CST AWARDS WINNERS
AT THE 77th FESTIVAL DE CANNES CELEBRATED
La CST – Commission supérieure technique de l’image et du son, is pleased to award:
With the support of AFDAS, Poly-Son Post-Production, Publiciscinémas, Arri and Circad.
CST AWARD for Best Young Female Technician to :
Evgenia Alexandrova, Cinematographer of Noémie Merlant’s The Balconettes.
CST AWARD for Best Artist-Technician to :
Daria D’Antonio, Cinematographer on Paolo Sorrentino’s Parthenope.
The two winners pose with the prints donated by Dolorès Marat:
- Snow in Corsica – 1995
- Crescent Moon, Jordan – 2009
Award Ceremony
On Monday December 2, the CST AWARDS at the 77th Festival de Cannes came to a close with a magnificent ceremony celebrating the two winners of the year 2024.
The evening opened with testimonials from former jury members and loyal CST AWARDS partners, each emphasizing the importance of defending excellence in technical creation.
Angelo Cosimano, President of CST, opened the ceremony by thanking the partners for their unfailing support: Afdas, Poly-Son Post-production, Arri, Circad, Le Collectif 50/50, Femmes à la caméra, Mediaclub’Elles and Publiciscinemas
Angelo Cosimano – President of CST
Franck Jeantet, General Manager of the Publicis Drugstore, joined him on stage to express his pride in welcoming the CST for this beautiful ceremony, all the more so as room 1 of the Publiciscinemas has obtained the renewal of its Label Excellence. For over two years, Paris’ first CST-certified cinema has been delighting its loyal audiences. This label reflects the values of the Publicis group: “to offer the best of what we can do”.
Franck Jeantet – General Manager of the Publicis Drugstore
For the fourth consecutive year, a renowned photographer will present the winners with a photograph from his or her personal collection. Following in the footsteps of Raymond Depardon, Carole Bellaïche and Sylvie Lancrenon, this year Dolorès Marat has done us the honor of supporting the Awards. Claudine Nougaret, Vice-President of CST, thanked Dolorès Marat for her invaluable support.
Claudine Nougaret – Vice-President of CST
Claudine Nougaret reminded us of the origins of the CST AWARD for Best Young Female Technician. Sharing with us her career path from chief sound operator to producer, she said she had always fought for parity: “A film with a technical team made up of equal numbers of men and women doesn’t give off the same poetry as a film with a 100% male team”. The creation of the CST AWARD for Best Young Female Technician is a victory for the recognition of women in the technical professions. She thanked the awards’ partners for their support, the Festival de Cannes, and praised the commitment of the awards’ jury members: Nadine Muse and Gérard Krawczyk.
Thierry Teboul – Managinf Director of AFDAS
Thierry Teboul, Managing Director of AFDAS, supported AFDAS’s commitment to the award since its inception. He recalled that “it’s with pedagogy and the art of constant repetition that you don’t lose the thread of what you’re doing”. Together, they presented the CST AWARD for Best Young Female Technician to Evgenia Alexandrova, to the applause of the audience.
Evgenia Alexandrova
Evgenia Alexandrova
Nominated for the first edition of the award in 2021, the Director of Photography recalled that there were only three women competing for the award at the time, compared with five in 2024. That’s progress, but there’s still a long way to go. Evgenia thanked the CST and especially Claudine Nougaret for having had “this wonderful idea of creating this award”. Since she was awarded it, a number of applications have come in. It’s a real turning point in her career. She also thanked the members of the jury and Noémie Merland, director of the film The Balconettes, who had placed her trust in her.
Before presenting the CST AWARD for Best Artist-Technician, Angelo Cosimano thanked the jury, comprising Agnès Godard, Ariane Bœglin Levent, Maud Boissac, Jean Achache, Yves-Marie Omnes and Jean-Marie Dura.
Charles Bussienne, Managing Director of Poly-Son Post-Production, praised the remarkable work of the CST, which has been the guarantor of technical excellence in cinema and film exhibition in France for 80 years. His finest example of this requirement is the impressive technical coherence observed between the infrastructures of Poly-Son and those of the theaters at the Palais des Festivals de Cannes, from both image and sound points of view, ensuring no technical hindrance that could betray the intent of filmmakers and technicians. Charles asked the winner if she too had found the colors and light she wanted.
Charles Bussienne – Managing Director of Poly-Son Post-Production
Charles Bussienne – Directeur général de Poly-Son Post-Production
Charles Bussienne, Managing Director of Poly-Son Post-Production, praised the remarkable work of the CST, which has been the guarantor of technical excellence in cinema and film exhibition in France for 80 years. His finest example of this requirement is the impressive technical coherence observed between the infrastructures of Poly-Son and those of the theaters at the Palais des Festivals de Cannes, from both image and sound points of view, ensuring no technical hindrance that could betray the intent of filmmakers and technicians. Charles asked the winner if she too had found the colors and light she wanted.
Greeted by a round of applause, Daria D’Antonio took to the stage, thanking Paolo Sorrentino, director of the film Parthenope, for giving her the opportunity to express herself freely and push back her limits. She thanked her entire team, with whom she has worked for several years. Deeply moved, she ended by thanking her family and paying tribute to her father for passing on his passion to her. Charles Bussienne presented her with the award to a standing ovation from the equally emotional audience.
Daria D’Antonio
Daria D’Antonio
Greeted by a round of applause, Daria D’Antonio took to the stage, thanking Paolo Sorrentino, director of the film Parthenope, for giving her the opportunity to express herself freely and push back her limits. She thanked her entire team, with whom she has worked for several years. Deeply moved, she ended by thanking her family and paying tribute to her father for passing on his passion to her. Charles Bussienne presented her with the award to a standing ovation from the equally emotional audience.
Angelo Cosimano closed the ceremony by thanking the award winners and the partners of the CST.
The evening continued with a CST Première featuring a preview of Paolo Sorrentino’s Parthenope, followed by a discussion between Daria D’Antonio and the audience, moderated by Natasza Chroscicki from Arri.
An innovation this year: the event took place simultaneously in six CST Excellence label cinemas:
- Les Enfants du Paradis in Chartres
- Les Arches Lumière in Yvetot
- Le Cinépal in Palaiseau
- Le Florival in Guebwiller
- L’Empire Cinéma in Paray-Le-Monial.
Thanks to a live broadcast, spectators in all these rooms were able to ask questions. As part of our commitment to making our events accessible to as many people as possible, live subtitling was available for the hearing impaired.
The CST would like to thank all its partners for their support, and especially Pathé Films, French distributor of the film Parthenope, in theaters March 12, 2025, for this exceptional preview.
CST Première
Parthenope with Daria D’Antonio
