The race for the coveted 2026 LUX Audience Award is over. The winner of the world’s largest audience award was announced this evening during a live-streamed ceremony from the European Parliament Hemicycle in Brussels. The event, once again moderated by Hajar Yagkoubi and Dylan Ahern, of the Dutch organisation De Kiesmannen (focused on boosting political engagement through culture), saw Deaf, the first feature by Spain’s Eva Libertad, emerge as the winner of this year’s prestigious pan-European prize, presented by the European Parliament and the European Film Academy in collaboration with the European Commission and Europa Cinemas.

Libertad’s complex and poignant portrait of a deaf woman’s experience of motherhood took home the award in a year that saw particularly stiff competition. The other four finalists (selected from among more than 40 candidates) were Christy by Brendan Canty, It Was Just an Accident by Jafar Panahi (the latest Palme d’Or winner), Love Me Tender by Anna Cazenave Cambet, and Sentimental Value by Joachim Trier (which won the Oscar for Best International Film at the Academy Awards last month).

Since the five shortlisted films were announced during the European Parliament’s plenary session in Strasbourg last October, they have been subtitled into all 24 official EU languages and screened across Europe in an extensive programme of more than 950 free screenings, reaching 120,000 audience members. Notably, for the first time ever, all nominated films were also adapted for deaf and hearing-impaired audiences, underscoring the award’s commitment to diversity and accessibility. During this period, both European audiences and Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were invited to rate the films online, each group accounting for 50% of the final result. The voting closed on 12 April, with thousands of ratings submitted across the continent. At the end of the process, Deaf received the highest combined score from both the public and the MEPs.

Since its creation, the LUX Audience Award has aimed to foster dialogue and highlight issues at the heart of the European public debate, including the defence of human rights and freedom of expression all over the world, the fight against social inequality, and the need to break down barriers and ensure inclusion in all its dimensions, as reflected in this year’s nominees.

The ceremony, which featured musical accompaniment inspired by the music of Astor Piazzolla, brought together MEPs, the creative teams behind the five nominated films, participants in the Young Talents programme, and members of the public from across Europe. Vice-President of the European Parliament Sabine Verheyen was interviewed at the beginning of the ceremony by the moderators, who asked her about her highlights of this edition. Reflecting on this year’s nominees, Verheyen expressed: “All of the films show a sense of community, of belonging together, of relying on one another, of being held within a community. It was present in every film in a different way, but the idea that if we stand together we can achieve much more, that we can move forward, that we are supported by our partners, I think is a very important message. And that is also a wonderful symbol for Europe.” She also took the opportunity to thank the translation team at the European Parliament for their efforts in making the films accessible to audiences across Europe.

Nela Riehl, Chair of the Committee on Culture and Education, and responsible for the LUX Audience Award, also shared her thoughts on the role of cinema in Europe today: “Cinema is a space for connection. […] In the world we live in, it is more crucial than ever that we safeguard this space where we share our European stories,” stated Riehl, who also commented on the European Commission’s proposal to double funding for the Creative Europe programme: “It's to safeguard European democracy because culture is not a luxury. This is not just a cultural choice; it really means investing in democracy. That is what we, as the European Parliament, will be fighting for.”

Director Eva Libertad and producer Nuria Muñoz Ortín took to the stage to accept the award: “Deaf arises from the desire to explore in depth the complexity of the bond between the deaf world and the hearing world, its conflicts and confrontations, but also its love and connection. […] We hope that this award helps to promote greater inclusion and accessibility policies, and encourages reflection on diversity and on the idea of ‘normality’, which does not exist. True normality is human diversity. We must remember that nobody fits into a standard. Trying to make people fit into a box can cause a great deal of suffering. We need the possibility to live, to feel and to be in contact with other ways of seeing the world, which bring us richness, intelligence and love. It is a human experience that everybody deserves,” said Libertad.

In June, a new edition of the LUX Audience Award will officially get under way as a panel of leading European film professionals (including producers, distributors, cinema operators, festival programmers and artistic directors) is expected to come together to select the 2027 nominees, which will mark the 20th edition of the award. All details will be available on the award’s official website.