European Commission
MEDIA-supported winners in Cannes 2019
The double holders of the Palme d’Or, Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardennes, won the Best Director prize for their Belgian film “Le Jeune Ahmed”, the portrait of a teenager caught in the whirlwind of religious radicalization. The film received €240.524 of MEDIA funding for its distribution across Europe.
The second awarded film this year was “Little Joe” by Jessica Hausner (Austria, United Kingdom, Germany). Emily Beecham received the Best Actress prize for her role as Alice, a scientist who creates a genetically modified plant which seemingly causes uncanny changes in other living creatures. The film was supported by MEDIA with an amount of €30.000 for distribution.
Finally, Antonio Banderas was awarded for its magistral interpretation in the film by Pedro Almodóvar, “Dolor y Gloria” (Spain). The film tells the story and struggles of Salvador Mallo, a film director in his decline. For its distribution, MEDIA supported the film with a total of €272.704.
This year, 20 films screened at the Cannes festival have been supported via the development, co-production and distribution schemes of the MEDIA programme, for a total amount of €1.5 million.
Since 1991, the Creative Europe MEDIA programme has provided support to strengthen Europe’s audiovisual sector investing in European content, creativity and cultural diversity. From Jacques Rivette's La belle noiseuse in 1991 to Pawel Pawlikowski's Cold War in 2018, 49 films co-financed by MEDIA have been awarded Cannes Film Festival's top prizes: the Palme d'Or, the Grand Prix and the Prix de la mise en scène/Best Director.
Creative Europe MEDIA, #ProudToSupportTheBest