The Debut wins the 2026 Feroz Zinemaldia Award
The 2026 Feroz Zinemaldia Award for Best Film in Competition at the San Sebastián International Film Festival has gone to the US film The Debut , directed by Jesse Eisenberg and starring Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti.
Actress and director Paz Vega and Mariona Borrull, a board member of the Spanish Association of Film Journalists (AICE), presented the award this morning at the Kursaal in San Sebastián. The medal was collected by Miguel Morales, head of Wanda Vision, the film’s Spanish distributor.
The Feroz Zinemaldia Award is voted for by AICE members accredited as press at the festival. It recognises the best film competing in the Official Selection of the San Sebastián International Film Festival. The 2026 edition marks the 13th Feroz Zinemaldia Award. A complete list of previous winners is available here .
Eisenberg wrote and directed the comedy, and also co-wrote its music. The film follows Mona Friedman (Moore), an unassuming housewife who lands a small role in a community theatre production and transforms into a passionate actress. Determined to protect the artistic integrity of her performance at all costs, she is prepared to do whatever it takes—even if that means going to war with the play’s authoritarian director (Giamatti).
For the third consecutive year, the Association of Film and Television Journalists will host the Feroz Awards in Pontevedra, on Saturday, January 23, at the Pazo da Cultura. The awards ceremony will be preceded by an extensive programme of activities beginning in October, once again bringing together numerous leading figures from Spain’s audiovisual industry in the city, affectionately known as Boa Vila.
The Feroz Awards celebrate the year’s outstanding Spanish audiovisual productions, as recognised by specialist film and television journalists. They are sponsored by Pontevedra City Council and funded by the Government of Spain through the Institute of Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts (ICAA), under the Ministry of Culture.
