The Rory Peck Awards highlight and celebrate the efforts of freelance journalists and filmmakers who bring us stories from around the world. Across five categories, the Awards recognise quality, creativity and impact of work, but also take into account skill, endeavour and journalistic integrity.
Awards Prizes
Winners across all categories: £1000 + Trophy
Finalists across all categories: £500 + Trophy
All finalists will have a chance to attend the Awards ceremony on Wednesday 25th November and network with top industry professionals at the BFI Southbank in London.
Plus – the winner of the Sony Impact Award will receive a Sony camera and lens!
The entry deadline for the 2026 Awards has now passed. Check back in April for details on how to enter the 2027 Awards.
See the terms and conditions of entry here.
Rory Peck Awards
Award Categories
— 01
Sony Impact Award for Current Affairs
sponsored by Sony Europe B.V.
This Award recognises the work of freelance journalists working in long-form current affairs video or film that examines a single issue, story or situation and has an impact on the viewer, policy or public awareness.
Duration: Up to 90 minutes in length
— 02
mib Howden Freelance Journalist of the Year Award
sponsored by Media Insurance Brokers
This Award will recognise an outstanding freelance journalist or team working in any media format: print, radio, podcast, photography, blog or video. News and media outlets, colleagues and peers are invited to nominate their most remarkable freelancer(s) in recognition of their contribution.
— 03
News and Features Award
This Award recognises the work of freelance journalists in video news where the focus is on the immediacy of the story or video news feature that takes a more in-depth look at a story.
Duration: Up to 30 minutes in length
— 04
Martin Adler Prize
supported by the Swedish Embassy in London
This Award recognises a local freelance journalist or field producer whose reporting for domestic or international media has significantly contributed to newsgathering in their own country.
You can nominate a freelancer you’ve worked with or admired—or nominate yourself with a professional reference.
— 05
Rory Peck Photojournalism Award
This new Award recognises powerful eyewitness journalism and excellence in photojournalism. It celebrates the work of freelance photojournalists who document news, conflict, crisis, social issues and human stories with courage, integrity and visual skill.
The Award honours photography that bears witness to events of public importance, deepens understanding of the world around us, and upholds the highest standards of ethical journalism.
Submissions may include single images or photo essays that demonstrate strong storytelling, originality, editorial judgement and a clear commitment to truth and accountability.
Rory Peck Awards
Eligibility
- All entries must have been shot/produced/reported by a freelance journalist, photographer or filmmaker. For the purposes of the Rory Peck Awards, the term “freelance” is defined as someone who does not have a permanent or rolling contract or salary but may be on a retainer with one or more organisation(s), work to commission or be paid by the piece.
- Entries must have first been broadcast/published between 9th July 2025 and 10th July 2026 inclusive.
- The News & Features Award and the Sony Impact Award are open to video and film entries only. The Martin Adler Prize and the Freelance Journalist of the Year Award are open to journalists working in any format, including print, radio, podcast, photography or video.
- The Photojournalism Award is open to either a single image or a photo essay/series.
- All entries must be submitted and titled as first broadcast/published/screened.
- All entries must have been broadcast/published/screened by a recognised television channel, streaming platform, broadcaster, publication, news agency, online news platform, film festival or other professional media outlet.
- Entrants may submit as many entries as they wish, provided they meet the entry criteria, but a separate entry form and entry fee is required for each.
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