438 Films, 47 Countries, One Stage: ITFFA 2026 Wraps a Landmark Eighth Edition
Press Release by the International Tourism Film Festival Africa (ITFFA), June 2026
The eighth edition of the International Tourism Film Festival Africa drew to a close in Johannesburg earlier this month with a glittering Awards Night that brought together filmmakers, tourism boards, content creators and a gathering of foreign diplomats under one roof — all there to honour the films that are reshaping how the world sees its destinations.
Held at The Bannister Hotel in Braamfontein, a DTI success story, Andrew and Alice, the managing owners were nothing short of proud to host this prestigious event, as their maiden activity in their newly refurbished and built rooftop venue.
After a full week of screenings, plenary sessions, networking, excursions and a pre-festival tour at Kwalata Game Lodge in the Dinokeng Game Reserve, the festival reached its high point with a ceremony recognising the year’s finest work in tourism and documentary filmmaking — the kind of films that turn a coastline, a heritage site or a quiet conservation effort into a reason to travel.
With City Sightseeing providing the delegation with an outing on the Friday the 5th of June as a pre-festival experience, the delegation really felt that they connected with the Jozi culture and people.
Master of ceremonies Xola “Sasha” Nkosi carried the evening with warmth and ease, guiding guests through four competitions and more than a hundred awards whilst James Byrne handed out the awards. Carol Ungersbock, who co-founded ITFFA alongside Byrne, opened proceedings with a welcome to the assembled dignitaries, delegates and participants.
The evening also carried a message from further afield. In a video acknowledgement screened to guests at the opening of the awards evening, Can Saracoglu — President, Producer and Director of the International Tourism Film Festival — extended his greetings to the Johannesburg gathering, saluting the filmmakers, jurors, partners and diplomats who have helped grow the festival into a truly global stage. Saracoglu, who is President of Cinetour and a Director and Producer at the news and media company Tukan Film, spoke to the shared purpose binding the festival’s international network together: a belief in the power of film to move people toward the world’s destinations, and a commitment to seeing that network widen with every edition.
Capturing the night through the lens was official festival photographer Saudiq Davids, a Digital Imaging (DI) Specialist with Nikon. Shooting on Nikon equipment, Davids documented the ceremony with expertise and professionalism — the handshakes at the podium, the diplomats collecting on behalf of absent filmmakers, and the winners’ group photographs that close every ITFFA. His images form the official photographic record of the 2026 edition and will be made available to winners and media.
A festival built on numbers — and on people
This year the festival drew real scale. ITFFA 2026 attracted 438 entries from 47 countries, of which 174 productions were shortlisted and 102 went on to be awarded. The entries were adjudicated by 46 jury members — 23 drawn from the film industry and 23 from the tourism industry — a deliberate balance that keeps the judging honest on both craft and destination value.
The adjudication itself follows a clear, points-based system. Films are scored against 10 criteria of 10 points each, for a possible 100. Any film scoring above 70 becomes a finalist; Silver Award winners score between 75 and 80 points, Gold Award winners score above 80, and the Pinnacle Awards are reserved for films that climb above 95.
The participation reflected the festival’s reach. Guests, delegates and representation came from Croatia, France, Germany, Bulgaria, Italy, Mauritius, Namibia, Nigeria, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, the United States and, of course, the host nation, South Africa. Where winning filmmakers were away on shoots, their countries’ ambassadors, high commissioners, consuls and attachés stepped in to collect on their behalf — among them representatives of Portugal, Spain, Greece, Cyprus, Brazil, Poland and Iran.
Films that hand the next generation the keys
Running through the week was the Young Creatives Student Challenge (YCSC), ITFFA’s flagship youth programme. Aimed at final-year, Honours and Master’s film students, the fully funded residency pairs young filmmakers with industry mentors for hands-on training in smartphone and gear filmmaking, tourism storytelling and entrepreneurship. This year’s cohort was facilitated by Ati Fouché.
As James Byrne noted, these students are not bystanders — they are the hands and eyes of the festival, ushering, assisting with curation, shooting photos and video, and running logistics so they learn the whole value chain from the inside out.
The four competitions
The ceremony moved through four competition streams, each with its own brief:
Documentary, TV & Web — for documentary films, television programmes and series for web, TV or cinema that capture travel or tourist attractions in general, without pushing particular package deals or operators. Its subcategories ranged from Adventure, Expeditions and Travel through Culture and Heritage, Wildlife and Conservation, and Sustainable and Responsible Tourism.
Tourism Products — for films promoting a specific tourist experience: cultural, gastronomic, wine, wellness, MICE, eco-tourism and more.
Tourism Services — for films promoting a tourist service, from travel agencies and lodges to safaris and national parks.
Tourism Destinations — for films selling a place itself, whether a city, a region or an entire country.
