Actors, Danny Glover and Djimon Hounsou; Director, Mira Nair; Writer, Jemima Khan; and Executive Director of Greenpeace International, Kumi Naidoo
London, UK, April, 2012 – Today PUMA.Creative and the BRITDOC Foundation announced the jurors for the PUMA.Creative Impact Award 2012. The jury consists of Hollywood actors and activists, Danny Glover and Djimon Hounsou; director, Mira Nair; writer and campaigner, Jemima Khan; and Executive Director of Greenpeace International, Kumi Naidoo.
The second annual PUMA.Creative Impact Award, which honours the documentary films creating the most significant impact in the world today, comes with a cash prize of 50,000 euros which acknowledges the film’s makers and also helps the continuation of the film’s campaigning work.
“This award is part of PUMA’s ongoing commitment at the intersection of film and activism, and is in line with our mission to contribute to a better world,” said Mark Coetzee, Programme Director, PUMAVision and Chief Curator, PUMA.Creative, “a world that is safer, more peaceful, and more creative than the one we know today.
In 2011 the Award went to the team behind The End of the Line, an environmental documentary on the overfishing of the world’s oceans. That year the jury also awarded a special Jury Commendation—with a 25,000 euro prize—to the makers of Burma VJ, about the 2009 Burmese uprising and the video journalists who risked their life to report on it.
“Thanks to PUMA.Creative for making this important initiative possible. Together we want to identify and honour the filmmakers having the biggest effect with their work and to inspire others the world over to use the power of storytelling to bring about lasting improvements to society and the planet,” said Jess Search, Chief Executive, BRITDOC Foundation. “I can’t wait to see who this year’s outstanding nominees are going to be.”
The Call for Entries for the 2012 PUMA.Creative Impact Award is now open. Submissions close on May 11, 2012. Anyone can put a film forward from any country—filmmakers, distributors, film festivals, partner organisations including NGOs and Foundations, film critics and journalists. Films can be put forward any time up to three years after release.
The 2012 PUMA.Creative Impact Award Jury represents the worlds of film, the arts, academia, social change and journalism:
Danny Glover, who has appeared in over 130 films including the Lethal Weapon series, The Color Purple and Dreamgirls, has also gained respect for his wide-reaching community activism and philanthropic work. Internationally, he has served as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Program and he currently serves as a UNICEF Ambassador.
Two-time Academy Award-nominated actor Djimon Hounsou is known for films such as In America, Blood Diamond, Amistad and Gladiator. As an Ambassador for Oxfam and SOS Children, he travels extensively to address issues of homelessness, poverty, and hunger. Hounsou has appeared before both the UN and the United States Senate, and is a vocal supporter and ally for UNEP on issues of climate change.
Indian filmmaker Mira Nair began her career directing documentaries So Far From India and India Cabaret before moving into feature films including Oscar-nominated Salaam Bombay and BAFTA and Golden Globe-nominated Monsoon Wedding and, in 2009, Amelia, the biopic of American pilot Amelia Earhart.
British-Pakistani Jemima Khan is the Associate Editor of the New Statesman, the European editor-at-large for Vanity Fair and is executive producer for the Intelligence² Versus debates in collaboration with Google+. Khan has been an Ambassador for UNICEF since 2001 and also runs her own charitable foundation.
Kumi Naidoo, who has been Executive Director of Greenpeace International since 2009, is a South African human rights activist who battled apartheid in South Africa in the 1970s and 1980s through the Helping Hands Youth Organisation before leading global campaigns to end poverty and protect human rights.
“As an artist who has been involved in storytelling my entire adult life, I can think of few things more important than the journey from apathy to empathy. Culture is a profound value to champion, and nonfiction storytelling is a path to reinforcing freedom of expression and a more informed, aware and vigorous citizenship,” said Danny Glover. “As nonfiction filmmakers the world over become more and more sophisticated, we’re seeing an unprecedented possibility of heart-mind engagement. Our support for this work, at this particular time in history, when so many forces are conspiring to marginalize or erase the perspectives of entire peoples on some of the most important challenges humanity has ever faced, could not be more critical.”
“I have always believed that truth is stranger and more powerful than fiction. Documentaries are a potent reflection of life. If we don’t tell our own stories, no one else will,” said Mira Nair
The BRITDOC Foundation will assess the applications and produce a shortlist for consideration by an international Peer Review Committee including: Diana Barrett at Fledgling Fund; Heidi Gronauer at EsoDoc; Yvette Alberdingk Thjim at Witness; Wendy Levy at Tomorrow Partners; Willie McKenzie at Greenpeace International; Jamie Drummond at One.org; Pam Harris at Iris Films; and Sharon LaCruise at the Ford Foundation. Five finalists will emerge from this consultation period, which will be presented to the PUMA.Creative Impact Jury to assess the merits of the films, evaluate relative impact and announce an overall winner.
Filmmakers interested in applying for the PUMA.Creative Impact Award 2012 should go to