Homeland Story directed by Glenda Hambley took the top jury award, Best Film by Jury, at the 2024 The Archaeology Channel International Film Festival. This film focuses on the Donydji, a small Indigenous homeland in North East Arnhem Land in the far north of Australia. It charts the Donydji community’s transition from nomadic life to the digital age, starting in the 1960s and all the way to the present day. This is a moving and representative portrait of one family’s struggle to preserve their culture and remain on their homeland despite the severe obstacles they face: sub-standard education, deplorable service delivery, lack of job opportunities for youth, inadequate government policy, bureaucratic mismanagement, and pressure from mining interests.
The Festival audience picked Wonder of Andalusia: Medina Azahara directed by Stéphane Bégoin and Thomas Marlier as its favorite film. Medina Azahara is considered one of the most important Islamic archaeological sites worldwide. A new excavation project, focused outside the palace walls, in areas of the city never before studied, revealed a massive new building, it’s function unknown.
The Festival, which took place May 15-19, featured many of the world’s best films on archaeology and cultural heritage, as well as a Keynote Address by Dr. Dennis Jenkins Senior Research Associate Emeritus, Museum of Natural and Cultural History, University of Oregon. Dr. Jenkins is best known for his excavations at Paisley Caves in eastern Oregon and the recovery of ancient human DNA from coprolites (dried feces) dating 14,300 years old..
The following is a complete list of TAC Festival 2024 awards:
Best Film (by Jury)
Homeland Story (Produced and directed by Glenda Hambley; distributed by Ronin Films; Australia)
Honorable Mention for Best Film Category Competition (in order):
In Search of the Lost Music of Antiquity (Produced by Olivier De Bannes and directed by Bernard George; distributed by ARTE Distribution; France)
Wonder of Andalusia: Medina Azahara (Produced by Amélie Juan; directed by Stéphane Bégoin and Thomas Marlier; distributed by Mediawan; France)
Incas: The New Story (Produced by Christie and Agnès Molia; directed by Thibaud Marchand and distributed by ARTE Distribution; France)
Ocean One K: Archaeologist of the Abyss (Produced by Gedeon Programmes; directed by Mathieu Pradinaud; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Best Narration (by Jury)
Homeland Story (Produced and directed by Glenda Hambley; distributed by Ronin Films; Australia)
Honorable Mention for Narration (in order):
Wonder of Andalusia: Medina Azahara (Produced by Amélie Juan; directed by Stéphane Bégoin and Thomas Marlier; distributed by Mediawan; France)
Old Drystones: First Farmers of the Mountains (Produced, directed and distributed by Rob Hope; France)
In Search of the Lost Music of Antiquity (Produced by Olivier De Bannes and directed by Bernard George; distributed by ARTE Distribution; France)
Francisco Albo: Greek Seamen in the First Voyage Around the World (Produced and directed by Pedro Olalla; Spain)
Best Animation and Effects (by Jury)
Wonder of Andalusia: Medina Azahara (Produced by Amélie Juan; directed by Stéphane Bégoin and Thomas Marlier; distributed by Mediawan; France)
Honorable Mention for Animation and Effects (in order):
Fall of the Maya Kings (Produced by Leslea Mair; directed by Leif Kaldor; distributed by LGI Media; Canada)
Neanderthal the First Artist (Produced by Tournez S’il Vous Plait; directed by Thibaud Marchand; distributed by ZED; France)
Incas: The New Story (Produced by Christie and Agnès Molia; directed by Thibaud Marchand and distributed by ARTE Distribution; France)
Doggerland (Produced and directed by Michael Blake; UK).
