CINE builds and supports a community of professional, emerging and student film, television and digital content creators through the CINE Golden Eagle Awards, the CINE Connects alumni network, the Marvin Hamlisch Film Scoring Contest, and related skill-building programming.
CINE (Council on International Nontheatrical Events) was a non-profit film organization based in Washington, D.C.[2] Founded in 1957 with the mission of selecting American films for international film festivals,[3][4] CINE's focus evolved to supporting emerging and established producers of film, TV and digital media from all around the world through film competitions, educational panels, screenings and networking opportunities.[5] After 61 years, CINE ceased operations in 2018.[6]
CINE's original name, the Committee on International Non-Theatrical Events, was chosen to create the acronym CINE,[7] after which it was then changed to Council on International Non-Theatrical Events. Over time the organization came to refer to itself primarily as CINE.
CINE's original purpose was to provide European film festival directors with representative American informational films to exhibit.[8] For decades, the CINE Golden Eagle Competition was a way for non-theatrical American films to gain access to festivals and even the Academy Awards before they stopped accepting entries from the majority of festivals and competitions.
CINE was once partially funded by the now defunct United States Information Agency. This funding ceased in the late 1990s, not long before the abolishment of the agency.[9]
In the fall of 2014 CINE made some major changes to their organization, which included creating one entry cycle per year for each award (Professional, Independent and Student), switching to a more traditional nominee structure in which only one production per category is named the winner, and transitioning the entire process online. However, unlike many major awards organizations, CINE's categories were based on content, not distribution platform, to reflect the constantly changing industry.
CINE presents two types of awards: competitive and honorary. Competitive awards include the Golden Eagle Award (instituted in 1962),[10] Special Jury Award, Masters Series, and Award of Excellence. Honorary awards included the Leadership Award, Trailblazer Award, Lifetime Achievement Award, and Legends Award. Separate from the Golden Eagle Awards, CINE also held a Film Scoring Competition, which was launched in 2013. In 2014, the competition was renamed the Marvin Hamlisch Film Contest for Emerging Composers in honor of the legendary composer. In 2019, after CINE had shut down, the Marvin Hamlisch estate launched the Marvin Hamlisch International Music Awards non-profit to continue holding composition competitions under the composer's name, expanding the scope of the contests to include theater, classical and song categories in multiple genres.
CINE utilizes a jury system to select winners. CINE also presents individuals with special honors. Many important filmmakers have received the Golden Eagle Award early in their career, such as Steven Spielberg for his first film Amblin', Mel Brooks for his first short film The Critic, and Ken Burns for his student film Brooklyn Bridge.[11]
