The Archaeology Channel International Film Festival 2020 which screened the films online after plans for all public Festival gatherings were dropped due to the COVID-19 pandemic announced the winners.
The top jury award (Best Film) went to Neandertal: The Mystery of the Bruniquel Cave directed by Luc-Henri Fage, which follows the progress of a research team as it investigates deep inside a French cave, where a structure made up of more than 400 broken stalagmites now appears to have been built by Neanderthals around 176,000 years ago.
The Festival jury awarded four Special Mention awards. Stout Hearted: George Stout and the Guardians of Art directed by Kevin Kelley, won special mention for promoting cultural preservation. Theirstory directed by Sarah Cahlan, was noted for its exposure of gender stereotypes in archaeology. We, the Voyagers: Our Vaka, directed by Marianne George impressed the jury with its outstanding ethnographic depiction. Cedar: Tree of Life directed by Odessa Shuquaya gained jury recognition for superior awareness of indigenous culture.
The Festival screenings, which took place May 13-17, featured many of the world’s best films on archaeology and cultural heritage Producers and distributors submitted 103 film entries to the Festival from 26 countries, of which 26 films from 12 countries were selected for the competition.
The Archaeology Channel International Film Festival 2020 Awards
Best Film (by Jury):
Neandertal: The Mystery of the Bruniquel Cave (Produced by Gedeon Programmes, Felis Production, Arte France, and CNRS Images; directed by Luc-Henri Fage; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Honorable Mention for Best Film Category (in order):
Samurai in the Oregon Sky (Produced and directed by Ilana Sol; USA)
Art at War (Produced by Tobia Pescia; directed by Massimo Becattini; distributed by Film Documentari d’Arte; Italy)
Versailles Rediscovered: The Sun King’s Vanished Palace (Produced by Stéphane Milliére for GedeonProgrammes; directed by Marc Jampolsky; distributed by Terranoa; France)
First Horse Warriors (Produced by Larry Klein for WGBH NOVA; directed by Niobe Thompson; Canada and USA)
Saving Places (Produced and directed by Joseph Daniel; distributed by Story Arts Media; USA)
Best Narration (by Jury):
First Horse Warriors (Produced by Larry Klein for WGBH NOVA; directed by Niobe Thompson; Canada and USA)
Honorable Mention for Narration (in order):
Saving Places (Produced and directed by Joseph Daniel; distributed by Story Arts Media; USA)
Versailles Rediscovered: The Sun King’s Vanished Palace (Produced by Stéphane Milliére for Gedeon Programmes; directed by Marc Jampolsky; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Neandertal: The Mystery of the Bruniquel Cave (Produced by Gedeon Programmes, Felis Production, Arte France, and CNRS Images; directed by Luc-Henri Fage; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Samurai in the Oregon Sky (Produced and directed by Ilana Sol; USA)
Best Animation & Special Effects (by Jury):
Versailles Rediscovered: The Sun King’s Vanished Palace (Produced by Stéphane Milliére for Gedeon Programmes; directed by Marc Jampolsky; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Honorable Mention for Animation & Special Effects (in order):
Lost Cities with Albert Lin: Stonehenge (Produced by Arrow Media; directed by Matthew Thompson; UK)
Hafez and Goethe (Produced and distributed by Documentary and Experimental Film Center; directed by Farshad Fereshteh Hekmat; Iran)
Samurai in the Oregon Sky (Produced and directed by Ilana Sol; USA)
Stout Hearted: George Stout and the Guardians of Art (Produced by New Mile Media Arts; directed by Kevin Kelley; USA)
Best Public Education Value (by Jury):
Samurai in the Oregon Sky (Produced and directed by Ilana Sol; USA)
Honorable Mention for Public Education Value (in order):
