The European Parliament announced the three finalists for the 2011 LUX. In this occasion, the finalista are a Greek production, "Attenberg" by Athina Rachel Tsangari; another from France's "Les neiges du Kilimandjaro" by Robert Guédiguian and a Swedish, French, Danish production, "Play" by Ruben Östlund. The winner will be announce in November.

The finalists were announced in the context of the Venice Days section of the Venice International Film Festival. MEPs will have the chance to see the films in October and early November after which they will vote for the winner, to be announced 16 November. The LUX prize will be awarded at a ceremony in Strasbourg.

The first finalist announced is “Attenberg", a film which follows the life of 23 year old Marina, who lives with her architect father in a seaside town, as she observes humanity from a distance and deals with the challenges of those she is closest to. “Les neiges du Kilimandjaro" is about Michel and Marie-Claire, whose happiness is shattered when two armed and masked men violently attack them and steal the money for a trip to Kilimandjaro, and the impact of their discoveries about the perpetrators. The latest finalist is "Play" by Ruben Östlund, a film which explores the gang rhetoric and role playing involved in real cases of bullying in Gothenburg, Sweden.

The LUX Prize was established in 2007 as a tangible symbol of the European Parliament’s commitment to the European film industry. The LUX Prize annually casts a spotlight on three films in Competition that reflect the richness and diversity of the European cultural landscape as well as the creative excellence of European cinema. According to the European Parliament, it also supports European cinema in the deep conviction that, as a mass cultural medium, it is an emotional and powerful vehicle for sparking  debate and reflection on Europe, its values and its future. Among the criteria to choose the best LUX film, productions or co-productions have received support from the MEDIA programme. This prize focuses on distribution by covering the cost of subtitling the winning film into the 23 official languages of the European Union (EU), including the adaptation of the original version for hearing or  visually impaired people.