Australian director Dylan Nicholls was awarded the 2026 Red Poppy Award for Best Short Film for Bringing His Spirit Home. Nicholl’s 14-minute documentary honours the Aboriginal soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice in World War I, through one very personal story. The film follows the journey of Gomeroi man, Peter Milliken, as he travels to France to visit the grave of his Great Uncle, Private William Allan Irwin DCM, and the Road Wood battlefield where he earned the Distinguished Conduct Medal for his gallantry.
Tom Peppiat was awarded the Red Poppy Award for Best Feature Film for My Husband the Child Soldier. The 54-minute film tells the story of former Khmer Rouge child soldier, Aki Ra, who has dedicated his life to clearing the unexploded landmines left behind from the war and which still threaten the lives and limbs of Cambodian villages.
Mark Bernard received the Red Poppy Award for Best Animation for the poignant and contemplative, New Life.
The Awards were presented on the opening night of the Red Poppy Film Festival at the Art Gallery of New South Wales.
Pictured left to right: Mark Bernard New Life director, Tim Oxford Bringing His Spirit Home cinematographer, and Dylan Nicholls Bringing His Spirit Home director.
