At last week’s Deauville Green Awards (7-8 June), an international festival for responsible films, the array of topics tackled ranged from human rights and diversity, through the fight against climate change, to sustainable production and the circular economy, as well as social responsibility and quality of life.

Over the course of two days, media professionals and environmental experts mingled at the French gathering, which was located at a former Franciscan monastery in the beach resort of Deauville. Georges Pessis and François Morgant, who founded the festival 12 years ago, still receive an ever-increasing number of submissions every year. The event is structured around several different sections – Documentary, Info and Spot – and more than 60 jury members from all across Europe were appointed to decide on the winners of the Grand Prix as well as the Golden and Silver Trophies in 15 different categories.

The Grand Prix DOCU was awarded to The Territory [+lee también:
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With the ambition to bring the truth to the world, a French news reporter went together with a war photographer to Ukraine, where they were brutally killed by Russians. In L'affaire Maks Levin, which Arnaud Froger and Robin Grassi produced for Bottoms Up and Reporters Without Borders, the team tries to retrace the incidents and find the people responsible for these war crimes. The film, which was presented in the Social Responsibility category, received the Grand Prix INFO.

The necessity of saving lives is the message conveyed by the Grand Prix-winning spot Campagne de prévention du suicide – La mèche, which Canadian director Nicolas Monette developed for his country’s Ministry of Health and Welfare. At first glance, a father seems to be fine as he takes out the rubbish bin and greets his neighbour, or as he celebrates a birthday party with his child. But when he turns his back on the camera, a burning fuse becomes visible. The awareness-raising spot urges people to talk in order to prevent suicide.

Various films shown at the Deauville Green Awards presented problems but also provided solutions – for example, for stopping deforestation, promoting conscious consumption and sustainable travel, minimising food packaging, and preserving biodiversity. These are issues that also need to be addressed by the crew behind the camera. To that end, the Deauville Green Awards also offered several panel discussions, workshops and presentations on green film production for filmmakers, homing in on energy consumption, renewables and the use of resources.

You can find a selection of the main award winners below (the full list is available here):

Documentary Competition

Grand Prix DOCU
The Territory [+lee también:
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TV5 Monde Special Award for Best French-language Documentary
Les gardiens du climat - Erik Fretel (France)

TF1 Group Special Award
Mes amours ! - Gaël Breton, Edouard Cuel (France)

Special Award of the City of Deauville
Pourquoi on se bat - Solal Moisan, Camille Etienne (France)

Un Écran pour la Planète Special Award
Sa Majesté les mousses - Bruno Victor-Pujebet (France)

Info Competition

Grand Prix INFO
L'affaire Maks Levin – Arnaud Froger, Robin Grassi (France)

Bpifrance Special Award for Best Audiovisual Communication for a Startup
Insignificant - Episode 3: One Second on Earth - Clément Morin (France)

Cie des Réals Special Award: Originality of Achieving
Insignificant - Episode 3: One Second on Earth - Clément Morin

GreenShot Special Eco-production Award
Aquaverse - Justine Rauby (France)

Pollutec Special Prize
The Water Walk - Nacer Maash (France)

ADEME Special Prize
Cap Fréhel - L’écrin retrouvé - Christian Roche (France)

Spot Competition

Grand Prix SPOT
Campagne de prévention du suicide – La mèche - Nicolas Monette (Canada)