Flo Stone & Roger D. Stone Award
For Outstanding Artistry in FilmmakingWith generous support from the Farvue Foundation and Wallace Genetic Foundation, the Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital (DCEFF) is pleased to present the Flo Stone and Roger D. Stone Award for Outstanding Artistry in Filmmaking. The purpose of this award is to honor DCEFF Founder Flo Stone, as well as both Flo and Roger's enthusiasm and passion for originality, artistry, and innovation in filmmaking. This award comes with a $10,000 prize to the winner.
2026 Winner
Observer
In OBSERVER, filmmaker Ian Cheney embarks on an experiment in which he brings a series of keen-eyed observers - scientists, artists, a hunter - to a range of locations around the world, often without telling them where they are going, and asks them simply to describe what they see.
What unfolds is a deep exploration and celebration of the power of observation: what happens when you find new ways to sense & perceive the world around you? With customary whimsy and a small painted red square that Cheney brings on every journey, the film is an invitation to viewers to find beauty and meaning in even the most quotidian of locales.
