# Rio Film Festival Awards

> The Riverbank and Elza win top prizes at Rio Film Festival.
- Title: Rio Film Festival Awards · Variety | Shortify
- Summary: The Riverbank and Elza win top prizes at Rio Film Festival. The Riverbank and Elza take top honors at Rio Film Festival, with other Brazilian films also…
- Keywords: rio film festival, the riverbank, elza, on behalf of my son, the french teacher, london, globo, festival awards, entertainment, culture, Rio, Film
- Source: Variety — https://variety.com/2026/film/global/the-riverbank-elza-top-rio-film-festival-awards-1236908331
- Author: Rafa Sales Ross
- Published: 2026-10-12T02:01:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: rio film festival, the riverbank, elza, on behalf of my son, the french teacher, london, globo, festival awards, entertainment, culture
## Rio Film Festival Awards
Enock Carvalho and Matheus Farias' Locarno-winning film The Riverbank won Best Fiction Feature Film at Rio Film Festival.
## Elza Wins Best Documentary
Eryk Rocha's Elza took Best Documentary Feature Film at the festival.
## The Riverbank Story
The Riverbank follows young cleaner Izaquiel in Recife who searches for intimacy with fisherman Jeremias as violence closes in.
## Elza Documentary Focus
Elza documents Brazil's renowned singer Elza Soares over her seven-decade career and life.
## Other Brazilian Winners
Gabriel Martins' On Behalf of My Son, Victor di Marco's London, and Ricardo Alves Jr.'s The French Teacher also won top prizes.
## Jury Members
The Première Brasil jury included Esther García, Jacqueline Lyanga, Sophie Erbs, Flavia Tygel, and Marcela Altberg.
## Felix Awards Highlight
The Felix Awards honored LGBTQIA+ films with The Riverbank winning Brazilian Film and À voix basse winning International Film.
## Key takeaway

The Riverbank and Elza take top honors at Rio Film Festival, with other Brazilian films also winning key awards.