COMMUNITY FUNDED CINEMA

Film Screenings
September 11 to 17, 2026
Cinema Village, Theater #1
Lower Manhattan, NYC

Award Ceremony
Saturday, September 19, 2026
Studio Exhibit, Floor #2
Lower Manhattan, NYC

September 11–17, 2026

Countdown to Nukhufest

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nukhufest is an esteemed celebration of artists and filmmakers that culminates with the annual announcement of the Best Nuvee winner.

Reserve your seat before the audience decides the lineup. Nukhufest returns to Lower Manhattan for 7 days of audience powered finalist screenings, curated favorites, filmmaker conversations, panels, and special programs.

NUKHUFEST 2026

Film Screenings
September 11 to 17, 2026
Cinema Village, Theater #1
Lower Manhattan, NYC

Nukhufest is an audience powered film festival. Nukhu members watch and vote throughout the year to determine the Top 10 Finalists. This September, those Finalists will screen live at Cinema Village alongside curated Nukhu favorites, filmmaker Q&As, panels, workshops, and special programs.

Because the final schedule will be announced after voting closes on August 29, early buyers can reserve block access now and receive priority redemption before the schedule is made public.

HOW NUKHUFEST WORKS


Filmmakers submit features, shorts, and music videos, throughout the year and premiere on the nukhu web and TV streaming apps weekly. Viewers like you help decide the Best Nuvee of the year by voting on nukhu.com.

STREAMING APP


The Top 10 Finalists are announced on August 29th and are screened in front of a live theatrical audience for 7 days while voting continues.

THEATRICAL FILM SCREENINGS


The nuvee that receives the most votes by September 19th 8 P.M. E.T. is declared the 2026 Best Nuvee and winner of a $3,000 development-to-distribution grant. The 2026 Best Nuvee award will be presented on September 19th at the nukhu ball award closing ceremony.

AWARD CEREMONY

Grant Information

Development-to-Distribution Grant

The nukhu development-to-distribution grant provides a $3,000 USD grant to one visual artist every year. This program provides creators with the resources to develop and produce original content that will be featured on nukhu.com. In addition to the grant, recipients have the opportunity to have their idea incubated and further developed alongside our team. We will help realize your vision from marketing to distribution. We are here for the community and the creators dedicating themselves to their craft. This program exists to uplift and challenge the system that continues to exclude emerging talent. Artists may apply multiple times. The grant is awarded to the annual Best Nuvee as determined by popular vote during nukhufest. The deadline for the current grant cycle is August 8th.

An application fee helps defray costs of administering this grant so we can continue to support and fund artists' important work.

We notify each applicant of the results at the conclusion of our review process throughout the grant cycle, and we display the name and work of each grant recipient and a link to their website (if applicable) on our website and social media. To see current and past grant recipients’ work, scroll through our “About” page.

In an effort to provide potential applicants with more information about our selection process, review our selection process at https://club.nukhu.com/reviews/post/what-do-we-mean-by-curation-xsiV1LPOdXREnbD. We hope our catalogue of past films also provides insight into the wide range of creative efforts we consider. Artists retain all rights to their work. We are simply interested in celebrating and promoting the award winners and semi-finalist artists.

If you have questions, contact us through our contact form or email sanjay@nukhufoundation.org.

We invite visual artists from anywhere in the world to apply.

We aim to select the strongest work possible. Markers for what constitutes “strong” include:
* A cohesive body of work
* Well-crafted work
* Well-presented work (with an understanding that artists have varying financial means and resources for presenting their work)
* Work that communicates its viewpoint, ideas, and concepts clearly, effectively, and creatively
* Work that is not derivative


Complete the application process by August 8th, 2026. Submit your film for consideration at https://filmfreeway.com/nukhufest.

Submission Deadline August 8th, 2026

Selecting the Best Nuvee is an involved process, requiring engaged viewers and active participants both online and in-person.

Making a Nukhu ball is a manual, handcrafted process.

Nukhufest 2026 Schedule Alerts


How Early Block Reservations Work

  1. Reserve your block access now
    Choose a 1 Block Reservation, 2 Block Pack, 6 Block Pack, or All Week Pass before the finalist schedule is announced.

  2. The audience decides the finalists
    Voting closes on August 29. The Top 10 Finalists are then programmed into official Nukhufest screening blocks.

  3. Early buyers redeem first
    Priority redemption opens August 29 at 12 PM and closes August 30 at 12 PM. During that window, early buyers receive first access to select eligible blocks according to their pass type.

  4. Public sales open after redemption
    After the priority window closes, remaining block access will be made available based on capacity.

Be in the room when the audience powered lineup reaches the big screen.


DIRECTIONS TO NUKHUFEST

Film Screenings
September 11th — 17th, 1pm to 10pm
Cinema Village
22 East 12th Street, New York NY 10003

 

Award Ceremony
September 19th, 6:30pm to 10pm
Studio Exhibit
62 Orchard Street, Floor 2, New York NY 10002

 

Cinema Village is the oldest continuously operated cinema in Greenwich Village, known for showing independent films and documentaries.

Studio Exhibit is a private event studio located in the heart of the Lower East Side, close to trendy shops, bars, and restaurants.

Celebrating 11 years of Nukhufest!