At a press conference at the Venice Casino on September 11, the European Parliament will announce the three finalists for the LUX European Cinema Prize.

The event will be attended by Doris Pack, President of the European Parliament’s Culture and Education Committee, and Paolo Baratta, President of the Venice Biennale. Other guests include Fatih Akin and Klaus Maeck, director and co-producer of The Edge of Heaven [trailer, film focus], which won the 2007 LUX Prize.
A total of ten European-produced films are competing for finalist status (see news). The European Parliament has been supporting the prize since 2007 through the selection of films that explore, in different ways, subjects relevant to European citizens.

After the announcement in Venice, the three finalists will be screened in the European Parliament from November 2-20. EU parliament members will vote for their favourite film and finally, on November 25 in Strasbourg, the 2009 LUX Prize winner will be revealed.

The winning film will be subtitled in the 23 official EU languages, including an adaptation of the original version for visually or hearing-impaired people. Moreover, each member state will receive the film in 35mm format or support in launching the DVD.

"There is no European conscience, or emotion, no European identity if we don’t keep in mind the specific histories of each country, that is to say if we don’t watch European films in order to discover the soul of Europe", declared to Cineuropa Doris Pack.