Best Public Education Value (by Jury)
Ocean One K: Archaeologist of the Abyss (Produced by Gedeon Programmes; directed by Mathieu Pradinaud; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Honorable Mention for Public Education Value (in order):
Homeland Story (Produced and directed by Glenda Hambley; distributed by Ronin Films; Australia)
Notre-Dame de Paris: Preventive Excavation at the Transept Crossing (Produced by Inrap, Thibaud Marchand, Nadia Cleitman; directed by Thibaud Marchand; distributed by Inrap; France)
They Never Left: Indigenous Reclamation and Return in the Southeast (Produced by Michele Forman and directed by Quinn C. Smith; USA)
In Search of the Lost Music of Antiquity (Produced by Olivier De Bannes and directed by Bernard George; distributed by ARTE Distribution; France)
Best Script (by Jury)
In Search of the Lost Music of Antiquity (Produced by Olivier De Bannes and directed by Bernard George; distributed by ARTE Distribution; France)
Honorable Mention for Script (in order):
Wonder of Andalusia: Medina Azahara (Produced by Amélie Juan; directed by Stéphane Bégoin and Thomas Marlier; distributed by Mediawan; France)
Ocean One K: Archaeologist of the Abyss (Produced by Gedeon Programmes; directed by Mathieu Pradinaud; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Notre-Dame de Paris: Preventive Excavation at the Transept Crossing (Produced by Inrap, Thibaud Marchand, Nadia Cleitman; directed by Thibaud Marchand; distributed by Inrap; France)
Neanderthal: In the Footsteps of Another Humanity (Produced by Caroline Chassaing; directed by David Geoffroy; Distributed by Dieterle Marie Estelle; France)
Best Cinematography (by Jury)
Incas: The New Story (Produced by Christie and Agnès Molia; directed by Thibaud Marchand and distributed by ARTE Distribution; France)
Honorable Mention for Cinematography (in order):
Wonder of Andalusia: Medina Azahara (Produced by Amélie Juan; directed by Stéphane Bégoin and Thomas Marlier; distributed by Mediawan; France)
In Search of the Lost Music of Antiquity (Produced by Olivier De Bannes and directed by Bernard George; distributed by ARTE Distribution; France)
Diving into History: 50 Years of Exploring Our Maritime Heritage (Produced and directed by Michael Pitts; UK)
Fall of the Maya Kings (Produced by Leslea Mair; directed by Leif Kaldor; distributed by LGI Media; Canada)
Best Music (by Jury)
In Search of the Lost Music of Antiquity (Produced by Olivier De Bannes and directed by Bernard George; distributed by ARTE Distribution; France)
Honorable Mention for Music (in order):
Angkor: The Lost Empire of Cambodia (Produced by David Gross, Murray Pope, Christopher Zaryc; directed by Murray Pope; distributed by K2 Studios; USA)
Homeland Story (Produced and directed by Glenda Hambley; distributed by Ronin Films; Australia)
Francisco Albo: Greek Seamen in the First Voyage Around the World (Produced and directed by Pedro Olalla; Spain)
Fall of the Maya Kings (Produced by Leslea Mair; directed by Leif Kaldor; distributed by LGI Media; Canada)
Most Inspirational (by Jury)
Notre-Dame de Paris: Preventive Excavation at the Transept Crossing (Produced by Inrap, Thibaud Marchand, Nadia Cleitman; directed by Thibaud Marchand; distributed by Inrap; France)
Honorable Mention for Inspiration (in order):
In Search of the Lost Music of Antiquity (Produced by Olivier De Bannes and directed by Bernard George; distributed by ARTE Distribution; France)
Homeland Story (Produced and directed by Glenda Hambley; distributed by Ronin Films; Australia)
Ocean One K: Archaeologist of the Abyss (Produced by Gedeon Programmes; directed by Mathieu Pradinaud; distributed by Terranoa; France)
The Time They Spent Here (Produced by Edward Owles, Richard Tacon; directed by Edward Owles; UK)
Special Mention (by Jury)
Diving into History: 50 Years of Exploring Our Maritime Heritage (Produced and directed by Michael Pitts; UK); for Portrayal of Public Participation in Cultural Resources Management
Neanderthal: The First Artist (Produced by Stéphane Millière; directed by Marie Thiry; distributed by Gedeon Programmes; France); for Innovation in Analysis
Finding Enok: Coping with Our Colonial Past (Produced by Stichting Filmproject; directed by Dorna van Rouveroy; distributed by Indivisual Group; Netherlands); for Reappraisal of Colonialism through Family Perspectives
Audience Favorite (by Festival audience)
Wonder of Andalusia: Medina Azahara (Produced by Amélie Juan; directed by Stéphane Bégoin and Thomas Marlier; distributed by Mediawan; France)
Honorable Mention for Audience Favorite Competition (in order):
Fall of the Maya Kings (Produced by Leslea Mair; directed by Leif Kaldor; distributed by LGI Media; Canada)
Angkor: The Lost Empire of Cambodia (Produced by David Gross, Murray Pope, Christopher Zaryc; directed by Murray Pope; distributed by K2 Studios; USA)
Ocean One K: Archaeologist of the Abyss (Produced by Gedeon Programmes; directed by Mathieu Pradinaud; distributed by Terranoa; France)
The Enigma of Keros (Produced by Michel Dimitrakakos and Kostas Macheras; directed by Kostas Macheras; distributed by ERT)
Homeland Story (Produced and directed by Glenda Hambley; distributed by Ronin Films; Australia)