Spanish director Eva Libertad’s debut solo feature Deaf (Sorda), about a deaf woman expecting a child with her hearing partner, has won the 2026 European Parliament’s LUX Audience Award.
The award continues a prizewinning run for the film which world premiered in the Berlinale’s Panorama section in 2025, where it was feted with the audience award and the CICAE arthouse cinema prize.
Since then it has garnered multiple prizes including Best New Director for Libertad at the Goyas with lead actress Miriam Garlo, who is deaf, winning Best Actress, and co-star Álvaro Cervantes, Best Supporting Actor, in the prestigious Spanish awards.
The LUX Prize was created in 2007 with the aim of supporting films which raise awareness of socio-political issues in Europe as well as to encourage the distribution of European films throughout the region and worldwide. The winning film is chosen by combining a public vote and a vote by MEPs, each weighted at 50%.
“The LUX Audience Award shines a light on films that open our eyes to experiences beyond our own. This year’s winner, Deaf, does exactly that – with courage, warmth, and rare authenticity. Director Eva Libertad gives us an unforgettable window into the life of a deaf woman navigating motherhood in a world not built for her,” said European Parliament vice-president Sabine Verheyen at the award ceremony in Brussels on Tuesday evening.
“Led by a stunning performance from deaf actress Miriam Garlo, the film challenges us to listen differently and to build a Europe where no one is left unheard.”
The other short-listed films were Brendan Canty’s Christy, Jafar Panahi’s It Was Just An Accident, Anna Cazenave Cambet’s Love Me Tender and Joachim Trier’s Best International Feature Film Oscar-winner Sentimental Value.
The initiative also supports the distribution in Europe of all the shortlisted films by providing subtitles in 24 European Union languages. This year, for the first time and keeping with Parliament’s commitment to accessibility, shortlisted films have subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.
“I hope that this award will help to focus on the Deaf community, and the diversity of people in Europe, and to promote inclusion policies that improve their living conditions. I am also confident that it will contribute to society changing its view of diversity, that it will no longer be seen as a problem and that it will be perceived as human wealth”, said Libertad.
The film was produced by Distinto Films, Nexus CreaFilms and A Contracorriente Films. Sold internationally by Latido Films, it has been released in more than 40 countries worldwide.
“This extraordinary winning film that is not just a worthy winner of this prestigious award, it is a textbook example of how to get audiences into cinemas to watch inspiring European films and encourage them to engage in debates about Europe – raising awareness of some of Europe’s social, political and historical issues, and they reflecting the beauty and diversity of European cinema,” said Mike Downey, Honorary President of the selection panel.