KODAK STUDENT COMMERCIAL AWARDS 2026

The 2026 Kodak student commercial awards were held at the historic Regent Street Cinema on Friday 29th May. The cinema was packed with an enthusiastic audience of 180 student film makers and film teachers from around the UK, as well as advertising industry professionals. The competition is supported by Kodak, Nahemi (the National Association for Higher Education in the Moving Image), and the University of Westminster’s School of Media and Communication, as well as by Kodak.

All 61 entries, from 18 film schools in the UK and Ireland, were screened and the awards presentation was hosted by the inspirational Gémina Gil Flores & Jemma Burgess, also known as The G/Jems, an award-winning creative team at Bartle Bogle Hegarty; this was followed by a drinks reception sponsored by Kodak and Nahemi.

Students had to devise and make a 30 second commercial using one ten-minute roll of 16mm film provided free-of-charge by Kodak. They were supplied with live briefs by the advertising agencies Libertine and TBWA, for McVities Jaffa Cakes, for The Hygiene Bank (a charity which is targeting hygiene poverty,) for The Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust , and for the homeless charity Shelter from the Storm. The competition is judged by a panel of representatives from the agencies that supplied the briefs, and Kodak.

This year’s Overall Winner, ‘Work from Home’, was made by students from Arts University Bournemouth for Shelter from the Storm, which provides emergency night shelters for the homeless and dispossessed in London. The judges described the commercial as “a film with brilliant storytelling that plays with our assumed reality before pulling the rug to reveal the truth. This unexpected shift makes the emotional impact land powerfully, making the film deeply memorable.” In second place overall was ‘Zappa Cakes’, for Jaffa Cakes, from the University of the West of England, which the judges said had “a fantastic concept where every element brought the idea to life, and you could tell they really had fun, which in turn made it fun to watch.” In 3rd place overall, from The Northern Film School, Leeds Beckett University was ‘The Wish No Child Should Have’ for The Hygiene Bank, which “hooks us with a familiar joyful concept and then flipped it to land a far more emotional message.”

The Kodak competition has been running for over 40 years and is organised by Peter Hort from the University of Westminster, with financial support from Kodak, Nahemi and the University of Westminster. Peter commented: “without the competition, many universities and film schools wouldn’t shoot on film at all, meaning their students would miss out on learning about an important production pathway. At the 2026 Oscars, half of the nominees for best film were shot on Kodak film, showing that it’s still a relevant choice, creatively and commercially.” Kodak were represented at the event by Julie Taylor-Butt (Senior Manager, Marketing and Film Sales) and Sam Clark (Director of Sales, Europe). Many past winners of the competition have gone on to distinguished careers in film, television and commercials, including cinematographers Charlotte Bruus Christensen (The Hunt; Fences; H is for Hawk; A Quiet Place) Suzie Lavelle (Normal People; Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy) and directors Kirk Jones (Waking Ned; Nanny McPhee; My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2; I Swear) and Asif Kapadia (The Warrior; Senna; Amy).

Peter Hort

KODAK/NAHEMI student commercial awards 2026