Grand Motoring Film Festival

Overview

The Grand Motoring Film Festival has established itself as a must-attend event in the motoring community, celebrating the intersection of the automotive and cinematic arts. This year’s festival, held to coincide with the internationally acclaimed Hilton Head Island Concours d’Elegance, will include film screenings, panel discussions, vehicle displays and an awards program to honor the year's top motoring films. Bringing automotive aficionados and film enthusiasts together to showcase and recognize the most outstanding work created by independent filmmakers, journalists, students, production companies and advertising agencies, the Grand Motoring Film Festival is uniquely positioned as North America’s premier motoring film festival. And you are invited to ride along. Grand Motoring Film Festival is actively seeking out bold new cinematic explorations of the automotive arts, regardless of length or format, for our annual Film Festival and Hangar Night events. Priority will be given to films that have yet to premiere and would debut during the festival. Consideration for the Feature Presentation will be weighed based on availability of the featured vehicle, filmmaker or subject. Grand Motoring Film Festival finalists and winners will represent the best documentaries, web videos, brand films, TV shows and more, and entries across the landscape of automotive cinema are invited to submit. If your film shares our love of horsepower, make plans to join us in 2026! Films and videos will be reviewed by an esteemed group of judges representing film and television, automotive, and media industries with awards to be given out on TBA, 2026. Among judges announced so far, you’ll find luminaries like former editor and publisher of Autoweek Dutch Mandell, Pixar Animation Studios Creative Director of Franchise Jay Ward, “Death Race 2000” star Simone Griffeth, Silodrome.com founder and senior editor Ben Branch, and Creative Director at Hearst Autos Tara Klein. Now in our tenth year, the Grand Motoring Film Festival Headliner Event and Awards Program will be held at the Hilton Head Island’s world-class Arts Center of Coastal Carolina, with a VIP welcome reception, awards program, and featured film screening. Additional screenings and Q&A sessions with filmmakers to be announced. Categories: Documentary (Mini-Doc, Short & Feature) Narrative / Drama (Short & Feature) Brand / Commercial / Image Film Event Film Journalism & Factual Entertainment Student Film Short Drive Film (Short driving films under 6 minutes) Best in Show (Will be selected from finalists) Additional Special Awards - TBA. Independent Achievement and Spirit of Motoring selected at discretion of judges from entries.

Last updated Sep 27, 2026

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Festival Details

FilmFreeway communityGold festival

• Filmmaker

  What a well run, great experience. Met so many creative filmmakers - I would not miss this event ever.

• Filmmaker

  Great festival! Had a great time showcasing my film and being a part of the awards ceremony.

• Filmmaker

  Participating in the Grand Motoring Film Festival in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, was an incredible experience. It felt like the Oscars for Automotive Films, with great entertainment, an excellent selection of films, an independent expert jury, and a welcoming vibe on the red carpet. Everything was well-organized and professionally run. The festival was remarkably inclusive, with plenty of chances to meet and collaborate with others who share a love for automotive storytelling. This festival is perfect for anyone interested in watching and producing automotive films to connect and celebrate this unique genre. Highly recommended!

• Filmmaker

  A fantastic experience. Industry expert judging and very well run event. Big bonus points to have it in conjunction with the Hilton Head Island concourse d’Elegance & motoring festival. A weekend experience full of great automotive films and beautiful machinery. Honored to have won best feature documentary.

• Filmmaker

  A big thank you to the Grand Motoring Film Festival team for putting on such a world-class event. Everything was extremely well organized, and it was truly a pleasure to be part of this festival. The care, professionalism, and passion behind the scenes really showed. Thank you Guy and the entire team for creating such a welcoming platform for filmmakers. We were delighted to be included and would absolutely recommend this festival to anyone in the film community.

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