Honorees-Only Event To Take Place On January 8, 2027

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – March 18, 2026, Los Angeles, CA – The American Film Institute (AFI) announced today that the AFI AWARDS 2026 honorees-only event will take place on Friday, January 8, 2027, at the Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills.

Celebrating the collaborative nature of film and television, AFI AWARDS is the only national program that honors creative teams as a whole, recognizing those in front of and behind the camera. All of the honored works advance the art of the moving image, inspire audiences and artists alike, and enhance the rich cultural heritage of America’s art form. When placed in a historical context, these stories provide a complex and rich visual record of our modern world. AFI AWARDS selections are made through a jury process in which AFI Trustees, artists, critics and scholars determine the year’s most outstanding achievements and provide artistic and cultural context for the selection of each honoree.

Submissions and deadlines will be announced in the coming weeks. The honorees will be announced in December 2026.

Learn more about AFI AWARDS at AFI.com.

About the American Film Institute (AFI)
The American Film Institute (AFI) is a nonprofit organization with a mandate to champion the moving image as an art form. Established in 1967, AFI launched the first comprehensive history of American film and sparked the movement for film preservation in the United States. In 1969, AFI opened the doors of the AFI Conservatory, a graduate-level program to train narrative filmmakers. The Conservatory, which counts Deniese Davis, Affonso Gonçalves, Susannah Grant, Matthew Libatique, David Lynch, Melina Matsoukas and Rachel Morrison as Alumni, is ranked one of the top film schools in America. AFI’s enduring traditions include the AFI Life Achievement Award, which honors the masters for work that has stood the test of time; AFI AWARDS, which celebrates the creative ensembles of the most outstanding screen stories of the year; and scholarly efforts such as the AFI Catalog of Feature Films and the AFI Archive that preserve film history for future generations. AFI exhibition programs include AFI FEST and year-round exhibition at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in Maryland. AFI Movie Club is a destination for movie lovers from around the world to celebrate and engage with the art form every day. Other pioneering programs include workshops aimed at elevating emerging storytellers and technology, including AFI DWW+ and the AFI Cinematography Intensive Workshop. Read about all of these programs and more at AFI.com and follow us on social media at Facebook.com/AmericanFilmInstitute, YouTube.com/AFI, X.com/AmericanFilm, www.TikTok.com/@americanfilminstitute and Instagram.com/AmericanFilmInstitute.

Press contact:
American Film Institute
Shari Mesulam, [email protected]