2026 Oscar Winners: Celebrating Our Alumni on Hollywood’s Biggest Night

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2026 Oscar Winners

The 98th Academy Awards have officially wrapped. The biggest night in film delivered unforgettable moments, and, for our community, reasons to celebrate! Alumni of The Los Angeles Film School and The Los Angeles Recording School contributed to some of the most honored films of the evening, including the night’s biggest winner, One Battle After Another, as well as Sinners, F1, and Avatar: Fire and Ash.

On the Red Carpet: Our Alumni at the Center of Hollywood’s Biggest Night

For the second consecutive year, Los Angeles Film School alumni were part of the Academy’s official Oscar red carpet production team, working alongside the biggest stars in the world. Jennifer Pirante (Film, 2020), a military veteran and assistant to WME’s Lloyd Braun, Ray Taylor (Digital Filmmaking, 2023), an Academy Gold Rising intern, and Shaunette Felton (Entertainment Business, 2024), an Academy Gold Rising alumna with multiple high-profile red carpet credits, all represented LAFS on Hollywood’s most iconic stage. We could not be more proud to see our graduates standing at the center of Hollywood’s biggest night as part of the team that makes it happen.

Here is a breakdown of every 2026 Oscar win tied to our alumni.

One Battle After Another – 6 Oscar Wins, Including Best Picture

  • Best Picture
  • Best Director – Paul Thomas Anderson
  • Best Supporting Actor – Sean Penn
  • Best Film Editing
  • Best Casting
  • Best Adapted Screenplay – Paul Thomas Anderson

Paul Thomas Anderson’s action-dramedy epic took home six Oscars, cementing itself as one of the defining film of 2026. Behind the scenes, three Los Angeles Film School alumni were part of the production.

Chun-ning Chang (Film, 2013) served as an Additional Second Assistant Director on the film and pulled off one of the year’s most impressive doubles, also earning a production credit on the Oscar-nominated F1 (more on that below). 

Devon Rush (Film, 2016) worked as a Digital Matte Painter at Crafty Apes, the visual effects company whose work helped shape the film’s stunning environments.

Justin Dickson (Film, 2008) served as the film’s Gaffer, responsible for designing and executing the lighting plan alongside the director of photography. 

Sinners – 4 Oscar Wins

  • Best Actor – Michael B. Jordan
  • Best Cinematography
  • Best Original Score – Ludwig Göransson
  • Best Original Screenplay

Ryan Coogler’s Sinners arrived at this year’s ceremony as the most-nominated film in history, and it delivered on Oscar night with four wins, including a Best Actor win for Michael B. Jordan.

Two Los Angeles Recording School alumni contributed to the film’s acclaimed sound landscape.

Danielle Adams (Audio, 2015) worked as a Mix Technician on Sinners, contributing to the audio texture of a film whose sound design was considered among the year’s best. The film’s rich sonic world earned it a Best Sound nomination, and Danielle’s fingerprints are on that achievement.

Travis Harrington (Audio, 2018) produced the Rod Wave song “Sinners” for the film’s soundtrack. Travis’s contributions to the album help tell the full story of Sinners as a musical event, not just a film.

F1 – 1 Oscar Win

  • Best Achievement in Sound

The high-octane racing film F1 brought the roar of Formula One to the Dolby Theatre, and its immersive, technically spectacular sound design took home the Academy Award.

Sofia Ochoa (Film, 2013) served as Key Assistant Location Manager on F1, coordinating the real-world logistics of filming at actual racing circuits around the world. 

Chun-ning Chang (Film, 2013) also served as a Production Assistant on F1, making this the second Oscar-winning film in Chun-ning’s remarkable year. 

Avatar: Fire and Ash – 1 Oscar Win

  • Best Visual Effects

James Cameron’s Avatar franchise returned with Fire and Ash, and the Academy once again recognized the film’s groundbreaking visual achievement with the Oscar for Best Visual Effects. Two of our alumni were part of the team that made it happen.

Angelina Ramsey (Film, 2007) served as Additional Crew under VFX supervisor Richard Baneham, working within the visual effects pipeline of one of the most technically ambitious franchises in cinema history.

Derek Hultquist (Animation, 2013) served as a Visual Effects Lead and Environment Layout Artist at Lightstorm Entertainment – James Cameron’s own production company – where he helped design and construct the vivid alien environments that define Pandora.

Congratulations to every one of our alumni who worked on a 2026 Oscar-nominated or winning film.

Did you work on a nominated or winning film and don’t see your name here? We want to hear from you. Email us!