At the 78th Cannes Film Festival on May 23, the Golden Eye Award for best documentary went to Imago by Chechen filmmaker Déni Oumar Pitsaev, marking a milestone for deeply personal nonfiction work on the Croisette. Created in 2015 by the Civil Society of Multimedia Authors (SCAM) in partnership with the Institut national de l’audiovisuel, L’Œil d’or carries a €5,000 prize and honours the top documentary across all festival strands.
This year’s jury, led by French actress and producer Julie Gayet, included director Carmen Castillo, producer Juliette Favreul Renaud, Cinémathèque Suisse director Frédéric Maire and actor Marc Zinga.
Imago, a French-Belgian co-production previously awarded the French Touch Prize in Critics’ Week, follows Pitsaev’s journey back to Georgia to reunite with his fragmented Chechen family and to build a home that symbolizes freedom. “By filming his own journey to Georgia, where he reunites with his broken Chechen family and dreams of building a house that would symbolise freedom, Déni Oumar Pitsaev has created a moving documentary about exile, war trauma and utopia,” organisers said.
Produced by Triptyque Films and Need Productions, with international sales managed by Rediance, Imago was chosen from a field that included entries in the Official Selection, Directors’ Fortnight, Critics’ Week and Cannes Classics. As L’Œil d’or celebrates its tenth anniversary, it continues to spotlight works that blend intimate storytelling with wider social resonance.
Last year’s Golden Eye saw a tie between Ernest Cole, Lost and Found and The Brink of Dreams, reflecting the award’s commitment to diverse documentary voices. Observers have noted a growing festival emphasis on films that pair personal memory with collective histories, a trend that Cannes has increasingly embraced.
