Prix Italia Milestones

 

1948 The Prix Italia is established in Capri by 14 Public Service broadcasters brought together in a conference organised by Rai, which is entrusted with the permanent Secretariat.

1949 12 broadcasters take part in the first edition of the competition, presenting 21 radiophonic productions. For the first few years, a single Prix Italia is awarded alternately to a fiction product and to a radio art (musical) programme.

1953 For the first time prizes are awarded in different categories, for music and drama programmes. The radiophonic documentary makes its debut too, with a dedicated special prize sponsored by the Italian Press Association. In the following decades, the Press Association, the host cities and Rai itself will sponsor many special awards to complement the prestigious Prix Italia prizes. The "Rai Prizes" in particular, soon establish themselves as an equally coveted international recognition.

1954 The Canadian broadcaster CBC/SRC participates for the first time, as the Prix Italia extends its influence and is soon dubbed the "Oscar of Radio". The following year Canadians are joined by the Americans of NAEB (forerunner of today's PBS), opening a period of strong expansion of the competition.

1956 The Polish Radio is the first broadcaster from beyond the Iron Curtain to enter the competition. In the following years it will be joined by Czechoslovakia, Romania, Hungary, East Germany and the Soviet Union itself, making the Prix Italia a meeting place and a cultural bridge across the Cold War divide.

1957 Japan's NHK participates for the first time – and wins, as the first non-European country to succeed. In the following years the recognitions for NHK will be many, and the Prix Italia will become a showcase for Japanese composers and artists otherwise little known in Europe. The competition extends to television for the first time: 14 programmes from 11 broadcasters participate.

1958 On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Unesco sponsors a special prize to a radio documentary. Counting those submitted for this award, for the first time the number of radio programmes exceeds 50. Meanwhile, the Prix Italia continues to grow: among the new competitors, the Israeli IBS, the Australian ABC, the South African SABC and the Yugoslavian JRT (which wins, first country from East Europe to succeed).

1962 A new special prize is introduced for stereophonic radio, which this very year starts spreading in Europe: after the innovation of the TV competition, the Prix Italia confirms its interest in promoting cutting-edge technology alongside artistic quality. The prize will be withdrawn in 1971, having stereophony become customary by the time. This year also marks the first participation of the prestigious Indian broadcaster All India Radio.

1963 The Prix Italia is held at the newly opened RAI Production Centre of Naples. Japanese NAB and British ITA/ITCA join this year: these are local broadcaster associations for the first time, who can thus participate in compliance with the rule of national broadcasting coverage. Accepting the associations at this time is crucial: over the years the Prix Italia will also be a showcase for the lively world of smaller broadcasters, and a meeting place that will forster the formation of new realities such as the Circom.

1965 For the first time more than 100 programmes are submitted in competition.

1966 Unesco celebrates its 20th anniversary by offering a special prize to a TV documentary. Gian Franco Zaffrani, first Secretary General of the Prix Italia, is awarded the Bronze Medallion, the highest civic honor of New York City "for his contribution to International Broadcasting and to the Culture of the People of the City of New York". The Prix Italia begins to consolidate the historical archive of the programmes submitted in competition.

1968 As colour TV broadcastings begins in Europe, the Prix Italia is quick to admit also colour programmes in the competition. In fact, the TV competition is growing rapidly, and for the first time there are more than 50 productions admitted. Always straddling innovation and tradition, the Prix Italia does not forget to celebrate its first 20 years with a tailor-made special prize, intended for a TV documentary.

1972 As the competition continues to grow, the annual festival also attracts specialists and professionals from all over the world. Starting this year, the Prix Italia inaugurates the tradition of a major annual conference on a specific media topic, along with the publication of one or two volumes of proceedings. The scientific coordination of the first two conferences, in 1972 and 1973, is entrusted to Umberto Eco. An annual review of TV programmes is also established this year, both gala evenings for bigger screenings and a selection of more experimental programmes.

1973 The 25th anniversary is marked by the prestigious High Patronage of the President of the Italian Republic, granted this year for the first time. A sweeping revision of the graphic image leads to a change in the format of the annual catalogue, now smaller, easier to browse and more modern in look, and introduces the first logo on the cover, which will appear for many years. This is also the 50th anniversary of the first public radio broadcastings in Europe, and the Prix Italia awards a special commemorative prize. Finally, the Prix Italia is instrumental in the foundation of Circom, the association of European regional TVs whose members have met regularly at the festival over the years.

