Two CST awards – Technical excellence and commitment

The CST (Film Image and Sound Commission) – is a long-standing partner of the Cannes Film Festival. As a professional organisation of film technicians, it upholds the quality of the technical gesture to serve the director’s vision. In doing so, it defends values that have always been close to those of the Festival, advocating bold creativity that is remarkable both for its  form and its content.

As early as the 4th edition of the Festival in 1951, the CST awarded its “Grand Prix Technique” to the film The Tales of Hoffmann by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. Since then, the prize has collected an eclectic filmography ranging from Alain Resnais to Orson Welles, from Ingmar Bergman to Shohei Imamura.

In 2003, the “Grand Prix Technique de la CST” became the “Vulcan Prize”, to recognise the exceptional contribution made by an artistic collaborator to a cinematographic work, making it possible to sublimate the director’s wishes. Tom Stern, director of photography on Clint Eastwood’s Mystic River and Tamás Zányi, sound engineer on László Nemes’ Son of Saul, are among the winners.

Renamed the “CST Award for Best Artist-Technician” in 2019, it reflected the exceptional quality of the Festival’s selection by singling out Flora Volpelière, chief editor, and Julien Poupard (AFC), director of photography, for their outstanding contribution to Ladj LY’s film Les Misérables. A special mention was also awarded to Claire Mathon (AFC), director of photography on Mati Diop’s Atlantique and Céline Sciamma’s Portrait of a Lady on Fire. Finally, the jury made a point of acknowledging the exceptional artistic direction of Lee Ha-jun on Gisaengchung (Parasite).

Since 2021, the CST has shown its commitment by awarding the “CST Award for best young, female film technician”.

The prize is awarded to a young woman working as head of department on a French film included in the Official Selection of the Cannes Film Festival. The Prize for best young, female film technician will be awarded every year for as long as it is necessary to strive for professional equality between women and men in the film industry. This proactive approach underlines the CST’s determination to showcase the high-quality cinematographic work produced every year by young female technicians working in France.