DIG Pitch: when a project becomes an investigation
The DIG Awards announcethe eight finalists of the video projects’ category
reserved to ongoing or pre-production videos
The topics covered include: migrations, wars and crimes too soon forgotten or not yet denounced
The list containing the names of the DIG Awards finalists is finally complete; international prizes dedicated to investigative journalism projects in video format, will be assigned in Riccione during the upcoming DIG Festival, from the 23rd to the 25th of June. In addition to the fifteen finalists of the categories dedicated to already-produced videos, there will also be the finalists of the DIG Pitch section, reserved to investigation projects and video reportages, in progress or in pre-production, that address issues of particular social, economical and political relevance for European countries. The eight selected projects ‒ all of which have to be in English ‒ bring under the spotlight forgotten crimes or deepen major current topics:wars, migrations, international trades, financial crimes, crimes against public health, labour exploitation. In competition for a production prize of 20.000 euros, there are projects, both Italian and foreign, by reporters and directors from six different nations: Italy, France, Switzerland, Morocco, Canada and United States.
Apocalypse Donbass. Giorgio Bianchi’s brainchild, with the collaboration of Lorenzo Giroffi and Andrea Sceresini and the production of Matteo Gagliardi, Apocalypse Donbass is a journey into the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Lugansk, both products of the first European war of the twenty-first century.
Blue Lips. Gabriele Veronesi and Luca Bedini reopen a true cold case: eight forgotten murders in the province of Modena in the Eighties.
Benin City: A Trafficked City. Giampaolo Musumeci and Gianni Rosini turn the spotlight onto Benin City, a Nigerian city whose economy is built around the exploitation of prostitution; a criminal activity that mutually intertwines Africa and Italy.
Fridah’s Journey. The Italian-Swiss investigative team formed by Serena Tinari, Catherine Riva, Manolo Luppichini and Ivan Giordano, with the support of the Canadian reporter Sandra Bartlett, investigates the lies that led to the worldwide-spread of a harmful medicine.
Hunting the General. Lorenzo Tondo, Saul Caia, Rosario Sardella and Vincenzo Rosa follow the tracks of one of the most wanted human smugglers by the International Justice System; a man who is still at large, while an innocent has been imprisonedin his place.
Inside Lehman Brothers. The French journalist Jennifer Deschamps, in collaboration with her compatriot Sylvain Pak, and with the Indian-American journalist Vikas Bajaj, reopens the debate on Lehman Brothers’ bankruptcy. Her inquiry, based on important insiders’ leaks, will unveil new perspectives on the financial crisis that has shaken the world.
Inside the Agreement. Alessandro di Nunzio and Diego Gandolfo, together with the documentarists Adeline Bailleul (France) and Tarek Bouraque (Morocco), investigate the “collateral damages” of the commercial agreements between the EU and Morocco; agreements that contributed to the creation of new slaves of agriculture.
Unknown. Jacopo Loiodice, Silvia Boccardi, Giuseppe Francaviglia and Giorgio Viscardini tell the world about the identification of “nameless” migrants who drowned trying to cross the Mediterranean.
During the DIG Festival, the authors of the eight finalist projects will compete with each other using the innovative pitch format. They will each be given 10minutes to illustrate their proposals (all in English) in front of an audience amongst which there will be important sector experts: producers, television distributors, buyers and commissioning editors. The appointment, scheduled for Friday June 23rd (2:00 pm) held in Riccione in the Palazzo del Turismo, represents an invaluable opportunity for all finalists who will be able to show their project to an audience of qualified people. In the two previous editions, five projects became investigations and reportages broadcasted by ARTE, Sky Italia, Canal+, Mediaset and La7.
The winner of the DIG Pitch will be announced on Saturday 24th, along with the winners of the other competition categories: Investigative Long and Medium, Reportage Long and Medium, and Short. The award ceremony, scheduled to take place in Piazzale Ceccarini at 9:30 pm, will be conducted by Vicsia Portel. To evaluate the projects, there will be an international jury chaired by the American reporter Jeremy Scahill and other twelve professionists coming from seven different nations: Alexandre Brachet (Upian), Riccardo Chiattelli (laeffe), Pino Corrias (Rai), Corrado Formigli (La7), John Goetz (NDR/Süddeutsche Zeitung), Morten Møller Warmedal (NRK), Marco Nassivera (arte), Alberto Nerazzini (agenzia Dersu), Maggie O’Kane (Guardian), Hans Peterson Hammer (SVT), Andrea Scrosati (Sky Italia), Margo Smit (NOS).
Alongside the presentations of the DIG Awards finalists, the DIG Festival proposes a three-day free-entrance event of meetings in the heart of Riccione. In the calendar: meetings, projections, shows and the DIG Academy professional seminars accredited by the Order of Journalists for constant training.
For further information:
DIG Awards, DIG Festival and DIG Academyare initiatives organised by Associazione DIG / Documentari Inchieste Giornalismi, in collaboration with Comune di Riccione and Regione Emilia Romagna, with the patronage of the National Order of Journalists, the Order of Journalists of Emilia-Romagna and RAI. Partners of DIG are: Sky, laeffe-tv, Associazione stampa estera, Global Investigative Journalism Network, European Journalism Observatory, Pagina 99, Rai TGR, Inform-ant, Slow news, Linkiesta and Millecanali.