PRIX EUROPA

On Saturday, 24 October, a gala audience at Berlin's Haus des Rundfunks attended the finale of Prix Europa, the biggest media competition for European quality productions in the fields television, radio and the emerging media. A total of 13 prize-winners were awarded one of the Taurus trophies and a cheque for 6000 Euros.

The legendary British filmmaker and Prix Europa winner Paul Watson presented the award for the best TV Documentary to Pavel Lozinski for his sensitive portrait of chemotherapy patients. The Prix Genève-Europe for the best script was presented to the young French writer Adila Bennedjai-Zou for her script "Garçon manqué". The two main prizes in the TV fiction category went to films dealing with explosive issues: In "La Journée de la Jupe" Isabelle Adjani plays an overtaxed teacher who becomes a kidnapper in her conflict with violent pupils. The British television production "Occupation", which depicts the daily horrors experienced by soldiers in the Iraq war, was awarded the Prix Europa Special Prize for the best TV mini series.

The prize for the best European radio documentary of 2009 went to the ARD production "Lost in Music - the Cornel Chiriac Story". The award for the best European Emerging Media Project of the Year 2009 went to the Dutch transmedia project "In Europa". Project director Geert-Jan Strengholt: "So many great projects for Prix Europa make it an extra honour to win with In Europa."

The winners had prevailed against tough competition from 231 nominated productions from 35 countries after an intense festival week. More than 1000 creative people from all over Europe came to Berlin to exchange ideas and views here with their colleagues across all national and language barriers.

There was a vast abundance and variety of documentaries, radio plays, television films and online projects in competition. People queued up at the bar of the program library, for some productions there even were waiting lists. Despite the great diversity, there are some issues that play a role in all European countries, such as migration, unemployment, dealing with aging societies or the problems of adolescents. "These matters exist all over Europe", said festival director Susanne Hoffmann: "There is so much that unifies us all."

The awards were not about the money: ideas and issues were asked, instead of impressive budgets. (A Russian film was awarded the Special Prix Europa as "Best Regional, Local or Low-Budget" production.)

Anyway, the fact that British script editor Guy Meredith gave an open presentation on "scriptwriting low budget films" in the course of the festival should not be misunderstood as a call to save costs in the future. Participants warned repeatedly not to jeopardize high-quality productions of public broadcasters by short-term budget cuts. Given the economic crisis some radio and television stations on the continent already have to cope with financial reductions of up to 30 percent.

Finally only 13 projects in the competition could get a prize. But the exchange with colleagues from across Europe is an invaluable asset. All participants will take something back home, as one of them summed it up: "We have seen a whole lot of good stuff. Let's go home now and make some more of it!"