Diplomats step up to the podium
Several of the evening’s most-applauded moments came when foreign missions collected awards for filmmakers who could not attend.
A large share of the Portuguese winning films was received by Mr. António Sabido Costa, Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Portugal, who returned to the stage repeatedly for titles including Maços e Martelos, Salatinas — The Destruction of Coimbra’s Old Town, The Carpenter of the Sea, The Big Trend, The Legacy in Every Gesture — Romaria d’Agonia and Rías Baixas: Your Goal, Your Destination.
The Greek award for Cellar 10, directed by Georgia Kotretsos, was collected on the country’s behalf by Mr. Orestis-Athanasios Kafopoulos, Consul General of Greece in Johannesburg.
The Iranian Silver Award for Damascus, produced by Ali Gharaati, was collected by H.E. Dr. Hamidreza Oraee, Deputy Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to South Africa.
Understanding the Pinnacle Awards
The night’s most coveted honours are the Pinnacle Awards. Drawn from the films that scored above 90 percent in the third round of judging, Pinnacle winners are outright winners who did not need to return to a panel — their scores spoke for themselves. This year’s Pinnacle honours went to Wilderness Bisate — The Sanctuary (Best Tourism Film), What Is Tibet Really Like? (YouTube Channel), Bucket: The Lion Cub (Best Documentary) and Guardians of the Corridor (Best Short Documentary). The Directors’ Award went to You Are Not the Alpha Here by Wilderness Destinations.
Bucket the Lion Cub Documentary
The night’s biggest story: Wilderness Destinations
No name was called more often than Wilderness Destinations, which walked away with 10 awards — the highest tally of the evening.
“We felt very proud to take home 10 awards,” said Kate MacWilliam, Group Head of Marketing at Wilderness Destinations. “It’s wonderful recognition for our team, who work so hard going into these beautiful places in Africa and telling the conservation stories — the stories of restoration, wildlife, landscapes and people.” She added that the films do real work beyond the screen: “They help people come to Africa and appreciate what we’ve got here, and that helps conservation, because when people come to these properties, they’re able to give back.”
The Aquila Collection also enjoyed a strong night, collecting awards across the Tourism Services categories for Elephant Encounters, Golden Hour in the Karoo and Summer Safari at Aquila, received on stage by Jade Pretorius and Ruvarashe Zimuto.
Closing the gap between tourism and the people who film it
For all the trophies, ITFFA’s deeper ambition is structural: to close the gap between the tourism sector and the filmmakers who make destinations visible to the world. The festival exists to reward audio-visual creativity tied to the promotion of destinations and tourism products, while opening doors for local filmmakers to meet, learn from and collaborate with their international counterparts.
That ambition is also geographic. The festival began in Cape Town in 2019, moved to Johannesburg in 2024, and its founders are clear that it won’t stand still.
“We look forward to moving the festival around the country and across the continent — and beyond,” said co-founder James Byrne, framing ITFFA’s growth as a deliberate strategy to take the recognition of tourism film to new cities and new audiences each year, rather than anchoring it to a single home.
Congratulations to every winner, finalist and entrant — and to the country ambassadors, high commissioners, consuls and attachés who stood in to honour the storytellers who couldn’t be in the room.
Roll of Honour
The full list of award winners by category and film title follows below.
Documentary, TV & Web
Adventure, Expeditions and Travel
Silver — 2025 Two Oceans Ultra 56km (Wouter van den Heever, South Africa)
Silver — Chasing 120 Hours: The 2025 Munga (Wouter van den Heever, South Africa)
Silver — Gyrocopter — Freedom of Flight Ep 5 (Kevin Pienaar / Wouter Botes, South Africa)
Gold — Escape (Justin Manabat, Larissa Parekh, USA)
Culture & Heritage — Ethnography
Gold — Maços e Martelos (Tiago Cerveira, Portugal)
Culture & Heritage — Historical Heritage
Silver — Lunga — The Story of Alignment (Noluthando Rotwane & Vuyo Novokoza, South Africa)