1974 After a few years of experimentation, the awards have settled according to the scheme of 3 Prix Italia for Radio, 3 for TV and as many special awards. The overall structure of the competition will last until 1998, with some occasional deviations. A Central Archive of the Prix Italia is also established this year, maintaining the recordings of all radio and TV programmes submitted. Finally, the Prix Italia celebrates the 50th anniversary of Radio with a commemorative special prize. Circom start organising their study meetings at the Prix Italia, a yearly recurrence that will continue until the mid-1990s.

1978 In the year of its 30th anniversary, the Prix Italia receives the prestigious International Emmy Directorate Award, honouring individuals or organisations for their outstanding contribution to international television.

1982 These are the very first years of satellite TV, and the Prix Italia devotes its annual conference to the exploration of this enormous new potential.

1983 Prix Italia 1948/1983 is published on the mark of the 35th anniversary: the "silver booklet" has the first curated list of all the Prix Italia winners and is the authoritative source for future studies on the competition. This year and the next, the credited press awards an interdisciplinary "International Critics Prize".

1986 Starting this year, Rai sponsors a new special prize intended for programmes dealing with the topic of Ecology. A new environmental sensitivity is emerging, and Radio-TV broadcasters are at the forefront of public debate: the Prix Italia becomes an exceptional witness from its privileged observation point. The prize will be withdrawn in 1991, but many similar initiatives will follow over time. Also this year, the Italian Prime Minister's Office offers a prize for a TV programme based on a published book. Counting these special prizes, the TV entries outnumber the Radio ones for the first time.

1988 The 40th anniversary is celebrated with an interdisciplinary special prize for Radio and TV programmes, and with a restyling of the printed catalogue, now for the first time with a full colour cover and a new Prix Italia logotype. The awards ceremony at the San Carlo theatre in Naples is also memorable, a spectacular event with the participation of such big names as Jose Carreras and Charles Aznavour, broadcast in Eurovision and watched by 6 million people in Italy alone.

1989 La Sept, forerunner of today's Arte France, is the first satellite broadcaster to participate in the competition. The Prix Italia takes a new, deep look at Africa, with a conference on "African cinema at the crossroads of coproduction with European TV", inviting Ousmane Sembène, the father of modern African film, as the main speaker.

1991 The Prix Italia experiments for two years a new special prize dedicated to credits and title sequences. In the new evolving landscape after the fall of the Berlin wall, this year's conference is dedicated to "East/West: the new frontier of television". Also this year, a special "Presidents' Prize" is awarded to both CNN and BBC World for their ground-breaking coverage of the first Gulf War, as History is accelerating more and more.

1992 As Yugoslavia undergoes a traumatic process of transformation, Croatian HRT and Slovenian RTVSLO are the first broadcasters to re-enter the competition as separate nationalities. In the following years they will be joined by the other countries that are gradually formed, while the whole map of Eastern Europe is being redrawn.

1993 To mark the 45th anniversary, a new "silver booklet" is published as "Prix Italia 1948/1993", in an updated and expanded version. This year and the next, the Prix Italia also includes the "European Festival of Televised Theatre", awarding the best programmes and actors.

1994 The historic RAI orchestras have traditionally offered gala concerts for the Prix Italia delegates, some of which truly memorable, such as the 1952 monumental rendition of Beethoven's Ninth by Victor De Sabata at La Scala theatre. Therefore, it seems only natural that this year the Prix Italia is chosen as the stage for the debut concert of the newly re-organized Rai National Symphony Orchestra, conducted for the occasion by Georges Prêtre.

1995 The Prix Italia promotes a permanent Forum on programming quality, to take stock together with all its correspondents on the core mission for which it was born decades earlier and which has always inspired it ever since. In the following years, the Forum will publish reports on the quality of the radio and TV documentaries, and surveys on the scheduling and the audiences.

1996 Timely as ever, the Prix Italia dedicates a "Looking East" special event and a screening review to the programmes from Eastern Europe, to take the pulse of the complex transformations undergoing in the post-Soviet countries.

1997 Unda, the International Catholic Association for Radio and Television, starts awarding a prize to a programme for excellence in promoting human values. The collaboration with Unda (since 2002, Signis) has continued uninterrupted ever since.

