The French Coalition for Cultural Diversity has just awarded Viviane Reding<\/b>, former Member of the European Parliament and European Commissioner, and Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne<\/b>, directors, screenwriters and producers, the 2023 Diversity Awards <\/b>in recognition of their commitment to cultural diversity. The Coalition is also recognising the organisation Tournesol Artistes \u00e0 l’h\u00f4pital <\/b>for its work promoting culture in all its forms in healthcare establishments in the \u00cele-de-France region through its project \u2018Artistes \u00e0 l’h\u00f4pital, favoriser l’acc\u00e8s \u00e0 la culture dans les \u00e9tablissements de soins\u2019 (Artists in hospital, promoting access to culture in healthcare establishments). The award ceremony will take place on Wednesday 6 December at 7.30 pm in the SACD salons.<\/p>\n
Created in 1997, the French Coalition for Cultural Diversity brings together nearly fifty professional organisations from all cultural and creative sectors such as cinema, audiovisual, performing arts, publishing, music, graphic and plastic arts. Together, they defend freedom of expression and creation, and the right of each State to define policies to support creation.<\/p>\n
Awarded since 2011, the Cultural Diversity Prizes are intended to support initiatives, reward political, professional and artistic careers and encourage good practices that can help promote and defend cultural diversity.<\/p>\n
Viviane Reding<\/b>, who started out as a journalist, has held major political responsibilities at the heart of Europe, both in the European Parliament as an MEP and as a European Commissioner <\/b>with successive portfolios for telecommunications, education, culture and justice. She is a politician who has left her mark on the European Union. Convinced that culture is Europe’s DNA, she has played a major role in the fight for a Europe that protects creativity and cultural diversity. In particular, she set up the MEDIA Plus programme to help with the development, distribution and promotion of cinematographic works. It has also always endeavoured to defend a framework for the digital world that supports European sovereignty, preserves copyright and guarantees visibility and funding for European creativity.<\/p>\n
Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne<\/b> are committed screenwriters<\/b>, directors <\/b>and producers who uphold European cinema and the defence of cultural diversity. The Dardenne brothers have won several awards, including two Palmes d’Or at the Cannes Film <\/b>Festival for Rosetta (1999) and The Child (2005), both realistic and socially committed works. They are staunch defenders of European cinema and committed promoters of cultural diversity. They have always mobilised at the heart of the European institutions<\/b> to voice the concerns of the audiovisual sector and have defended the importance of supporting creation in all its diversity in Europe. They are an example of what cinema can bring to the world: a message of hope and solidarity.<\/p>\n
The Tournesol association Artists in hospital<\/strong><\/p>\n The Tournesol association offers artistic performances at patients’ bedsides and in their living spaces through its project \u201cArtistes \u00e0 l’h\u00f4pital, favoriser l’acc\u00e8s \u00e0 la culture dans les \u00e9tablissements de soins<\/b>\u201d (Artists in hospital, promoting access to culture in healthcare facilities). It performs for patients of all ages in a wide variety of places: retirement homes, general, psychiatric and paediatric hospitals, etc. The association, created in 1990, also organises artistic workshops in healthcare establishments. These workshops cover different disciplines, such as voice, percussion, theatre and writing. Tournesol plays an essential role in making culture and its various expressions accessible in hospitals<\/b>. During a performance, the artists forge links with the patients and help them to escape. They stimulate their imagination and provide them with a resource to sweeten their daily lives.<\/p>\n