The Prix Jean Vigo () is an award in the French cinema given annually since 1951 to a French film director, in honor of Jean Vigo. Since 1960, the award has been given to both a director of a feature film and to a director of a short film. The award is usually given to a young director, for their independent spirit and stylistic originality.
History The Jean Vigo Prize has been awarded since 1951 as a tribute to film director Jean Vigo. It was created by Claude Aveline, the executor of Jean Vigo's will, Vigo's daughter Luce Vigo, and a number of filmmakers. Members of the first jury, in 1951, included Jacques Becker, Jean Cocteau, Paul Gilson, Georges Sadoul, and Luce Vigo.
The award recognizes films "for their inventiveness, originality and intellectual independence." The goal of the award is to "recognize a future auteur, [to] discover through him a passion and a gift," according to the 2018 jury.
Winners
1950s YearEnglish titleOriginal titleDirector(s)Notes1951The Mountain is GreenLa Montagne est verteJean Lehérisseyshort1952La Grande VieHenri Schneider1953White ManeCrin BlancAlbert Lamorisseshort1954Statues Also DieLes statues meurent aussiAlain Resnais, Chris Marker and Ghislain Cloquet1955Émile ZolaJean Vidal1956Night and FogNuit et BrouillardAlain Resnais1957Léon la luneAlain Jessua1958Les Femmes de StermetzLouis Grospierre1959Le Beau Serge Claude Chabrol
1960s YearEnglish titleOriginal titleDirector(s)1960Breathless À bout de souffleJean-Luc Godard1961La Peau et les osJean-Paul Sassy and Jacques Panuel1962War of the ButtonsLa Guerre des boutonsYves Robert1963To Die in MadridMourir à MadridFrédéric Rossif1964La Belle VieRobert Enrico1965Not awarded1966Black GirlLa Noire de...Ousmane Sembène1967Who Are You, Polly Maggoo?Qui êtes-vous, Polly Maggoo?William Klein1968O SaltoChristian de Chalonge1969Naked ChildhoodL'Enfance nueMaurice Pialat
1970s YearEnglish titleOriginal titleDirector(s)1970Hoa BinhHòa BìnhRaoul Coutard1971Ramparts of ClayRemparts d'argileJean-Louis Bertuccelli1972Continental CircusJérôme Laperroussaz1973Repeated AbsencesAbsences répétéesGuy Gilles1974The Man Who SleepsUn homme qui dortBernard Queyssanne and Georges Perec1975The Story of PaulHistoire de PaulRené Féret1976L'Affiche rougeFrank Cassenti1977Paradiso Christian Bricout1978Bako-l'autre riveJacques Champreux1979Certaines nouvellesJacques Davila
1980s YearEnglish titleOriginal titleDirector(s)1980Ma blonde entends-tu dans la ville?René Gilson1981Le JardinierJean-Pierre Sentier1982L'Enfant SecretPhilippe Garrel1984Vive la sociale!Gérard Mordillat1985Tea in the HaremLe Thé au harem d'ArchimèdeMehdi Charef1986Maine-Ocean ExpressJacques Rozier1987Buisson ardentLaurent Perrin1988La Comédie du travailLuc Moullet1989Chine ma douleurDai Sijie
1990s YearEnglish titleOriginal titleDirector(s)1990Mona et moiPatrick Grandperret1991Le BrasierÉric Barbier1992Paris AwakensParis s'éveilleOlivier Assayas1993Les histoires d'amour finissent mal... en généralAnne Fontaine1994Trop de bonheur Cédric Kahn1995Don't Forget You're Going to DieN'oublie pas que tu vas mourirXavier Beauvois1996Encore Pascal Bonitzer1997La Vie de JésusBruno Dumont1998Tell Me I'm DreamingClaude Mouriéras1999La vie ne me fait pas peurNoémie Lvoski
2000s YearEnglish titleOriginal titleDirector(s)2000The King's DaughtersSaint-CyrPatricia MazuyDe l'histoire ancienneOrso Miret2001CandidatureEmmanuel BourdieuThat Old Dream That MovesCe vieux rêve qui bougeAlain Guiraudie2002Royal BonbonCharles Najman2003Toutes ces belles promessesJean-Paul Civeyrac2004Quand je serai starPatrick Mimouni2005Les Yeux clairsJérôme Bonnell2006Le Dernier des fousLaurent Achard2007La FranceSerge Bozon2008Nulle part, terre promiseEmmanuel Finkiel2009Family TreeL'Arbre et la ForêtOlivier Ducastel and Jacques Martineau
2010s YearEnglish titleOriginal titleDirector(s)Notes2010Love Like PoisonUn poison violentKatell Quillévéré2011Smugglers' SongsLes Chants de MandrinRabah Ameur-Zaïmeche2012L'Âge atomiqueHéléna Klotz2013L'Enclos du tempsJean-Charles Fitoussi2014Mange tes mortsJean-Charles Hue2015The FearLa PeurDamien Odoul2016The Death of Louis XIVLa Mort de Louis XIVAlbert Serra2017Barbara Mathieu Amalric2018ShéhérazadeJean-Bernard Marlin "Yann Gonzalez et Jean-Bernard Marlin, lauréats ex aequo du Prix Jean Vigo". RTBF, 12 June 2018.Knife+Heart Un couteau dans le cœurYann Gonzalez2019Vif-ArgentStéphane Batut
