The 10 films pre-selected to compete for 2010 European Parliament LUX Prize were unveiled on Monday June 28th, at the Brussels European Film Festival. These films, made in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Romania and the UK, reflect the creative excellence of European cinema, which Parliament is pleased to support.

As part of a partnership between the LUX Prize and the “Venice Days” section of the Venice International Film Festival, a shortlist of  at least three of these films will be announced on 27 July 2010 at the “Venice Days” press conference. The competing films will first be screened in Venice, and will then be shown in the European Parliament's Brussels premises from 26 October to 19 November. Members of the European Parliament will then vote for the winning film, and the 2010 LUX Prize will be awarded on 24 November by the President of the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

LUX 2010 film award finalists

• Akadimia Platonos (Plato's Academy) by Filippos Tsitos, Greece, Germany
• Bibliothèque Pascal by Szabolcs Hajdu, Hungary, Germany, United Kingdom, Romania 
• Die Fremde (When We Leave) by Feo Aladag, Germany
• Illégal (Illegal)  by Olivier Masset-Depasse, Belgium
• Indigène d’Eurasie (Eastern Drift) by Sharunas Bartas, Lithuania, France, United Kingdom 
• Io sono l'amore (I Am Love)  by Luca Guadagnino, Italy
• La bocca del lupo (The Mouth of the Wolf) by Pietro Marcello, Italy
• Lourdes by Jessica Hausner, Austria, France, Germany
• Medalia de onoare (Medal of Honour) by Calin Peter Netzer, Germany, Romania 
• R by Tobias Lindholm and Michael Noer, Denmark

European Parliament's LUX film Prize

The LUX Prize (in Latin, lux means light), was established in 2007, as a tangible symbol of the European Parliament’s commitment to the European film industry and its creative endeavours. No matter what individual, historical or social issue it illustrates, each film in the LUX Prize Official Selection gives a glimpse of Europeans, their lives, their convictions, their doubts, and their quest for identity.

As for previous winners — Auf der anderen Seite (2007), Le silence de Lorna (2008) and Welcome (2009) — the 2010 LUX Prize winning film will benefit from European Parliament financial support to pay for subtitling in the 23 official languages of the European Union (EU), including an adaptation of the original version for visually- or hearing-impaired people, and for producing a 35 mm print for each EU Member State or supporting the subsequent DVD release.

Lux Prize Eligibility criteria and the selection process

• Fiction or animation films or creative documentaries
• A 60-minute minimum running time
• Illustrating or questioning the founding values of our European identity, Europe’s cultural diversity or providing insights into the debate on the EU integration process
• Productions or co-productions eligible for support from the MEDIA programme (European Union, Croatia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland)
• First theatre release between 1 June 2009 and 31 May 2010.

Every year, a panel determines the Official Selection for the LUX Prize. It includes producers, distributors, exhibitors, festival directors and film critics. One third of the selection panel is renewed yearly, and its members are appointed by the European Parliament’s Committee on Culture and Education. The jury includes the previous LUX Prize winner. The European Commission (MEDIA) and the Council of Europe (EURIMAGES), sit as observers.