The Apex Times
Above the Noise
Culture Wire
CultureCalifornia State Senate Passes SB 2319 Creating a Post-Production Tax Incentive, Sending Bill to Gov. Gavin NewsomThe Apex TimesCultureU.S. Summer Box Office Near All-Time Domestic Record, Rentrak Data ShowsThe Apex TimesCultureRandy Quaid Criticizes Anne Hathaway’s Casting in “Days of Thunder 2,” Citing Pregnancy in Comments Reported by DeadlineThe Apex TimesCulture‘Buddy’ Horror-Comedy Scares Up No. 6 Specialty Box Office Spot, Sets Roadside Attractions RecordThe Apex TimesCultureOlivia Rodrigo’s “Daisy Chain Fields Festival” spotlights women and girls through nonprofit partnershipsThe Apex TimesCultureNaya Rivera’s 11-year-old son Josey makes acting debut in forthcoming film, per reportThe Apex TimesCulture‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ edges ‘Odyssey’ in global weekend box office battle, pushing Universal past $3B overseas YTDThe Apex TimesCultureDolly Parton is laid to rest as niece Lainey Mae Parton recounts “Granny” tributes and memoriesThe Apex TimesCultureGuy Pearce updates production timeline for “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert 2” after cast lossesThe Apex TimesCultureTrump says he will file an FCC complaint against NBC’s Kristen Welker, citing “rebuke or punishment”The Apex TimesCulture‘Coyote vs. Acme’ Lands at No. 2 With $15.4M as ‘Spider-Man’ Closes on ‘Avatar 2’; ‘Dog Stars’ DeclinesThe Apex TimesCulture“Sunday Morning” spotlights backyard tiny homes, design brands and rare maps in Aug. 30 episodeThe Apex TimesCultureCalifornia State Senate Passes SB 2319 Creating a Post-Production Tax Incentive, Sending Bill to Gov. Gavin NewsomThe Apex TimesCultureU.S. Summer Box Office Near All-Time Domestic Record, Rentrak Data ShowsThe Apex TimesCultureRandy Quaid Criticizes Anne Hathaway’s Casting in “Days of Thunder 2,” Citing Pregnancy in Comments Reported by DeadlineThe Apex TimesCulture‘Buddy’ Horror-Comedy Scares Up No. 6 Specialty Box Office Spot, Sets Roadside Attractions RecordThe Apex TimesCultureOlivia Rodrigo’s “Daisy Chain Fields Festival” spotlights women and girls through nonprofit partnershipsThe Apex TimesCultureNaya Rivera’s 11-year-old son Josey makes acting debut in forthcoming film, per reportThe Apex TimesCulture‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ edges ‘Odyssey’ in global weekend box office battle, pushing Universal past $3B overseas YTDThe Apex TimesCultureDolly Parton is laid to rest as niece Lainey Mae Parton recounts “Granny” tributes and memoriesThe Apex TimesCultureGuy Pearce updates production timeline for “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert 2” after cast lossesThe Apex TimesCultureTrump says he will file an FCC complaint against NBC’s Kristen Welker, citing “rebuke or punishment”The Apex TimesCulture‘Coyote vs. Acme’ Lands at No. 2 With $15.4M as ‘Spider-Man’ Closes on ‘Avatar 2’; ‘Dog Stars’ DeclinesThe Apex TimesCulture“Sunday Morning” spotlights backyard tiny homes, design brands and rare maps in Aug. 30 episodeThe Apex TimesCultureCalifornia State Senate Passes SB 2319 Creating a Post-Production Tax Incentive, Sending Bill to Gov. Gavin NewsomThe Apex TimesCultureU.S. Summer Box Office Near All-Time Domestic Record, Rentrak Data ShowsThe Apex TimesCultureRandy Quaid Criticizes Anne Hathaway’s Casting in “Days of Thunder 2,” Citing Pregnancy in Comments Reported by DeadlineThe Apex TimesCulture‘Buddy’ Horror-Comedy Scares Up No. 6 Specialty Box Office Spot, Sets Roadside Attractions RecordThe Apex TimesCultureOlivia Rodrigo’s “Daisy Chain Fields Festival” spotlights women and girls through nonprofit partnershipsThe Apex TimesCultureNaya Rivera’s 11-year-old son Josey makes acting debut in forthcoming film, per reportThe Apex TimesCulture‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ edges ‘Odyssey’ in global weekend box office battle, pushing Universal past $3B overseas YTDThe Apex TimesCultureDolly Parton is laid to rest as niece Lainey Mae Parton recounts “Granny” tributes and memoriesThe Apex TimesCultureGuy Pearce updates production timeline for “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert 2” after cast lossesThe Apex TimesCultureTrump says he will file an FCC complaint against NBC’s Kristen Welker, citing “rebuke or punishment”The Apex TimesCulture‘Coyote vs. Acme’ Lands at No. 2 With $15.4M as ‘Spider-Man’ Closes on ‘Avatar 2’; ‘Dog Stars’ DeclinesThe Apex TimesCulture“Sunday Morning” spotlights backyard tiny homes, design brands and rare maps in Aug. 30 episodeThe Apex TimesCultureCalifornia State Senate Passes SB 2319 Creating a Post-Production Tax Incentive, Sending Bill to Gov. Gavin NewsomThe Apex TimesCultureU.S. Summer Box Office Near All-Time Domestic Record, Rentrak Data ShowsThe Apex TimesCultureRandy Quaid Criticizes Anne Hathaway’s Casting in “Days of Thunder 2,” Citing Pregnancy in Comments Reported by DeadlineThe Apex TimesCulture‘Buddy’ Horror-Comedy Scares Up No. 6 Specialty Box Office Spot, Sets Roadside Attractions RecordThe Apex TimesCultureOlivia Rodrigo’s “Daisy Chain Fields Festival” spotlights women and girls through nonprofit partnershipsThe Apex TimesCultureNaya Rivera’s 11-year-old son Josey makes acting debut in forthcoming film, per reportThe Apex TimesCulture‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ edges ‘Odyssey’ in global weekend box office battle, pushing Universal past $3B overseas YTDThe Apex TimesCultureDolly Parton is laid to rest as niece Lainey Mae Parton recounts “Granny” tributes and memoriesThe Apex TimesCultureGuy Pearce updates production timeline for “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert 2” after cast lossesThe Apex TimesCultureTrump says he will file an FCC complaint against NBC’s Kristen Welker, citing “rebuke or punishment”The Apex TimesCulture‘Coyote vs. Acme’ Lands at No. 2 With $15.4M as ‘Spider-Man’ Closes on ‘Avatar 2’; ‘Dog Stars’ DeclinesThe Apex TimesCulture“Sunday Morning” spotlights backyard tiny homes, design brands and rare maps in Aug. 30 episodeThe Apex Times
Back to front
‘Bandit’ Wins Dances With Films: LA Grand Jury Prize for Best Narrative Feature as Festival Wraps 29th Edition
The Apex Times