Silver — Salatinas — The Destruction of Coimbra’s Old Town (Filipa Queiroz, Rafael Vieira, Tiago Cerveira, Portugal)
Gold — The Land Remembers (Nathan Rice / Sewela Mutileni, South Africa)
Culture & Heritage — Cultural Heritage
Silver — The Flamingo Flight (Paulo Fajardo / Gilda Saraiva, Portugal)
Gold — The Carpenter of the Sea (Futurismo Azores Adventures, Portugal)
Gold — Cellar 10 (Georgia Kotretsos, Greece)
Wildlife & Conservation — Preservation of Natural Habitats
Silver — Spoiled (Nicola Gerrard & Lauren van Nijkerk, South Africa)
Gold — Our First Home (Grootbos Private Nature Reserve / African Centre for Coastal Palaeoscience, South Africa)
Wildlife & Conservation — Wild Cats
Silver — Cheetahs: Race to Return (Rebecca Christensen, Painted Dog TV, South Africa)
Gold — Bucket: The Lion Cub (Rebecca Christensen, Painted Dog TV, South Africa)
Wildlife & Conservation — Marine Conservation
Silver — Wild Waterfront (Marguerite Venter, Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation, South Africa)
Silver — Raggies — A Shark Release (Marguerite Venter, Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation, South Africa)
Gold — Apex Alley (Film Mamba, People’s Planet & Wep Productions, South Africa / Germany)
Wildlife & Conservation — Rewilding
Silver — The Rewilders (Kyle Gunther & Marlene Rodgers, Canada)
Silver — The Land Remembers — Maasai Mara (James Suter & Jessica van Zyl, Kenya)
Silver — Rewilding Mapesu: A Big Five Dream (Byron Grobler, South Africa)
Gold — Guardians of the Corridor (Oliver Caldow & Jessica van Zyl, South Africa)
Gold — Abashimba — Return of Lions to Nsumbu (Matt Blair & Mana Meadows, Conservation Connect Films, Zambia)
Wildlife & Conservation — Elephant & Rhino
Gold — Tuskers: Saving the Last Gentle Giants (Nick Chevallier & Leigh Wood, South Africa)
Wildlife & Conservation — Marine & Forest
Silver — Life of the Forest: The Great Herbivores (Sławomir Skupiński, Poland)
Gold — The Yew: History Written in a Tree (Sławomir Skupiński, Poland)
Wildlife & Conservation — Ornithology
Silver — An Ally to Farmers and Nature (Constantinos Christou, Cyprus)
Wildlife & Conservation — Conservation Personalities
Silver — Stories of Change: See Oja (Tao Varty & James Tyrrell, South Africa)
Silver — Stories of Change: Kitso Paris Mpinang (Marius de Jager & Ryan Rapaport, South Africa)
Gold — A Legacy in Conservation (Andrew Barratt, for Shamwari Private Game Reserve, South Africa)
Sustainable & Responsible Tourism — Youth Development
Silver — Skipper Foundation Changing Lives in Mossel Bay (Andrew Nunneley, South Africa)
Gold — Children in the Wilderness: Empowering Future Leaders (Marius de Jager & Ryan Rapaport, South Africa)
Tourism and Travel
Silver — Looking into the Future from Shenzhen (Wang Yutong, Song Wenqian & Maria Cherneva, Bulgaria)
Gold — What Is Tibet Really Like? (Tara & Georg Beyer, USA / Germany)
Series and Social Media Channels
Silver — Green Noise S3 Ep 3: Honouring Culture and Ancestors (Loren Pavitt / Nidha Narrendes, for Cape Nature, South Africa)
Silver — Antarctica: Land for All (Patrícia Azevedo, Azvdo Projects)
Silver — Sleeping Around Safely On Board Explora Journeys (Michaela Guzy, OTPYM)
Silver — Why the South? Myth-busting Southern Tanzania — Seasons Edition(Love Africa Marketing)
Tourism Products
Gold — The Legacy in Every Gesture — Romaria d’Agonia (Flávio Cruz, Portugal) — Cultural & Religious Tourism
Gold — Go All Out Cape Town (Rupert Fitchet & Rory Appleton, Sledgehammer, South Africa) — Pride Tourism
Silver — València: The City That Fuels Sustainable Change (Spain) — MICE
Silver — Valencia: MICE Done Better (La Quadra, Spain) — MICE
Gold — The Big Trend (Sandra Lopes & Mónica Loureiro, Portugal) — MICE
Gold — Catalonia, the Best Gastronomy in the World (Spain) — Gastronomy Tourism
Gold — Foxes’ Farms (Nicola Gerrard, Foxes Safari Camps, South Africa) — Sustainable & Responsible Tourism
Silver — Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Tian van den Heever & Kirsty Galliard, Joburg Ballet, South Africa) — Arts & Culture Tourism
Gold — The Legacy in Every Gesture — Romaria d’Agonia (Flávio Cruz, Portugal) — Arts & Culture Tourism
Silver — Horseback Safari Okavango Delta (Florian Wagner, Germany) — Horseback Safaris
