Jacob Elordi, Chase Infiniti, Amy Madigan Among 2026 Santa Barbara International Film Festival Virtuosos Award Recipients
The Santa Barbara International Film Festival has announced the recipients of the 2026 Virtuosos Award, an honor established to recognize a select group of talent whose exceptional work in films this year has placed them at the center of the conversation around noteworthy cinematic performances.
Jacob Elordi, Chase Infiniti, Amy Madigan, Wagner Moura, Renate Reinsve, Sydney Sweeney, Teyana Taylor and Jeremy Allen White will discuss their work and receive their awards in person on Sunday, February 8 during the 41st Santa Barbara International Film Festival. The evening will be moderated for the 16th year by Dave Karger, Turner Classic Movies host.
“This year’s group of Virtuosos are as impressive as they are eclectic. We’ve got three international actors, two megastars from acclaimed television series, two breakouts from the latest Paul Thomas Anderson film, and even one veteran performer who earned an Oscar nomination 40 years ago. I can’t wait to return to Santa Barbara for my 16th year and chat with them all,” said Karger.
Virtuosos honorees from the last five years include Kieran Culkin, Harris Dickinson, Karla Sofía Gascón, Selena Gomez, Ariana Grande, Clarence Maclin, Mikey Madison, John Magaron, Lily Gladstone, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Greta Lee, Charles Melton, America Ferrera, Andrew Scott, Austin Butler, Kerry Condon, Danielle Deadwyler, Nina Hoss, Stephanie Hsu, Jeremy Pope, Ke Huy Quan, Jeremy Strong, Caitriona Balfe, Ariana DeBose, Jamie Dornan, Alana Haim, Ciarán Hinds, Emilia Jones, Troy Kotsur, Simon Rex, Saniyya Sidney, Riz Ahmed, Maria Bakalova, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Andra Day, Sidney Flanigan, Vanessa Kirby, Tahar Rahim, and Zendaya.
The 41st Santa Barbara International Film Festival will take place February 4 – February 14, 2026. Official events including screenings, filmmaker Q&As, industry panels, and celebrity tributes, will be held throughout the city, including at the historic Arlington Theatre and at the soon-to-be-completed SBIFF Film Center. Passes for the 2026 Festival are on sale now at sbiff.org.
Last year, the festival’s program featured more than 200 films, showcasing 33 world premieres and 74 U.S. premieres from 60 countries. More than 50 Academy Award winners and nominees were celebrated, including Angelina Jolie, Zoe Saldaña, Colman Domingo, Ralph Fiennes, Adrien Brody, Guy Pearce, Monica Barbaro, Selena Gomez, Ariana Grande, Clarence Maclin, Mikey Madison, John Magaro, Sebastian Stan, Fernanda Torres, Timothée Chalamet, Brady Corbet, Coralie Fargeat, Jacques Audiard, James Mangold and Sean Baker, among others. A-list and industry guests will once again ascend to Santa Barbara, making it a must-stop location on the awards circuit, and delivering a record number of films with many world and U.S. premieres.
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.
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