THE APEX TIMES

Culture/The Apex Times/Jun 29, 9:45 PM EDT

‘Bandit’ Wins Dances With Films: LA Grand Jury Prize for Best Narrative Feature as Festival Wraps 29th Edition

The independent-focused Los Angeles festival concluded its 29th run with awards, including a top narrative win for Brian L. “BLT” Tan’s action-thriller Bandit.

2 min readEditor-approved Apex article

Dances With Films: LA, the independent-focused film festival based in Los Angeles, wrapped its 29th edition with an awards presentation highlighted by major recognition for the Indonesian-U.S. action thriller Bandit. The festival announced that Bandit, directed by Brian L. “BLT” Tan, received the Grand Jury Prize for Best Narrative Feature, a top honor from the festival’s jury for its narrative offering.

Tan’s film stars Wafda Saifan Lubis, Roy Sungkono, T. Rifnu Wikana, and Claresta Taufan. Deadline’s report described Bandit as an action-thriller bridging production and creative elements from Indonesia and the United States, with the ensemble cast featuring performances credited among the film’s main roles.

In addition to the narrative-feature win, the awards coverage also pointed to another leading title, The Last Place On Earth, as part of the festival’s broader slate of winners. Deadline characterized the conclusion as a “triumph” for both Bandit and The Last Place On Earth, framing the final results as a standout moment for multiple films rather than a single-title sweep.

Dances With Films: LA has long positioned itself as a venue for independent filmmakers, and its Grand Jury Prize is typically treated within the festival ecosystem as a credibility marker for projects that may be seeking additional visibility with distributors, buyers, and specialty audiences. In this year’s 29th edition, the top narrative prize for Bandit places Tan’s thriller among the most prominently recognized works from the festival’s closing awards program.

The Deadline report was published June 30, 2026, as the festival concluded, and it included a “full list” framing of awards results. However, the specific breakdown of additional category winners beyond the Grand Jury Prize for Best Narrative Feature was not detailed in the text excerpt provided for this write-up, so only the top narrative prize and the principal cast and director details are stated here with certainty.

With the festival now concluded, the next steps for award winners commonly involve post-festival outreach, including screenings and marketing tied to the festival run. For Bandit in particular, the Grand Jury Prize for Best Narrative Feature functions as a recent, concrete milestone that the film’s teams can cite as they continue to pursue release and audience access following Dances With Films: LA’s close.

Why It Matters

  • The Grand Jury Prize is a high-visibility marker for independent narratives, and it can affect how a film is pitched to distribution and media partners after a festival run.
  • Bandit’s recognition highlights cross-market filmmaking described by the festival coverage, which can influence how international audiences and industry gatekeepers view the project.
  • The timing of the awards as Dances With Films: LA ends can accelerate post-festival publicity cycles for winning titles.
  • The festival’s focus on independent work makes its top honors relevant to smaller-scale productions seeking broader notice.
  • The awards wrap also sets a clear end point for programmers, filmmakers, and press calendars tied to the 29th edition.

Sources

Key Facts

  • Dances With Films: LA wrapped its 29th edition with an awards presentation.
  • Bandit, directed by Brian L. “BLT” Tan, won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Narrative Feature.
  • Bandit stars Wafda Saifan Lubis, Roy Sungkono, T. Rifnu Wikana, and Claresta Taufan.
  • Deadline reported the film is an action-thriller described as involving Indonesia and the United States.
  • Deadline also described The Last Place On Earth as part of the festival’s “triumph” alongside Bandit, in addition to noting a full awards list.