From ‘Springsteen’ to ‘Train Dreams’ to Ann Lee’ and More, Films From AFI FEST 2025 to Keep an Eye on This Oscar Season
The 39th edition of AFI FEST has wrapped, hosting over 160 films from 56 countries, including high-profile world premieres, stars galore and a musical performance from a legend. Let’s take a look at some of the narrative features that could make an impact on this Oscar season.
The festival opened with Scott Cooper’s Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere. Starring Emmy Award winner Jeremy Allen White (The Bear), the film chronicles the period in Springsteen’s life where he deviates from the expected to create his landmark 1982 album Nebraska, against all odds and all guidance. The film world premiered at Telluride in August then at the New York Film Festival in September, both times bringing The Boss in tow to support the film. But it was at AFI FEST where he brought the house down with a 15-minute performance of “Atlantic City and” “Land of Hopes and Dreams” ahead of the screening. But when it was all said and done, it was still bittersweet. Critically, the film has taken a beating, with low scores on both Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic (60 and 59, respectively) but worse, the Searchlight Pictures film suffered a disastrous box office start last weekend with just $9M domestic. Those are all big hurdles to jump over when it comes to the Oscars when added together. You might be able to suffer one of them and still find a spot in a weak year, but both?
Noah Baumbach’s Jay Kelly landed in Los Angeles with exactly the type of reaction I expected for the inside industry film. After a modest debut at Venice and slightly better at Telluride, the story of an aging actor reconciling with his life choices hit home for Tinseltown folks and with the charismatic George Clooney at the helm as its star the home turf advantage is right where it needed to be. The swanky party at Sunset Towers brought out the stars to celebrate the Oscar winner as well as Oscar winner Laura Dern and Adam Sandler. Industry support feels strong for the film with Sandler on the cusp of his first nomination and Clooney making a triumphant comeback for his first since his Best Picture win for 2012’s Argo.
Netflix has a real sleeper on its hands though with Train Dreams. After picking it up out of Sundance, the film began its second life at regional festivals like Mill Valley and Middleburg (where star Joel Edgerton won performance awards) as well as stints at the Toronto and BFI London Film Festivals among its over a dozens stops. Based on Denis Johnson’s novella, Edgerton stars as a logger and railroad worker in the Pacific Northwest, building a life for himself, his wife and newborn daughter. Directed by Clint Bentley (Jockey) and co-written by his Sing Sing partner Greg Kwedar, Train Dreams has been a quiet lurker. A gentle and contemplative chamber piece that audiences have really grabbed onto as a ‘discovery.’ The Bar Avoja after party brought Bentley, Edgerton, Kerry Condon and William H. Macy face to face with an adoring audience of critics and journalists who couldn’t wait to talk about their love of the film, many of whom say it’s their favorite film from the streamer this year. Edgerton and Adapted Screenplay feel very much in play for the film with Best Picture not out of reach.
Sydney Sweeney brought her boxing biopic Christy to Hollywood with a new blond bob and a passionate and earnest performance that, while the film follows a pretty strict biopic guideline, finds Sweeney giving a naturalistic performance even as she physically transforms into the history-making pugilist. After a pre-film reception at the historic Roosevelt Hotel (the home of the first Oscars), Sweeney and director David Michôd made their way across Hollywood Blvd to the TCL Chinese to entertain the industry audience and general public alike. While Sweeney’s road to an Oscar nomination may be tough, there is potential here.
The Testament of Ann Lee made its debut at Venice but it took a good minute before getting picked up by Searchlight Pictures. Skipping Telluride, Toronto and New York put it a bit behind the race but dropping it on the last day of the festival opposite a splashy world premiere closer as counter-programming seemed to work out. Searchlight also didn’t waste any time filling up this week with screenings in LA (including intimate receptions and Q&As) and a host of regional festival appearances including Savannah, Denver, Austin and Miami. The film, directed by Oscar nominee Mona Fastvold (The Brutalist) and co-written by her Oscar-nominated partner Brady Corbet, is a spectacular stage for star Amanda Seyfried to shine in performance and voice for the semi-musical period piece about the titular Ann Lee coming to America to evangelize the Shaker religion to the new colonies right as the Revolutionary War kicks off. The film also features star on the rise Lewis Pullman (Top Gun: Maverick, Thunderbolts*) and Thomasin McKenzie.
