by FilmInk Staff
Filmmaker and screen industry professional Vee Shi has been announced as the recipient of the Screen Presence Trailblazer Award 2026, given by the thriving screen initiative to an Asian Australian trailblazer who is redefining the landscape of the film industry.
The award will be formally celebrated at Screen Presence in-conversation event in Melbourne on August 27 with Vee Shi and his collaborative partner Producer/Cinematographer Nicholson Ren.
Screening to sellout audiences at MIFF this month, Shi’s hybrid documentary feature Time and Tide world premiered in April in Switzerland at the leading documentary film festival Visions du Réel. In the short period since, the film has premiered in Australia, winning the Sydney Film Festival Documentary Australia Award and has become the first Australian film acquired by Paris-based international sales agent Inwave Films.
Highlighting his talent and range as a filmmaker, Time and Tide follows Shi’s narrative short Jia, which collected awards across the craft for writing, directing and production from prominent industry bodies and events including ADG, AWG, SPA, Flickerfest and MQFF.
Founded by renowned screen producer Lisa Wang, Screen Presence is an active cultural and industry network championing Asian Australian creatives, both in front and behind the camera, with tangible results.
Screen Presence’s Lisa Wang said “With Time and Tide, Vee Shi has generously shared an intimate and personal story about family that speaks straight to your heart. Working together with Nicholson Ren, he has made a uniquely crafted film that represents his many talents as a filmmaker.
“Vee Shi could not be more deserving of the Screen Presence 2026 Trailblazer Award. Already an accomplished writer, director, producer and development executive, we have still only begun to see what this extraordinary filmmaker has to offer. We can’t wait to follow along with the incredible screen journey he is forging.”
MIFF Artistic Director Al Cossar said “All of us at the Melbourne International Film Festival are thrilled to see Vee Shi recognised with this award. From his time within MIFF’s Accelerator program, to now making waves on the world stage with the attention and acclaim that TIME AND TIDE is already receiving here and internationally, this is a filmmaker whose vision, boldness and ingenuity announce him as a singular artist, and one whose work we will look forward to closely following.”
Vee Shi joins world renowned cinematographer Matthew Chuang (2025) and internationally acclaimed TV director Corrie Chen (2024) as recipients of the Screen Presence Trailblazer Award.
Screen Presence Event – Thurs 27 August
Time and Tide — In Conversation
To mark the local debut of Time and Tide, Screen Presence is hosting an exclusive industry masterclass with Director Vee Shi and Producer/Cinematographer Nicholson Ren. Unpacking their journey from initial concept to the international stage, Shi and Ren will be offering rare, firsthand insights into their collaborative process and craft.
This event will see Vee Shi awarded with the 2026 Screen Presence Trailblazer Award.
7-9.30pm Thursday, 27 August, Chinese Museum, 22 Cohen Pl, Melbourne
Tickets: $20 https://www.trybooking.com/DOGLA
Proudly sponsored by the Melbourne Chinatown Business Association, the Museum of Chinese Australian History, and Black Sheep Films.
Following a sellout screening over the weekend, Time and Tide screens again at MIFF Wed 19 August with Vee Shi and Nicholson Ren in attendance.
VEE SHI – BIO
Vee Shi grew up in China and is now based in Melbourne. His work has been nominated for an AACTA Award, won the Screen Producers Australia Awards and the Iris Prize Youth Prize. He is a recipient of both the Australian Directors’ Guild and Australian Writers’ Guild awards. He was named one of Screen Producers Australia’s Ones to Watch in 2023 and is an alumnus of the MIFF Accelerator Lab. His debut feature, Time and Tide, world-premiered in competition at the prestigious Visions du Réel in 2026, won the Documentary Australia Award at the 73rd Sydney Film Festival and is screening at the 2026 Melbourne International Film Festival.
Vee is currently writing his next feature film, Skin, a fantasy horror with support from Screen Australia. He also works as a development executive and producer for Big and Little Films and is attached to produce two feature film projects.
