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Austin Film Society Announces Special Guests & Presenters for the 2026 Texas Film Awards

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Category: Entertainment News
Published on Thursday, 26 February 2026 09:52
Written by A&E Contributing Editor

The Austin Film Society (AFS) announces special guests to attend the 2026 Texas Film Award to honor filmmaker and artist Julian Schnabel, actress Sydney Chandler, actor Sonny Carl Davis and celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Spy Kids.

The honorees will be inducted into the Texas Film Hall of Fame in recognition of their significant contributions to the advancement of Texas film culture and the creative media industries. 

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Special guests will include Spy Kids writer, director and producer Robert Rodriguez, producer Elizabeth Avellán, and actors Carla Gugino and Daryl Sabara. Presenters will include actor and producer Oscar Isaac to Julian Schnabel, who stars in the upcoming film In The Hand of Dante directed by Schnabel; actor and producer Gabriel Luna to the 25th Anniversary of Spy Kids; producer Mike Blizzard and AFS Founder and Artistic Director and filmmaker Richard Linklater to Sonny Carl Davis, and Noah Hawley to Sydney Chandler, who is creator of Alien: Earth, starring Chandler.

The annual event brings together legends of cinema and television and will take place on Thursday, March 5, 2026, at Troublemaker Studios.

Composer and musician JaRon Marshall (keyboardist for Grammy-nominated Black Pumas, Vieux Farka Touré and others) will serve as music director, with a band of Austin all-stars joining him for the gala awards show. The awards benefit the Austin Film Society's artistic and educational programs, including giving grants to Texas filmmakers. Since 1996, AFS has awarded nearly $3 million in grants to more than 700 independent film projects, providing pivotal career leaps for artists traditionally underrepresented in the film industry.

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The event Chairs are Grammy award-winning and Academy Award-nominated musician Adrian Quesada and creative entrepreneur, community builder and AFS Board member Celeste Quesada. 

The event's Honorary Hosts will be Noah and Kyle Hawley, co-founders of 26 Keys Productions (Alien: Earth, Fargo and the upcoming Far Cry TV series). 26 Keys is an Austin-based multifaceted entertainment company dedicated to celebrating humanity and inspiring connection through the power of storytelling. Noah Hawley was an honoree inducted into the Texas Film Hall of Fame in 2025 and is an AFS Board member.

Previous inductees to the Texas Film Hall of Fame have included Carol Burnett, Matthew McConaughey, Willie Nelson, Ethan Hawke, Renée Zellweger, Luke Wilson, Sissy Spacek, Glen Powell, Shirley MacLaine, Forest Whitaker, Paul Thomas Anderson, Michelle Rodriguez, Noah Hawley, Farrah Fawcett, Guillermo del Toro and Margo Martindale. 

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Tickets and tables available for purchase HERE.

The Texas Film Awards Committee is Kathy Blackwell & Steve Scheibal, Donna Blair & Tamara Carlisle, Noël & Will Bridges, Polly & Lonnie Cooper, Maddi & Connor Oman, Masha Poloskova & Jarod Harmeier, Rachel & Christopher Rios, Irene & Alexander Shoghi and Aurora & Charlie Tames.

For more information, please visit https://www.austinfilm.org/texas-film-awards/overview/ 

About the Texas Film Awards

The Texas Film Hall of Fame—founded by Evan Smith and Louis Black in 2001—honors those who have made a significant contribution to the advancement of the Texas film and creative media industry. Now in its 26th year, the Texas Film Awards brings together legends of cinema and television and inducts industry icons into the Texas Film Hall of Fame. Proceeds from the unforgettable evening benefit the artistic and educational programs of the Austin Film Society, a 501(c)(3) non-profit.

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About Austin Film Society

Founded in 1985 by filmmaker Richard Linklater, AFS creates life-changing opportunities for filmmakers, catalyzes Austin and Texas as a creative hub, and brings the community together around great film. AFS supports filmmakers towards career leaps, encouraging exceptional artistic projects with grants and support services. AFS operates Austin Studios, a 20-acre production facility, to attract and grow the creative media ecosystem. Austin Public, a space for our city's diverse mediamakers to train and collaborate, provides many points of access to filmmaking and film careers. The AFS Cinema is an ambitiously programmed repertory and first run arthouse with broad community engagement. By hosting premieres, special events, and the Texas Film Awards, AFS shines the national spotlight on Texas filmmakers while connecting Austin and Texas to the wider film community. AFS is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

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