You dreamed it, UniFrance did it!
In the "exceptional" context of this year, we had to be inventive in order to maintain the organization of the Unifrance Short Film Awards, which are usually held at Cannes. Making their work known to as many people as possible, offering them tenfold visibility, this is the gamble we have taken to affirm our support and our attachment to the young generation of filmmakers and producers.
The 2020 selection comprised 39 titles, including 17 first films, shown throughout summer to our network of professionals around the world via the Short Film Gallery, and to a jury composed of:
- Guadalupe Arensburg Caellas – acquisitions Movistar Plus (Spain)
- Anne Bennet – civil administrator – author
- Bénédicte Bourgois – acquisitions RTBF - Radio Télévision Belge de la Communauté Française (Belgium)
- Holger Carlsson – programmer HITFest (United States)
- Patrice Carré – journalist Le Film Français
- Michel Coulombe – journalist SRC - Société Radio Canada (Canada)
- Ludovic du Clary – screenwriter
- Dyana Gaye – filmmaker
- Isabelle Gibbal-Hardy – manager of Le Grand Action cinema
- Simon Lelouch – filmmaker – producer
- Foued Mansour – filmmaker (winner of the Unifrance Awards Grand Prize 2019)
- Gilles Reunis – acquisitions Be TV (Belgium)
- Marie-Elaine Riou – director REGARD - Festival International du court-métrage au Saguenay (Quebec)
- Reza Serkanian – filmmaker
- Kyveli Short – producer (Greece)
- Hasan Ugur – programmer Tübingen | Stuttgart International French-language Film Festival (Germany)
Gathered together on August 24, the jury elected the winners, which we are pleased to reveal today, within the context of the 21st Trouville Off-Courts Film Festival and in the presence of members of the UniFrance team Daniela Elstner (executive director), Axel Scoffier (deputy managing director), Christine Gendre (head of short films), and Isabelle Gibbal-Hardy and Reza Serkanian (jury members):
• GRAND PRIZE
Genius Loci by Adrien Merigeau – producer: Amaury Ovise (Kazak Productions) – coproducer: Reginald de Guillebon (Folimage)
• SPECIAL JURY PRIZE EX ÆQUO
Souvenir Souvenir by Bastien Dubois – producer: Amiel Tenenbaum (Eldorado Production) – coproducer: ARTE France – Pictanovo
Fleur de pavot by Baer Xiao – producer: Khir-Din Grid (Nouvelle Toile)
GRAND ACTION PRIZE – RTBF PRIZE – BE TV PRIZE
Intermission by Anthony Lemaitre – producer: Guillaume Dreyfus (Tripode Productions)
• MOVISTAR+ PRIZE
Empty Places by Geoffroy De Crécy – producer: Nicolas Schmerkin (Autour de Minuit)
• JURY SPECIAL MENTIONS
Not a Word by Élodie Wallace – producer: Laurence Méoc (2.4.7. Films) – coproducer: Pictanovo
The Departure by Saïd Hamich Benlarbi – producer: Sophie Penson (Barney Production) – international producer: Mont Fleuri Production (Morocco)
• YOUNG PROFESSIONALS JURY PRIZE
Miss Chazelles de Thomas Vernay – producer: Thomas Vernay (Cumulus)
A screening – Carte blanche UniFrance – of almost all the films in the prize list will be organized on Thursday, September 10 at 1:00 pm at the Salon des Gouverneurs of the Casino of Trouville, Rue du Maréchal Foch. The program includes: Genius Loci – Fleur de pavot – Miss Chazelles – Empty Places – The Departure
• DISTRIBUTION PRIZE
In their common desire to promote French creation internationally, UniFrance and La Fête du Court Métrage have joined forces to accompany and support the approach of a distribution company, not only for the way it promotes works in foreign festivals, but also for the manner it enhances their profile in commercial circuits.
The Distribution Prize is awarded this year to Luce Grosjean – Miyu Distribution.
We especially thank our partners for their loyal support:
TITRAFILM – Grand Action – shortfilmdepot – Courant3D – Marvel Digital – La Fête du court métrage
Our warm thanks also to Regina Pessoa for the visual illustrating the 18th edition.
