2026 ASCRS Film Festival Winners

The 44th ASCRS Film Festival was held on Sunday, April 12 at the ASCRS Annual Meeting. Here are the winners, including the Grand Prize winner. 

Grand Prize

The Domino Effect – How Anterior Chamber Dynamics Affect the Posterior Segment
Samaresh Srivastava, MD

Cataract Complications 

Winner
Ugh Syndrome – A Deeper Understanding
John C. Hart Jr., MD, FACS

Runner Up
One Method for Treating Aphakia or Intraocular Lens Dislocation: Is It Enough?
Jiri Cendelin, MD, PhD

Cataract/Implant Surgery

Winner
Cracking the Challenge: Safer Phaco in Posterior Polar Cataracts
Deepak Megur, FRCSEd

Runner Up
X-Ray Filter for Challenging Cataract Surgery
Durval Carvalho Jr.

Complex Anterior Segment Procedures

Winner
Festival Of Flanges
Kannusamy Veena, MD

Runner Up
Complex Reconstructive Anterior Segment Surgery – The Last Chance
Andrey Golovin, PhD

In-House Productions

Winner
Resourceful Eyes: In-House Solutions for Glaucoma Surgery Training
Rengaraj Venkatesh, MD

Runner Up
Calcified Anterior Capsules: Demystified
Bharathi D. Megur, MS

Instruments & Devices/IOLs

Best of the Best
Perfectlens and Custom Iris a Perfect Clinical Match and in Vitro Microcosm
Michael E. Snyder, MD

Runner Up
A Novel Self-Made Capsular Support Device Enabling Capsular Bag Scleral Fixation in Moderate to Severe Zonulopathy
Edgar E. Duarte Servian, MD

New Producer/Young Physician

Best of the Best
Retinal Age Gap As a Biomarker for Patient Satisfaction and Visual Quality After Cataract Surgery
Koji Komatsu, MD, PhD, MBA

Runner Up
Novel Technique to Prepare CAIRS Segments Using Engraving Diode Laser (Minimise Cost Reduce Waste)
Omar Alabbasi, MD

New Techniques 

Winner
Pivot Technique for Pure Vision Surgery
Santaro Noguchi, MD, PhD

Runner Up 
Pull Through Technique to Prevent Scrunching of Corneal Allogenic Intrastromal Ring Segments (CAIRS) During Insertion
Ryan Mercer, MD

Quality Teaching

Winner
Restoring the Pupil: Teaching Pearls in Iris Repair
Athiya Agarwal, MD, MD

Runner Up
Mastering Manual Small Incision Cataract Surgery (MSICS): Where Skill Surpasses Technology
Rishi Swarup, FRCS

Refractive/Cornea Surgery

Winner
Back to Transparency: Topical Losartan and the Science of Clearing Corneal Opacity
Marcony R. Santhiago, MD, PhD

Runner Up
Rebubbling
Soosan Jacob, MS, DNB, FRCS

Shorts 

Winner
Transient Vitreomacular Traction Caused by Drops to Decrease Presbyopia
Jenna N. Hart, BSc

Special Interest

Winner
Schlemm’s Bidirectional Fluid Wave and Luminal Blood Reflux As Novel Intraoperative Signs of Successful Trabecular Bypass Stent Placement
Bryan Ang, MBBS, FRCOphth

Runner Up
What We Would like to Know about Scleral Fixation, but Haven’t Asked Yet
Veronika Hatlova, MD