2020s YearEnglish titleOriginal titleDirector(s)Notes2020Énorme Sophie Letourneur2021Petite SolangeAxelle Ropert2022Saint OmerAlice Diop2023La RivièreDominique Marchais2024Holy CowVingt DieuxLouise Courvoisier2025The Girl in the SnowL'EngloutieLouise Hémon2026Voilà, c'est finiGustave KervernThe UnknownL'InconnueArthur Harari
Short film
1960s 1960: Enfants des courants d'air by Édouard Luntz 1961: not awarded 1962: 10 juin 1944 by Maurice Cohen 1963: La Jetée by Chris Marker 1964: La Saint-Firmin by Robert Destanque 1965: Fait à Coaraze by Gérard Belkin 1968: Désirée by Fernand Moszkowicz 1969: Le Deuxième Ciel by Louis-Roger
1970s 1970: La Passion selon Florimond by Laurent Gomes 1971: Derniers hivers by Jean-Charles Tacchella 1973: Le Soldat et les trois sœurs by Pascal Aubier 1974: Septembre chilien by Bruno Muel and Théo Robichet 1975: La Corrida by Christian Broutin 1976: Caméra by Christian Paureilhe 1979: Nuit féline by Gérard Marx
1980s 1982: Lourdes, l'hiver by Marie-Claude Treilhou 1983: La Fonte de Barlaeus by Pierre-Henri Salfati 1985: Épopine ou le Fer à repasser by Michel Chion 1986: Poussières d'étoiles by Agnès Merlet 1987: Pondichéry, juste avant l'oubli by Joël Fargès 1988: Elle et lui by François Margolin 1989: Le Porte-plume by Marie-Christine Perrodin
1990s 1990: Elli Fat Man by Michel Such 1991: La Vie des morts by Arnaud Desplechin 1992: Des filles et des chiens by Sophie Fillières 1993: Faits et gestes by Emmanuel Descombes 1994: 75 centilitres de prières by Jacques Maillot 1995: Tous à la manif by Laurent Cantet 1997: Soyons amis! by Thomas Bardinet 1998: Les Corps ouverts by Sébastien Lifshitz 1999: Le Bleu du ciel by Christian Dor
2000s 2000: Les Filles de mon pays by Yves Caumon 2001: Ce vieux rêve qui bouge by Alain Guiraudie 2002: L'Arpenteur by Michel Klein and Sarah Petit 2003: La Coupure by Nathalie Loubeyre 2004: La nuit sera longue by Olivier Torres 2005: La Peau trouée by Julien Samani 2006: De sortie by Thomas Salvador 2007: by 2008: Les Paradis perdus by Hélier Cisterne 2009: Montparnasse by Mikhaël Hers
2010s 2010: La République by Nicolas Pariser 2011: La Dame au chien by Damien Manivel 2012: La Règle de trois by Louis Garrel La Vie Parisienne by Vincent Dietschy 2013: Le Quepa sur la vilni! by Yann Le Quellec 2014: Inupiluk by Sébastien Betbeder 2015: Le Dernier des Céfrans by Pierre-Emmanuel Urcun 2016: Le Gouffre by Vincent Le Port 2017: Le Film de l'été by Emmanuel Marre 2018: L'Amie du dimanche by Guillaume Brac 2019: Braquer Poitiers by Claude Schmitz
2020s 2020: Un adieu by Mathilde Profit 2021: Le Roi David by Lila Pinell 2022: Kindertotenlieder by Virgile Vernier 2023: J’ai vu le visage du diable by Julia Kowalski 2024: Car wash by Lais Decaster 2025: Bel Companho by David Ingels 2026: À la recherche de l'oiseau gris aux rayures vertes by Saïd Hamich Benlarbi
"Vigo d'honneur" YearWinner2008Jacques Doillon2010Otar Iosseliani2011Jean-Marie Straub2012Agnès Varda2013Leos Carax2016Paul Vecchiali2017Aki Kaurismäki2018Jean-François Stévenin2019Alain Cavalier2020Arnaud and Jean-Marie Larrieu 2021Claire Denis2022Jacques Nolot 2023Claire Simon 2024Elia Suleiman 2025Wang Bing2026Alain Gomis
Award in Spain
Spain's Punto de Vista International Documentary Film Festival presents the Premio Jean Vigo to the best director. The award aims to strengthen both the spirit that originally inspired the festival and the festival's commitment to the work of Jean Vigo. The creation of this prize was made possible thanks to the close ties between Punto de Vista and the family of the French filmmaker.
In 2005, the festival paid tribute to Vigo on the centenary of his birth. Luce Vigo, film critic and daughter of Vigo and Elizabeth Lozinska, attended that year. The festival provided a retrospective of Vigo's entire filmography and also represented the first step in a relationship that resulted in the award. The festival took its name, Punto de Vista (English: "point of view"), as a tribute to Vigo, the first director to refer, in the 1930s, to a “documented point of view” as a distinctive sign of a form of filmmaking that commits the filmmaker.
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