MIPCOM Diversify TV Nominees Unveiled

MIPCOM has revealed the nominations for the 2023 Diversify TV Awards, along with further details of this year’s ceremony.

Influential artist, activist and policy maker Deborah Williams is to be honored with the Behind the Scenes Impact Award. This year, 165 submissions for all the awards were received from 27 countries. A total of nine winners will be announced live in Cannes.

The awards will be presented on October 17 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. and will again be hosted by international anchor and diversity advocate Femi Oke.

Nominations for the representation of disability, non-scripted category include Inside our Autistic Minds, The Roads of Ae-rin and Woo-ryeong and Disability & Abortion: The Hardest Choice. The representation of disability, scripted category nominees are About Antoine, Aspergirl and Simple.

Nominees for the representation of diversity in kids programming for older children include Phoenix Rise, Supa Team 4 and Ghostwriter. The preschool category’s nominees are Dog Squad, Reu and Harper’s Wonder World and Kiya & the Kimoja Heroes.

The representation of LGBTQIA+, non-scripted nominees are Queerstralia, Lotus Sports Club and Naked Education. Scripted nominees are Nights in Tefía, About Sasha and She Loves to Cook, and She Loves to Eat.

Nominees for the representation of race and ethnicity, non-scripted category are The Swap, Folau and Fight the Power: How Hip Hop Changed the World. Three scripted nominees follow, including Riches, Little Bird and Sam—A Saxon.

To be eligible, programs submitted were required to provide a fair and balanced representation of race and ethnicity, LGBTQIA+ and disabled communities; show a positive impact; stand out in originality and excellence in terms of storytelling, casting and production values; challenge stereotypes; and must have aired in the past year.

This year’s Diversify TV Awards are organized by MIPCOM CANNES in collaboration with founding partner Diversify TV and in association with Founding Presenting Partner A+E Networks and Data Presenting Partner Gracenote. 2023 Awards Partners also include All3Media International, Iron Mountain, Telefilm Canada and The Canada Media Fund, OUTtv, The United Nations Media Compact, D.I.M.E.S. and Lightboat Media, among other supporting partner companies and organizations.

“Progress in diversity and inclusion will come from showing, not telling,” said Lucy Smith, Director of MIPCOM CANNES and MIPJunior. “These awards showcase an amazing breadth of programs and people that have furthered authentic representation across the world over the last year—and in Deborah Williams’ case, the last thirty years—to an influential industry audience from over 100 countries. To be shortlisted is a significant accolade, but as important is how this may inspire those attending to emulate this in their own way.”

Award winner Williams’ work as a disabled artist has spanned work in front of and behind the scenes, in television, film and theater, including advising the UN and UNICEF on the rights of disabled people within cultural activities and drawing up the British Film Institute (BFI)’s diversity standards, which have since adopted widely by organizations including BAFTA and AMPAS. As CEO of the U.K.’s CDN, Williams has led the non-profit broadcaster-funded organization to support the country’s television industry in promoting, celebrating and sharing best practices around diversity since 2016.

Williams commented: “I am honored to be presented with this award by Diversify TV and MIPCOM CANNES. As someone who has fought long and hard to highlight how attracting the best talent from the widest range of backgrounds can only make our industry more creative and more successful, it means a great deal to see this work recognized with an incredible award. Increasing diversity on- and off-screen is a global challenge, so I take great pleasure in this first international recognition of work that is having an international impact.”