Adila Bennedjaï-Zou wins Prix Genève-Europe 2009 for
Best Fiction Script by a Newcomer    

Berlin, 24 October 2009 -  Prix Europa, the prestigious festival for Television, Radio and Emerging Media, invites European  broadcasters and producers to take part by submitting their best productions to compete for the thirteen prizes in eight categories.  One of the categories judged during the festival is the Prix Genève-Europe which is awarded every year for the best TV fiction written by a new writer and produced or commissioned by a national broadcaster. 

The Prix Genève Europe* was created in 1987 by the European Alliance for Television and Culture (EATC) under the auspices of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).

This year, the prize went to Adila Bennedjaï-Zou for her script Tomboy (Garçon Manqué),  presented during the Prix Europa Award Ceremony in Berlin on Saturday 24 October. She received her award from Rainer Wieland (Vice-President of the European Parliament).

The TV fiction, submitted by France Télévisions pôle France 2, directed by David Delrieux and produced by Pierre Bertrand Jaume of Expand Drama, was among the eight entries submitted to an international jury of five fiction professionals who met in Berlin during the Prix Europa competition. 

The jury considered that “the film tackles the situation of first and second generation Algerian families in France in a fresh and original way, using a high concept story – a pubescent girl brought up as a boy – to illustrate the anomalies of everyday life in general and growing up in particular.  Ambitious in its use of tone, drawing on both drama and comedy, the film shows the clear potential of its author.”
Bjørn Erichsen, Eurovision TV Director at EBU expresses “We strongly support the Prix Genève Europe award especially in the current financial climate, it is important to invest in the talents of the future”.

Note to editors

*About the Prix Genève-Europe (PGE)

The PGE awards were created by the European Alliance for Television and Culture (EATC), an alliance made up of EBU members (ARD, France Télévisions pôle France 2, NPO, SSR-IdéeSuisse, TVE, YLE and ZDF), the EBU and the City and Canton of Geneva. Set up in 1987 under the auspices of the EBU, whose membership includes every national public service broadcaster in Europe, the prize aims to encourage new authors to work in television. The €6,000 prize goes to the scriptwriter of a television fiction that has been produced over the last year, and the jury members judge the script by screening the film.
Writing Bursary
Every year, EATC members can also choose a promising new scriptwriter who has written a fiction synopsis of any genre to receive a Writing Bursary consisting of CHF 5,000 and two scriptwriting workshops. Additional bursaries are also available for candidates proposed by other national broadcasters from Europe.
The writer at this year’s Best Fiction Script by a Newcomer at Prix Genève Europe, Adila Bennedjaï-Zou,  had previously received an EATC writing bursary and developed the project through the two scriptwriting workshops. 

For further information about Prix Genève Europe, joining EATC, or candidates for Writing Bursaries please contact:  
Lynne Polak, Eurovision TV, polak@ebu.ch

Eurovision TV is a brand of the EBU – the European Broadcasting Union represents Members (125 national broadcasters) and promotes the values and distinctiveness of public service media in Europe and around the world. It brings news, sports, events and music to your home through the Eurovision and Euroradio networks. The EBU develops and shares best practices, media expertise and innovation. It produces and exchanges rich and diverse programmes across all media
More information on: www.ebu.ch

Eurovision TV collaboration provides networking within all genres of television production. Some 72 coproductions are constantly in development or production, providing 1,800 hours of programming to Members annually, including animation, fiction, documentary series, competitions for young dancers and musicians, and, of course, the annual mega-show, the Eurovision Song Contest.  More information on: www.eurovisiontv.com

Press contact:  Karen Mazzoli, Eurovision TV Media Officer, Tel: +41 22 717 2415,  Mobile: +41 79 832812, mazzoli@ebu.ch

Adila Bennedjaï-Zou receiving award from Rainer Wieland

Winners of Prix Europa 2009