Winners of International Science Documentary Call for Projects by World's Top Broadcasters Revealed at Congress '22

At Congress '22, funding for three blue chip science documentaries was announced at the United We Stand session. This initiative and call for proposals were introduced at Sunny Side of the Doc 2022 and is backed by nine public broadcasters (France Télévisions, ZDF [Germany], Channel 4 [UK], CBC [Canada], SVT [Sweden], ORF [Austria], ABC Australia, NHK [Japan], and RAI [Italy]), who have joined creative and financial forces.

Producers from across the globe were invited to submit proposals for documentary films that fit into either of these two categories.

Category 1: dealing with ancient civilizations, archaeology, paleontology, geology, or space exploration Category 2: exploring how cutting-edge science can provide solutions to save the planet. An international jury composed of representatives from each broadcaster selected three ambitious projects from 55 projects from 13 countries, with two winning projects in Category 1 and one in Category 2.

“We were all extremely impressed with the variety of subjects submitted–how very unusual and intriguing many of the subjects were–and with the depth of research that went into them,” said Caroline Behar, Head of International Coproductions and Acquisitions at France Télévisions. “The valued partners who so generously joined France Télévisions in this initiative all showed great commitment, and I found the quality of our discussions hugely enriching.”

The three winners of the International Science Documentary Funding Competition present epic scientific adventures with an international scope, a strong narrative with a clear resolution, wide audience appeal, factual clarity combined with an engaging and emotional approach, spectacular visuals, and feature cutting-edge scientific techniques and equipment:

CATEGORY 1: Ancient civilizations, archaeology, paleontology, geology, space exploration

THE LOST WONDERS OF THE WORLD: IN SEARCH OF THE HANGING BABYLON, Lion TV DESTINATION MOON, ZED Honourable mention by the jury goes to Pompei Secret Underworld (Blink Films)

  CATEGORY 2: Exploring how cutting-edge science can provide solutions to save the planet

THE FOREST, Windfall Films Honourable mention by the jury goes to Resurrection Planet (Media Stockage / Zed)