Silver — World Class Chardonnay: The South African Story (Jasmine Duthie & Anton Leach, Rockpool Media, South Africa) — Wine Tourism
Silver — Pinotage: The Lanzerac Story (Lizanne Vos, Lanzerac, South Africa) — Wine Tourism
Gold — Roxanich Winery and Design Hotel (Michaela Guzy, USA) — Wine Tourism
Tourism Services
Silver — Umoya Afrika (Victor Zaviano, South Africa / USA) — Travel Agency
Gold — Touching the Sky (Nicola Gerrard, Serengeti Balloon Safaris, South Africa) — Special Safari
Silver — The Mansard (Simóne Meyer & Vernon Botha, Versi Creative) — Hotel Brands
Gold — Connect with Your Wild Within (Jessica van Zyl, Legendary Expeditions, South Africa) — Hotel Brands
Silver — Elephant Encounters (Ruvarashe Zimuto, Aquila Collection, South Africa)
Silver — Wilderness Magashi — Savannah Unseen (Ryan Rapaport, Wilderness Destinations, South Africa)
Silver — Wilderness Chitabe: Encounter the Extraordinary (Ryan Rapaport, Wilderness Destinations, South Africa)
Silver — Wilderness Magashi Peninsula: Suspended Between Earth & Sky (Ryan Rapaport, Wilderness, South Africa)
Gold — Stanley’s Kopje (Nicola Gerrard, Foxes Safari Camps, South Africa)
Gold — Buffelsdrift Game Lodge (Bianca Hubbard, South Africa)
Gold — Wilderness Mombo: Meet Me at Mombo (Ryan Rapaport, Wilderness Destinations, South Africa)
Gold — Suyian Lodge, Laikipia, Kenya (Jacqui Fandam, &Beyond)
Silver — Golden Hour in the Karoo (Ruvarashe Zimuto, Aquila Collection, South Africa)
Gold — Elephant Encounters (Ruvarashe Zimuto, Aquila Collection, South Africa)
Silver — Mombo Sanctuary: Where the Wild Restores You (Michael Ellis, Wilderness Destinations, South Africa) — Health & Wellness
Gold — Wilderness Bisate — The Sanctuary (Michael Ellis, Wilderness, South Africa) — Health & Wellness
Gold — Mother of All Mothers (Daron Chatz, South Africa) — Hiking Trail
Silver — Penguin Group — Fun Starts with Us (Małgorzata Rozwód, Grupa Pingwina, Poland) — Resort Group
Silver — Goats Window Director’s Cut (Bianca Hubbard, Goats Window Luxury Safari Lodge) — Safari Lodge
Gold/Silver — Mnemba Island, Zanzibar, Tanzania (Jacqui Fandam, &Beyond) — Resort
Gold — Kruger National Park (KG, SANParks, South Africa) — National Park
Silver — The Mansard (Simóne Meyer & Vernon Botha, Radisson Hotels) — Hotel Group
Silver — Summer Safari at Aquila (Ruvarashe Zimuto, Aquila Collection, South Africa) — Safari
Silver — Footprints in Indonesia (Simóne Meyer & Vernon Botha) — Country
Silver — Sleeping Around Safely: Capella, Singapore (Michaela Guzy, OTPYM Productions, USA) — Series
Independent Filmmakers
Silver — CJGB Rip ’n Ride JetSki Event (Jeremy Biggs) — Sports Tourism
Silver — Jozi, I Write My Story (Mandisa Mary Jane Mthembu) — Cities
Tourism Destinations
Silver — Tales of Poland: Echoes of the Legend — Elbląg (Małgorzata Rozwód, Elbląg City Hall, Poland) — Cities
Silver — Damascus (Ali Gharaati, Iran) — Cities
Silver — Welcome2Joburg: It’s Where You Wanna Be (Mthunzi Plaatjie, Johannesburg Tourism Company, South Africa) — Cities
Gold — Iconic Mossel Bay (Ivan Zimmermann, Mossel Bay Tourism, South Africa) — Cities
Silver — Rías Baixas: Your Goal, Your Destination (Alberto Baamonde, Deputación de Pontevedra, Portugal) — Region
Silver — Destination Selca: Welcoming Every Time (Danijel Bolić, Croatia) — Region
Silver — Echoes of Šolta (Danijel Bolić, Croatia) — Region
Silver — Visit Stellenbosch, the Heart of the Cape Winelands (Lizanne Vos, South Africa) — Region
Gold — Mother of All Mothers (Daron Chatz, Robberg Coastal Corridor, South Africa) — Region
Gold — The Atakora (Daniel Amao, Nigeria) — Region
Gold — Gauteng Tourism Brand Film (Mpho Mgakane, Gauteng Tourism Authority, South Africa) — Region
Silver — Rwanda Itinerary Video: Plains & Peaks of Rwanda (Marius de Jager, Wilderness, South Africa) — Country
Silver — This Is Who We Are (Shepherd Moahloli, Brand South Africa) — Country
Gold — South Africa’s Signature Story (Kutloano Dingaan, Brand South Africa) — Country
Pinnacle Awards
Best Tourism Film — Wilderness Bisate — The Sanctuary
YouTube Channel — What Is Tibet Really Like?
Best Documentary — Bucket: The Lion Cub
Best Short Documentary — Guardians of the Corridor
Directors’ Award — You Are Not the Alpha Here (Wilderness Destinations)
