PARIS - In a split decision, the 61st Louis Delluc prize has been awarded to Lucas Belvaux's trilogy of films Un Couple Epatant, Apres La Vie and Cavale and to Noemie Lvovsky's Sentiments.

While that prize goes to the best French film of the year, the prize for best first film went to Valerie Bruni-Tedeschi's Il Est Plus Facile Pour Un Chameau.

The awards were handed out in Paris on Tuesday (Dec 9) and presided over by Cannes president Gilles Jacob. The prestigious award is one of France's top honours for film and last year went to Nicolas Philibert's documentary Etre Et Avoir.