Canon celebrates the Power of Storytelling for Students and Professionals at Visa Pour l’Image 2020

For the 31st year, Canon Europe has announced it will partner with Visa pour l’Image, one of the world’s leading photojournalism festivals. Taking place in Perpignan, France, between 29th August – 13th September 2020, this long-standing partnership highlights Canon’s commitment to photojournalism, from students learning the craft to professionals breaking boundaries.

This prestigious festival brings together the world’s most important stories and those responsible for telling them. Once again, Canon celebrates its partnership at Visa pour l’Image 2020 with three exciting initiatives; Canon Female Photojournalist Grant, Canon Student Development Programme and the inaugural Canon Video Grant.

Canon Video Grant:
This year marks the inaugural Canon Video Grant, run in conjunction with Visa pour l’Image and in association with Images Evidence – for which a videographer, or photographer, will be awarded a grant of €8,000 alongside the loan of pioneering Canon video kit to produce a short-film documentary. Projects should cover cultural, social or economic subjects and applicants will be judged on the presentation of their project alongside their previous work.

Journalistic thoughts and relevance of the story, or chosen subject, will be at the forefront of the judge’s minds when reviewing entries. A teaser of the winning project will be presented during one of the evening screening shows at the September 2020 festival, with the complete and final video report being screened at Visa pour l’Image one year later. Applications close on 15th April 2020.

Canon Female Photojournalism Grant:
Championing diverse storytelling for the twentieth year, Canon and Images Evidence have opened the prestigious Canon Female Photojournalist Grant for entries. This highly regarded grant will recognise an outstanding female photographer and her contribution to photojournalism, with an award of €8,000. The winner of the grant will use the money to work on their year-long project, exhibiting the final display at the festival’s 2021 edition.

During this year’s festival, the 2019 winner - Armenian photographer Anush Babajanyan (VII Photo Agency) will showcase her body of work, focusing on large families in South Caucasus. The grant enabled her to shoot new subjects in more locations, developing the project through different themes. Applications close on 19th May 2020.

Canon Student Development Programme:
Now in its fourth year, the Canon Student Development Programme offers students from across Europe, Middle East and Africa an opportunity to take part in a three-day educational workshop. Selected students will have the chance to work with industry leaders, enjoy guided exhibition tours, attend film screenings and have their portfolios reviewed by Canon Ambassadors and photo editors during the festival.

Registered students are invited to submit a photography portfolio with a maximum of two stories. Each submission should include up to 20 fully captioned images and a synopsis of the project. Given the high demand and the success of the initiative, entries are now open to 48 countries including; Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, Macedonia, Bulgaria and Malta. Applications close on 15th April 2020.