Deauville awards ocean protectors

The protection of seas and oceans, the responsible use of AI, and new narratives for a more sustainable audio-visual landscape were key topics at the 15th edition of the Deauville Green Awards. The international festival of responsible film presents documentaries, awareness spots as well as corporate films from all around the world that focus on subjects such as preservation of the biodiversity, sustainable production, responsible consumption, energy transition, and adaptation to climate change. The event brought together audio-visual and environmental professionals at the Fondation Good Planet in Paris.

 

The internationally renowned filmmaker, photographer and environmentalist Yann Arthus-Bertrand (Earth from Above, Home, Human) served as the patron of the 15th Deauville Green Awards to harness the power of images to accelerate awareness and inspire action. As his latest work, he presented the documentary Origin that offers a unique aerial journey over the Venetian Lagoon with unexpected perspectives and images of the wild nature of these lands. This film is the extended version of a short film that Yann Arthus-Bertrand created for the Architecture Biennale. At the Deauville Green Awards Origin was honored with the Prix Spécial un écran pour la planète.

 

The Documentary Grand Prix went to Oceania, the ocean’s protectors by Raynald Merienne that aims to alert and raise awareness among populations about the importance and necessity of preserving the oceans. Climate change, rising sea levels, overfishing, pollution, and plastic contamination threaten the ocean. But there is hope. From the Hawaiian archipelago to Easter Island, from New Caledonia to Wallis and Futuna, and across Polynesia, Oceanians are taking action to restore and protect marine life for future generations.

 

Different approaches to protect seas and oceans were discussed at a round table with Muriel Papin, General Manager of No plastic in my sea, Alexandre Laschine, Chief Executive of the Fondation de la Mer, Patrick Thaunay, Co-founder of Plastic Vortex, and Flore Tang Head of CSR and Transitions at Crédit Coopératif Group. The Fondation de la Mer supports organizations that protect marine ecosystems and combat pollution. Founded by citizens, the No Plastic In My Sea association aims to tackle plastic pollution at its source by reducing unnecessary plastics and controlling production. Meanwhile Plastic Vortex developed the patented Vortex 150 system, an automated floating barrier designed to capture over eighty percent of plastic waste before it reaches the oceans.

 

In the 360° ARTE reportage Indonésie, un village sous les eaux, Carmen Butta shows how the residents of the small coastal village of Timbulsloko, in the North of Java, are trying to deal with the sea level that is rising by up to 15 centimeters per year. The Trophée Or-winning report was produced according to ecological standards. Alissa Aubenque, Director of Operations and International at Ecoprod, explained in a workshop how an eco-responsible strategy can be successfully promoted.

 

A hot topic on the screen as well as at a round table discussion was the responsible use of Artificial intelligence. The investigative documentary Elon Musk Unveiled – The Tesla Experiment by German filmmaker Andreas Pichler gives an insight into the empire of Big Tech’s most powerful titan. Testimonies of former high-ranking Tesla employees, close confidants, whistleblowers, and victims expose hidden data and buried defects in the race for self-driving cars, where unchecked ambition costs lives.

 

Nathalie Klimberg, Editor-in-Chief of Mediakwest, Fiona Bélier, Expert in storytelling, AI and neurodiversity in the creative and cultural industries, Eric Barbie, Co-organizer of the AI counter-summit, and Claire Simonot, Founder of an independent action research laboratory, talked about the consequences of this disruptive technology in the media world. When an AI experiment was introduced into the newsroom’s operations of the French newspaper L’Est Républicain in November 2023, the journalists already felt first destructive effects. “We must raise awareness against these unlimited uses of AI, which are cutting off the heads of many employees and demobilizing the faculties and knowledge that constitute and shape us”, warned Éric Barbier.

 

The vulnerabilities of companies in the age of cyberattacks are featured in Season 2 of the cyber-thriller L’attaque: Contagion by Yannick Muller, which received the Grand Prix Info. When a massive cyberattack spreads rapidly through the heart of a commercial port’s infrastructure, the entire region is paralyzed.

 

The Grand Prix SPOT was awarded to the four short films Vous feriez quoi vous? by Ugo Savouillan, that give a glimpse in uncontrollable situations that care assistants are facing in their everyday work. In total, about one hundred productions at the 15th Deauville Green Awards received Gold and Silver Awards as well as Special Prizes.

 

Photos: ©  Naïade Plante/ Deauville Green Awards