How the Santa Barbara International Film Festival Scored 2026’s Top Oscar Nominees and a New $20 Million Film Hub

Growing up in Panama in the 1970s, Roger Durling was obsessed with the Academy Awards. “I had charts. I would track down who was up that year, who deserved the Oscar, etc.,” recalls the Santa Barbara International Film Festival executive director. “I was compulsive.” 

The first Oscars that sticks out in his mind is the 1977 telecast, where Durling family favorite “Network” was up for 10 awards and won four, including best actress for Faye Dunaway (“She was overdue, and I called that one,” he notes). 

Was that the Oscars where the opening had “The Wizard of Oz” star Ray Bolger singing and dancing up the steps outside the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion? 

“That was 1979,” Durling says confidently. “It was the 51st Academy Awards and he was there to present the award for best costume design.” 

Durling clearly knows his Oscars, so it’s only fitting that SBIFF has reigned as a key stop on the promotional circuit leading up to the awards during his 24 years running the fest. He has long demonstrated a remarkable knack for reading the pre-nomination buzz and booking the eventual nominees, and this year’s lineup is no exception. Eleven of the 15 acting honorees at the 41st edition of SBIFF, which runs from Feb. 4-14, have Oscar nods: Benicio del Toro, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jacob Elordi, Kate Hudson, Michael B. Jordan, Amy Madigan, Wagner Moura, Renate Reinsve, Sean Penn, Stellan Skarsgård and Teyana Taylor. And the remaining four — Adam Sandler, Chase Infiniti, Sydney Sweeney and Jeremy Allen White — are nothing to sneeze at either, in terms of both artistic achievement and of-the-moment cultural relevance. 

Behind-the-camera talent will also be well-represented at this year’s SBIFF, with a lineup of industry panels covering writers, producers, international directors, women in film and casting, along with the Variety Artisans Award featuring a panel moderated by Variety senior artisans editor Jazz Tangcay. There will also be a tribute to director Julian Schnabel featuring a retrospective of his films, including “Basquiat,” “Before Night Falls,” “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly” and “At Eternity’s Gate,” leading up to the U.S. premiere of his latest film, “In the Hand of Dante,” starring Oscar Isaac. 

All told, SBIFF 2026 boasts 46 world premieres and 80 U.S. premieres (including opening and closing night features, Nicola Rinciari’s “A Mosquito in the Ear” and Zamo Mkhwanazi’s “The Laundry”) from 50 countries, 50% of which were directed by women. 

Durling is proud of SBIFF’s programming lineup, but he’s “like a kid in a candy store freaking out” about the opening of its brand-new permanent exhibition hub, the McHurley Film Center, at 916 State St., which he says is “a linchpin to revitalize downtown” Santa Barbara. 

Previously, SBIFF had only a single 328-seat theater of its own, the Riviera, which meant the bulk of its programming unspooled at rented venues. In October 2024, the Santa Barbara City Council approved SBIFF’s acquisition of the long-term lease for the recently shuttered Fiesta 5 theater complex from bankrupt Metropolitan Theatres. In the last year, it underwent a down-to-the-studs $20 million renovation. Renamed the McHurley Film Center, it will reopen on the second day of the fest with five state-of-the-art auditoriums hosting screenings and Q&As. It will also house an exhibit from husband-and-wife production designer-art director team David Wasco and Sandy Reynolds-Wasco, covering their work on “La La Land” and other films. Going forward, it will have a year-round schedule of screenings. 

It’s pretty big stuff for that kid from Panama.

“When I was little, I was made fun of. I was the geek and the nerd that was nonstop talking about movies,” Durling muses. “Now, I could talk about movies all day.” 

Tipsheet
WHAT Santa Barbara International Film Festival
WHEN Feb. 4-14
WHERE Santa Barbara
WEB sbiff.org