Olive Nwosu has earned top recognition at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival after her feature debut Lady was awarded the World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Acting Ensemble.
Written and directed by Nwosu, Lady follows a fiercely independent young cab driver in Lagos who encounters a group of sex workers whose bond of sisterhood draws her into a world of both danger and joy, ultimately setting her on a path of personal transformation.
The jury praised the film, citing it “for a film full of depth and texture and with a rhythm all its own, with an electric ensemble cast that brings life and humor and insight to a story about day-to-day challenges and finding safety in unexpected friendships.”
The cast of the film includes Jessica Gabriel’s Ujah in the lead role, alongside Amanda Oruh, Tinuade Jemiseye, Binta Ayo Mogaji, Seun Kuti, and Bucci Franklin.
Nwosu’s recognition at Sundance is not her first, as she previously received the 2023 Sundance Institute/NHK Award for Lady, highlighting the festival’s ongoing support for her work. The film now joins a strong lineage of acting ensemble honorees at Sundance, a category that has celebrated casts across decades of independent filmmaking.
The award was presented at a ceremony attended by the jury and honorees ahead of the festival’s final day on February 1. Sundance, held across Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah, showcased 97 feature-length and episodic works and 54 short films, curated from over 16,000 submissions.
Other major winners at this year’s festival include the Grand Jury Prizes, which went to Josephine in U.S. Dramatic Competition, Nuisance Bear in U.S. Documentary Competition, Shame and Money in World Cinema Dramatic Competition, and To Hold a Mountain in World Cinema Documentary Competition.
Produced by Alex Polunin, Lady had its world premiere at Sundance and is now available for online viewing.
