Dear all,

I hope that you are all safe and well during this difficult time. The whole team here at YDA sends our warmest wishes to you and your families around the world.

Last week we announced that YDA 2020 will go ahead this summer as an online event, and given the cancellations of many other events at this time, including Cannes Lions, I wanted to explain our decision.

I’m sure you are all aware of the effect of this pandemic on our industry, with productions being halted and festivals being cancelled. We understand that for many awards shows the decision to cancel has been unavoidable given the current climate, but at YDA we are determined to make the Young Director Award 2020 happen.

While other awards shows celebrate and promote well-established filmmakers and advertising campaigns for global brands, the YDA places at its heart the future of our industry: young directors and creative filmmaking. As a non-profit organisation, our aim is not self-promotion, but supporting directors whose careers are just getting going. It is in their interest, and ours as producers, to nurture their talent to ensure we have an industry to go back to once this is all over.

Of course, we appreciate that during this time it may become more financially difficult for young directors and their producers to enter. In light of this, we are extending the Early Bird rate for the rest of the entry period, meaning that the fee will not go up on the 15th April as planned. More information on our entry fees can be found here.

We look forward to celebrating all of your work at our online event this summer.

Best wishes,

Francois Chilot, President of the YDA