Future Voices Festival 2025

Congratulations to all of the 2025 Future Voices Festival film and photography winners!

Lensic Future Voices encourages middle and high school students across New Mexico to tell their stories through original photographs and short films. Guided by a team of industry experts, the Lensic provides students with the support they need to create high-quality projects.

The 2025 Future Voices Festival is the 18th annual celebration of the top films and photographs from our Lensic Future Voices year-end competition. This year, New Mexico students from twelve schools submitted their work for consideration. Our panel of expert judges selected the top entries in a variety of categories. We proudly present those winning films and photos below.

Please support Lensic Future Voices! This Lensic education program is funded by contributions from the community. Your tax-deductible donation encourages a new generation of creativity and self-expression and plays an important role in the future of performing arts. To donate, please visit our Education Programs donation page. We appreciate your support.

2025 Award-Winning Films

Still from “Shift”

by Nicollette Ortiz, Maya Webb, Lilly Maturin, Billy Mares, Jul Maestas, Brendan Gurchiek, Donovan Melton, Audrianna Alderete, Espi Webb, Angelica Dominguez, Lisbeth Chiz, and Jesus Cisneros

(Capital High School) / First Place, Comedy Category

Watch this year’s award-winning three-minute-long films!

2025 Future Voices Film Winners

Animation

First Place: A Childs Journey, Amanda Younis (Public Academy for the Performing Arts)

Second Place: Adult Teeth, Nataaní-Nigizhig Chee (Public Academy for Performing Arts)

Third Place: Cooking Meatballs, Sebastian Bonano (Public Academy for Performing Arts)

 

Comedy

First Place: Shift, Nicollette Ortiz, Maya Webb, Lilly Maturin, Billy Mares, Jul Maestas,
Brendan Gurchiek, Donovan Melton, Audrianna Alderete, Espi Webb, Angelica Dominguez, Lisbeth Chiz, and Jesus Cisneros (Capital High School)

Second Place: Chairs Made with Care, Elle Cowles (Public Academy for Performing Arts)

Third Place: Library Anxiety, Nayleen Swayzee and Rashaad Compton (Alamogordo High School)

Documentary

First Place: Growing Chile for NASA, Yarexy Sotelo, Aramis Aizpuro, and Camila Torres (Española Valley High School)

Second Place: Never Alone: The Effects of an Absent Parent, Emma Granados,
Aleja Mendiola, and
Braydon Bass (Alamogordo High School)

Third Place: Quantum United, Alexandra Lilley,
Marina Mancuso,
Ben Martin, and
Penelope Carlson (Public Academy for Performing Arts)

Experimental

First Place: What’s he building in There, Gabe Krasilovsky, Nico Spangenburg,  Oak Palmer,  Theo Rankin, and Noah Mullins (Mandela International Magnet School)

Second Place: Solitary, Issrael Vargas, Chloe Woods, and Mariah Torres (Alamogordo High School)

Third Place: Cottonwood, Jove Stutson (Public Academy for the Performing Arts)

Narrative

First Place: Thoughts and Prayers, Monica Djuricich (Public Academy for Performing Arts)

Second Place: Lost Trail, Demetrios Padilla, Jesslin Parra, Alyana MacNeice, Jailyn Flowers, Mikayla Martinez, and Renee Jaramillo (Española Valley High School)

Third Place: The Dare, Aubree Ware, Constantine “CJ” Fuller,  Anthony Mendez, and Callum Wohlwinder (Alamogordo High School)

 

2025 Award-Winning Photos

Photo by Ethan Quintana de Andrés (Santa Fe Prep) / Second Place, Black and White Category

View this year’s winning photographs in this photo reel!

2025 Future Voices Photography Winners

Animal

First Place: Lidah Larsen, Monte del Sol

Second Place: Jeb Huisinga, Santa Fe Prep

Third Place: Jennifer Balulis, Public Academy for Performing Arts

Honorable Mention: Marina Mancuso, Public
Academy for Performing Arts

 

Architecture

First Place: Kaitlyn Mancuso, Public
Academy for Performing Arts

Second Place: Nadia Declerck, Santa Fe Prep

Third Place: Qoiah Lorenzo, Shutter Bugs

Honorable Mention: Lilli Putnam, Santa Fe Prep

Black and White

First Place: Max Nerzig, Santa Fe Prep

Second Place: Ethan Riebsomer, Santa Fe Prep

Third Place: Rita Kunkel, Santa Fe Prep

Honorable Mention: Zachary Butler, Mandela International Magnet School

 

Color

First Place: Joyce Garcia, New Mexico Academy for Media Arts

Second Place: Oliver Rice, New Mexico Academy for Media Arts

Third Place: Alicia Garcia, Public Academy for Performing Arts

Honorable Mention: Kamryn Jaramillo, Shutter Bugs

Humor

Honorable Mention: Santiago Armijo Blay, Monte del Sol

HUMOR

First Place: Tomas Koutsouflakis, Santa Fe Prep

Second Place: Shanti Lambert, Mandela International Magnet School

Third Place: Noah Friedland, Santa Fe Prep

Honorable Mention: Owen Scanlan, Santa Fe Prep

Landscape

First Place: Mia Schleman, Mandela International Magnet School

Second Place: Lucas Romero, Monte del Sol

Third Place: Raul Ledezma, Monte del Sol

Honorable Mention: Evan Cox, Public Academy for Performing Arts

Manipulated

First Place: Ethan Riebsomer, Santa Fe Prep

Second Place: Taelyn Wright, New Mexico Academy for Media Arts

Third Place: Eli Carton, New Mexico Academy for Media Arts

Honorable Mention: Rowan Strauss, Mandela International Magnet School

Most Original

First Place: Destiny P Montoya, New Mexico Academy for Media Arts

Second Place: Savannah Dry, Santa Fe Prep

Third Place: Juliette Browne, Santa Fe Prep

Honorable Mention: Qoiah Lorenzo, Shutter Bugs

Natural World

First Place: Miquela Sanchez, Monte del Sol

Second Place: Larkyn Woltring, Santa Fe Prep

Third Place: Alicia Garcia, Public Academy for Performing Arts

Portrait

First Place: Lilli Putnam, Santa Fe Prep

Second Place: Jacob Sullivan, Monte del Sol

Third Place: Oliver Winkler, Santa Fe Prep

Honorable Mention: Taylor Wiegmann, Public Academy for Performing Arts

Street

First Place: Ethan Quintana de Andrés, Santa Fe Prep

Second Place: Henry Kaufman, Santa Fe Prep

Third Place: Sid Egolf, Santa Fe Prep

Honorable Mention: Catalina Jimenez, Public Academy for Performing Arts

Special Thanks

A huge thank you to the dedicated team that makes the Future Voices Festival happen each year!

  • Marcella Ernst, Future Voices Program Manager
  • Christine Alexander, Reid Callanan and Santa Fe Workshops
  • Jonathan Lowe and Video Magic

Thanks to ALL of the students and teachers who participate in the Future Voices Festival and our monthly photo and film contests.

We thank the following for their generous support of Lensic Future Voices and other Lensic Performing Arts Education Programs.

Center for Contemporary Arts

Enterprise Bank & Trust

Lineberry Foundation

Hankins Foundation

National Endowment for the Arts

Newman’s Own Foundation

SLB Foundation

The Sulica Fund