Finally, AFI FEST closed with the world premiere of Craig Brewer’s Song Sung Blue from Focus Features. Based on the documentary of the same name, the film tells the wild true story of Mike and Claire Sardina aka Lightening & Thunder, a married couple who form a Neil Diamond tribute band who suffer devastating hardships. The film is based on the 2008 documentary from Greg Kohs and stars Oscar nominees Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson as the titular stormy duo. The closing night crowd was invested in the film and the story, which was clearly not known to most as horrified gasps permeated the theater with each new devastating turn that I won’t spoil here. For Hudson, a nomination would be a long-awaited return after receiving her first and only 25 years ago, for 2000’s Almost Famous. Hudson fully held court at Mother Wolf after party (where Jackman was a no-show), talking to everyone and giving real time to them. She hasn’t had a lot of real opportunities to campaign in this last quarter century but she’s good at it. Despite the one trauma after another aspect of the film, it still has crowdpleaser appeal and Hudson could find her way to Golden Globe and SAG nominations for her performance. Is there room for Jackman to sneak in as well? There’s an outside chance, sure, especially as each week seems to find new Best Actor contenders falling by the wayside. I’ve seen some make comparisons to Being the Ricardos but I push back on that a bit. Not only were Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem previous Oscar winners, they were playing well-known industry figures, not two unknowns mired in nonstop anguish belting out “Sweet Caroline” like wedding karaoke.
While these American films cover a portion of narrative features in the Oscar race, AFI FEST is also packed with a wealth of nonfiction and international offerings, including 20 titles already set as International Feature Film country submissions. For documentaries, a handful worth mentioning include Cover-Up from Laura Poitras and The Eyes of Ghana from Ben Proudfoot. International feature highlights included Taiwan’s Left-Handed Girl from Shih-Ching Tsou, Jordan’s All That’s Left of You from Cherien Dabis and Tunisia’s The Voice of Hind Rajab from Kaouther Ben Hania. This year also brings the two worlds together with titles that could be nominated in both categories; North Macedonia’s The Tale of Silyan from Tamara Kotevska and Igor Bezinović’s Fiume O Morte! from Croatia among them.
Also, the winners of AFI FEST’s short film awards were announced, with Grand Jury Prize winners for Live Action Short, Documentary Short and Animated Short being eligible for consideration in the 2026 Academy Awards for Best Live Action Short, Best Documentary Short and Best Animated Short.
They are:
Grand Jury Prize – Live Action
MAJONEZË (DIR Giulia Grandinetti)
Jury statement: “A young woman breaks free from the imposing forces of her life in this well-acted tale of family, love, and rebellion. Immersing us in the local rituals and natural wonders of the Albanian countryside, MAJONEZË is an entertaining, cinematic punk rock fable.”
Grand Jury Prize – Documentary Short
SHANTI RIDES SHOTGUN (DIR Charles Frank)
Jury statement: “For having the intuition to know this local character deserves the spotlight and the skillful economic storytelling that lets her story shine, we award the Grand Jury Prize – Documentary to SHANTI RIDES SHOTGUN. We enjoyed learning how to drive through the jam-packed streets of New York with Shanti. The candor, enthusiasm, and commitment she brings to her job as a driving instructor for three decades left us wanting to go on a joy ride with her.”
Grand Jury Prize – Animated Short
FOREVERGREEN (DIR Nathan Engelhardt, Jeremy Spears)
Jury Statement: “FOREVERGREEN captivates with its beautifully realized visual world and profound emotional resonance. Through the touching relationship between an orphaned bear cub and a father-figure tree, the film intertwines themes of friendship and sacrifice with incisive commentary on greed and climate change. It is a work that both enchants and challenges us, reminding us of the fragile interdependence between nature, compassion, and survival.”
This year’s jury was comprised of filmmakers Sue-Ellen Chitunya, Katherine Propper, and film programmer, producer and publicist Rachel Walker.
He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Critics Choice Association (CCA), San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.
- International Documentary Association Awards: ‘The Tale of Silyan’ Wins Top Prize - December 6, 2025
- Oscars: 68 Original Songs, 135 Original Scores are Eligible for the 98th Academy Awards - December 6, 2025
- Washington DC Area Film Critics Association (WAFCA) Nominations: ‘One Battle After Another,’ ‘Sinners’ Score 13 Each - December 6, 2025
International Documentary Association Awards: ‘The Tale of Silyan’ Wins Top Prize 
Oscars: 68 Original Songs, 135 Original Scores are Eligible for the 98th Academy Awards 
Washington DC Area Film Critics Association (WAFCA) Nominations: ‘One Battle After Another,’ ‘Sinners’ Score 13 Each 
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