The winners of Canneseries 2025

On April 29, the eighth edition of Canneseries came to a close, the event dedicated to the world of serial storytelling, featuring screenings, industry spotlights, and meetings with professionals and stars of the sector, such as this year’s masterclass held by Nicola Coughlan, actress of Derry Girls and Bridgerton, who also received an honorary award. A moment of exchange and discovery of productions from around the world, which led to the victory of some titles presented during the event that began on April 24, with eight titles in competition, five documentaries and six short series in competition and another seven series previewed out of competition, including the new show Duster by J.J. Abrams and The Agency starring Michael Fassbender.

The Best Series award went to the Norwegian A Better Man, which also earned the award for best performance for Anders Baasmo and the High School Award. The show follows Tom, who believes that everything wrong with modern society is the fault of feminism. He works in his mother’s clothing store, while spending his nights navigating the dark corners of the internet. One day, hackers expose his identity and reveal his most embarrassing secrets. To escape the shame, Tom can do only one thing: hide and start a new life. He begins dressing in the only clothes available to him to avoid recognition—his mother’s shop items. Becoming someone else, and most of all, becoming a woman, will forever change his worldview. The cast, in addition to Baasmo, includes Ingrid Unnur Giæver, Jonas Strand Gravli, and Irena Sikorskytė, while direction is split between Gjyljeta Berisha and Thomas Seeberg Torjussen, the latter also serving as the series’ screenwriter.

Two awards also went to Nepobaby by the trio Henriette Steenstrup, Siri Seljeseth, and Tina Rygh, also from Norway, which won the Social Interpretation Award and the Best Screenplay. The story centers on Emma, whose life changes forever in just one day. She discovers she is the heiress of one of Norway’s richest and oldest naval dynasties. Her recently deceased father secretly added her to his will and to the family business, much to the displeasure of his four children, who are not thrilled about the arrival of a fifth sister. A blend of comedy and family drama, with a protagonist who must juggle her new life and her eccentric, unpredictable siblings.

An award also went to S Line from South Korea, a series written by Jooyoung Ahn, Hogil Hwang, and Joonhyun Kim, which won Best Music. The show follows Hyun-heup, a young woman who has always seen the red strings that connect people to their sexual partners. When a unique pair of glasses appears that grants the same power to whoever wears them, no one is spared, in a work that attempts to analyze the consequences of lost intimacy in a surreal way. The two Short Competition awards were both given to Oh, Otto! written by Emiel Van Wouwe and Ditte Jacoby, from Belgium. At the center of the story is Otto, who has just been left by his first love Boris and seen his best friend Lente move out of town. To seek some comfort, he turns to online dating and searches for his place in the vibrant queer community of Brussels.

The best docuseries is The Agent - The Life and Lies of My Father by Magnus Skatvold and Øyvinn Haugerud Kastnes, the story of a child who, at age ten, was told by his father that he was a CIA secret agent, for a narrative that tries to uncover, piece by piece, the father’s true identity, in a story full of secrets, surprises, and cliffhangers. The Europe 1 Audience Award goes instead to La Fièvre, created by Eric Benzekri, revolving around two rivals who were once colleagues. In addition to Coughlan, the other honorary awards at Canneseries 2025 were presented to Marie Colomb, who received the Rising Star Award, while the CANAL + Icon Award went to Eric Rochant and the cast of Le Bureau des Légendes.