1998 For the 50th anniversary, a new reform of the competition outline introduces sub-categories for each prize, thus increasing the overall number of Prix Italia and special prizes awarded. The new structure, with modifications, will last until 2015. Also this year, a new special prize for web products is started, in collaboration with 5 universities from all over the world: 38 countries are invited to participate. This year's conference is also dedicated to "The creative power of broadcasters in the new digital environment".

2000 After two years of experimentation, the Web Competition is officially inaugurated as the third section of the Prix Italia. It is the oldest competition in its specific field, and one of the oldest for web products overall, once again to bear witness to the sensitiveness of the Prix Italia for innovation and modernity. The Prix Italia website is launched as well, one of the first Rai area sites. For the first time the products in competition exceed 200.

2001 The Prix Italia, in collaboration with the Granarolo global food company, establishes a "Communication for Life" special prize for TV programmes dealing with economic, social and cultural implications of war, emergency, intolerance and repression. The prize will be awarded until 2008. Also, the Prix Italia joins forces with NATPE for a full day of professional seminars and workshops with some key executives from the U.S. The "NATPE day" will be a regular fixture at the Prix Italia for several years.

2002 Following the "Interactive visions" discussion panel of the previous year, for the first time one category of the Web Competition is devoted to "cross-media", in a time when the concept itself is still blurred, and the products are few and experimental. Yet the attention of the Prix Italia for inter-mediality will never fade (in 2014 it will be "trans-media", in 2018 "cross-platform") following the evolution of the web, and broadcasters' slow transformation into media companies. Also this year, more than 100 TV programmes are submitted for the first time.

2004 The President of the Italian Republic, who has already granted his High Patronage to the Prix Italia since 1973, establishes a new special prize, which has been awarded ever since.

2005 50 university students award a special prize in the TV drama category, as for the first time a students' jury is established. In the following years, the Prix Italia will promote many projects and various forms of collaboration with the universities in the area where the annual festival takes place.

2008 On the occasion of the 60th anniversary, the book "Incontri a Capri", originally donated to the participants of the 1948 conference, is reprinted. The yearly catalogue is available in digital format for the first time. In these years the first TV broadcasts in HD begin to circulate, and the Prix Italia pays attention with a special prize devoted to "Creativity in High Definition".

2010 To mark the 150th anniversary of the Italian state, the Prix Italia awards a special prize to a programme on the topic of "Italy through the eyes of the world".

2011 The Prix Italia begins experimenting with an online pre-evaluation tool, initially for web products only; radio and TV programmes are digitized into a streamlined media player for on-site viewing in jurors' rooms, replacing old DVD and tape players. Over the years, this digital infrastructure will become the online pre-evaluation platform of today.

2012 In view of the great Expo2015 exhibition in Milan, the Prix Italia launches a wide range of initiatives and special prizes on the theme of "Feeding the Planet, energy for life" which, in the following three years, will involve competing broadcasters, but also students and independent video-makers. In a complex recovery effort, the Prix Italia's vast audiovisual archive is digitized and made available online for broadcasters and researchers who request it.

2013 Lord Patten of Barnes, Chairman of the BBC Trust, is the keynote speaker of the first "BBC Lecture", an annual event sponsored by the BBC which has been repeated ever since.

2015 For the first time more than 50 web products are submitted in competition, while the initiatives for the Expo2015 reach their peak and the Prix Italia awards a record 22 prizes.

2016 A re-design of the competition defines the current layout, with 3 Prix Italia awards in each section. A new digital platform allows jurors to pre-view and pre-evaluate all submitted programmes online.

2017 First edition of the Prix Italia Ylab, the portfolio of educational activities aimed at students of the host city.

2019 The Prix Italia starts a renewed effort to promote and broaden the scope of the competition: thanks also to the partnership with such major international associations as ABU, TAL, URTI, within a few years many extra-European broadcasters will enter the competition for the first time. Already in 2019, the number of participants exceeds 60 for the first time.

2020 As Covid-19 epidemic spreads throughout the world, the Prix Italia is one of the few major international events to take place: thanks to the digitization effort of the past years, jurors can now evaluate the products and meet exclusively online.

2022 For the first time more than 300 products overall are submitted in the competition. After the Ecology awards in the 1980s, the Granarolo prizes and the initiatives for Expo2015, the Prix Italia is once again renewing its commitment in sustainability, promoting a special award together with IFAD and Copeam, aimed to raise awareness and promote the theme of food security through the media.