Zurich Film Festival Launches New Award for Best Series
The Zurich Film Festival’s new 'ZFF Series' competition section presents between six and eight of the world’s most innovative series. Series of all genres are eligible for nomination as along as they comprise a minimum of four episodes at 40-60 minutes per episode and celebrate their Swiss premiere at the ZFF. A jury will award the Golden Eye for "Best International TV Series" endowed with a CHF 10’000 cash prize during the festival.
The Zurich Film Festival celebrated its 10-year anniversary by launching the 'ZFF TVision' section. This out-of-competition line-up continued ever since to present series and mini-series that drew global TV-world attention or were on the verge of success. Talk at the time was of a “golden age of television entertainment”, which has since led to a blurring of the line between TV and cinema. It is no longer surprising that such Hollywood greats as David Fincher, David Lynch, Andrea Arnold and Jane Campion, as well a whole host of character actors and actresses, are getting in on this once-shunned act. According to estimates by industry insiders, approximately 1000 new series are created annually.
In order to keep abreast of the ever-increasing importance of the TV series, Zurich Film Festival launches its new 'ZFF Series' competition line-up. Eligible to compete are series made specifically for TV or streaming channels, including existing series, comprising four episodes or more (including the pilot episode). Each episode must be between 40 and 60 minutes in duration and the first season of the series must not yet have been aired in Switzerland. The Zurich Film Festival will appoint a jury comprising a minimum of three experts from the film industry to award the Golden Eye for 'Best International TV Series' endowed with a CHF 10’000 cash prize. The prize money will be split between the creator and producers. The festival will also present in this section an out-of-competition line-up of (mini)series that signal new trends and/or have garnered attention within the global TV world.