LUX Prize 2011

Play, Attenberg and The Snows of Kilimanjaro go in for the LUX Prize 2011. Enter the dossier to learn everything about the award.

Since 2007, the European Parliament LUX prize casts an annual spotlight on films that go to the heart of the European public debate. The Parliament believes that the cinema, a mass cultural medium, can be an ideal vehicle for debate and reflection on Europe and its future.

The three European feature films that will compete in this year's edition of the LUX Prize have been officially announced on July 26 during a press conference in Venice.

(Click on each of the movies below to access our film focus section)

Attenberg by Athina Rachel Tsangari

Play by Ruben Östlund

The Snows of Kilimanjaro by Robert Guediguian

Standing out from a selection list of ten titles - which also included Aki Kaurismäki's Le Havre, Béla Tarr's The Turin Horse, Jerzy Skolimowski's Essential Killing, Nanni Moretti's Habemus Papam, Raoul Ruiz's Mysteries of Lisbon, Marian Crisan's Morgen and Wim Wenders' Pina - the three titles in competition bring a fresh perspective on themes close to the best traditions of the LUX Prize's previous editions - integration and youngsters, the economic crisis and solidarity, family and cultural relations.

Thanks to a partnership between the European Parliament and Venice Days, the three films have been screened in the prestigious Venice Film Festival sidebar section in early September 2011.

Between October 11 and November 10, MEPs are invited to attend the screenings of the three films in the European Parliament and vote for their favourite. The LUX Prize 2011 Award Ceremony is scheduled for November 16 in Strasbourg.

Click on the MEP's names below to watch their interview:

Silvia Costa - Member of the European Parliament's Committee on Culture and Education

Doris Pack - Chairwoman of the European Parliament's Committee on Culture and Education

Isabelle Durant - Vice-President of the European Parliament

Two additional interviews of LUX Prize competitors are accessible below:

Ruben Östlund - Director of Play

Robert Guédiguian - Director of The Snows of Kilimanjaro

The LUX Prize also focuses on film distribution by covering the cost of subtitling the winning film into the EU's 23 official languages, including an adaptation of the original version for hearing- or visually-impaired people, and supplying a digital cinema package or a 35mm print for the 27 EU member states.

Previous winners include Fatih Akin The Edge of Heaven (2007), Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne's The Silence of Lorna (2008), Philippe Lioret's Welcome (2009) and Feo Aladag's When We Leave (2010).

More information on the LUX Prize is accessible through the official website: www.luxprize.eu