bringing her work from stage to screen. The festival, which runs from Oct. 29-Nov. 5, also announced a number of world and Texas premieres, including world premieres of “Chopin,” “Omi,” “Rated,” “Sheepwell,” “The Stalemate” and “Tigermom Academy.” Texas premieres include “Behemoth!,” “Bleeding Hearts” and “I Play Rocky.” “Austin Film Festival is proud to present this year’s first wave of announcements, celebrating great storytellers at all stages of their careers,” Austin Film Festival’s Co-founder and Executive Director Barbara Morgan said. Brad Bird, Andrew Haigh, and Aleshea Harris have each built careers by cultivating a distinctive point of view, and we see that same instinct across the films and writers we’re bringing to Austin this year.

At this year’s Writers Conference, we will bring together these programmed filmmakers, veteran producers, groundbreaking showrunners, and visionary screenwriters to inspire and be inspired by the next generation.” The Austin Film Festival & Writers Conference is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers. The organization works to champion aspiring and established storytellers by providing events and services, enhancing public awareness and participation and encouraging community partnerships.