The prestigious LUX European Audience Film Award, established in 2007 by the European Parliament, is aimed at promoting high-quality European films that reflect the cultural diversity and address common issues of interest such as human dignity, equality, non-discrimination, integration, tolerance, justice, and solidarity.
The LUX Audience Award is presented every year by the European Parliament and the European Film Academy, in partnership with the European Commission and Europa Cinemas.
The Award doesn't come with a monetary prize, but it does offer a unique advantage: the winning film will have its subtitles translated into all official EU languages and adapted for the visually and hearing impaired, courtesy of the European Parliament. The expense involved in such translation and accessibility adaptation can be a major stumbling block, making distribution into smaller markets more of a challenge.
This year's nominees were announced on September 1, 2023, during the Venice International Film Festival. The contenders include Aki Kaurismäki's Fallen Leaves, a story of identity search by Spanish director Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren titled 20,000 Species of Bees, the award-winning German drama The Teachers' Lounge directed by Ilker Çatak, Nicholas Philibert’s documentary On the Adamant about a floating mental support center, and Anna Hints's documentary Smoke Sauna Sisterhood, a mystical tale of female empowerment.
The European Parliament Office in Poland and Silesia Film are encouraging viewers in the Silesian Voivodeship to participate in the public voting, which concludes on April 14. The nominated films will be screened at "Silesia Film" cinemas in Katowice, Żywiec, and Racibórz.
In Żywiec, at the "Janosik" cinema, the films will be showcased from February 9 to February 25; at the Bałtyk Cinema in Racibórz from February 6 to February 24. In Katowice, four of the nominated films will be shown at the "Światowid" cinema on the weekend of February 3 and 4. The fifth film, Fallen Leaves, will be featured during the grand opening of the nominated films' review on February 2 at the "Rialto" cinetheater.
The "Rialto" event will be enhanced by a concert by young Silesian pianist Hanna Derej, accompanied by a string quartet and trumpeter Piotr Schmidt, and preceded by an introduction from film scholar Dr. Anita Skwara. Admission to these events is free.
Since 2020, the LUX Film Prize has been jointly awarded by the European Parliament and the European Film Academy, with the European Commission and the Europa Cinemas network as partners. The final decision includes votes from the audience, highlighting the award's commitment to engaging the public in celebrating European cinematic art.
Votes can be cast at https://luxaward-rating.europarl.europa.eu/pl/ while more information is available at https://lux-award.europarl.europa.eu/en.
(rt)