Art at War (Produced by Tobia Pescia; directed by Massimo Becattini; distributed by Film Documentari d’Arte; Italy)
Neandertal: The Mystery of the Bruniquel Cave (Produced by Gedeon Programmes, Felis Production, Arte France, and CNRS Images; directed by Luc-Henri Fage; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Saving Places (Produced and directed by Joseph Daniel; distributed by Story Arts Media; USA)
Pyramids Builders New Clues (Produced by Stéphane Milliére for Gedeon Programmes; directed by Florence Tran; distributed by Terranao; France)
Best Script (by Jury):
Versailles Rediscovered: The Sun King’s Vanished Palace (Produced by Stéphane Milliére for Gedeon Programmes; directed by Marc Jampolsky; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Honorable Mention for Script (in order):
Neandertal: The Mystery of the Bruniquel Cave (Produced by Gedeon Programmes, Felis Production, Arte France, and CNRS Images; directed by Luc-Henri Fage; distributed by Terranoa; France)
First Horse Warriors (Produced by Larry Klein for WGBH NOVA; directed by Niobe Thompson; Canada and USA)
Theirstory (Produced, directed, and distributed by Sarah Cahlan; USA)
Samurai in the Oregon Sky (Produced and directed by Ilana Sol; USA)
Best Cinematography (by Jury):
Versailles Rediscovered: The Sun King’s Vanished Palace (Produced by Stéphane Milliére for Gedeon Programmes; directed by Marc Jampolsky; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Honorable Mention for Cinematography (in order):
Hafez and Goethe (Produced and distributed by Documentary and Experimental Film Center; directed by Farshad Fereshteh Hekmat; Iran)
Neandertal: The Mystery of the Bruniquel Cave (Produced by Gedeon Programmes, Felis Production, Arte France, and CNRS Images; directed by Luc-Henri Fage; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Cedar: Tree of Life (Produced by April Johnson; directed by Odessa Shuquaya; Canada)
First Horse Warriors (Produced by Larry Klein for WGBH NOVA; directed by Niobe Thompson; Canada and USA)
Best Music (by Jury):
Hafez and Goethe (Produced and distributed by Documentary and Experimental Film Center; directed by Farshad Fereshteh Hekmat; Iran)
Honorable Mention for Music (in order):
Versailles Rediscovered: The Sun King’s Vanished Palace (Produced by Stéphane Milliére for Gedeon Programmes; directed by Marc Jampolsky; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Samurai in the Oregon Sky (Produced and directed by Ilana Sol; USA)
The Last Bonesetter (Produced and directed by Adam Booher and Kathryn Oths; distributed by Documentary Educational Resources; Peru)
Vars (Produced and distributed by Documentary and Experimental Film Center; directed by Javad Vatani; Iran)
Most Inspirational (by Jury):
Samurai in the Oregon Sky (Produced and directed by Ilana Sol; USA)
Honorable Mention for Inspiration (in order):
Art at War (Produced by Tobia Pescia; directed by Massimo Becattini; distributed by Film Documentari d’Arte; Italy)
Saving Places (Produced and directed by Joseph Daniel; distributed by Story Arts Media; USA)
Lost Cities with Albert Lin: Stonehenge (Produced by Arrow Media; directed by Matthew Thompson; UK)
Neandertal: The Mystery of the Bruniquel Cave (Produced by Gedeon Programmes, Felis Production, Arte France, and CNRS Images; directed by Luc-Henri Fage; distributed by Terranoa; France)
Special Mention (by Jury):
Stout Hearted: George Stout and the Guardians of Art (Produced by New Mile Media Arts; directed by Kevin Kelley; USA); for Best Cultural Preservation.
Theirstory (Produced, directed and distributed by Sarah Cahlan; USA); for Best Recognition of Gender Stereotypes in Archaeology.
We, the Voyagers: Our Vaka (Produced and directed by Marianne George; distributed by Pacific Traditions Society; USA); for Best Ethnographic Depiction.
Cedar: Tree of Life (Produced by April Johnson; directed by Odessa Shuquaya; Canada); for Best Awareness of Indigenous Culture.