The the twelfth year in a row, the SCELF / Polar en séries Award will be awarded to a French-language crime novel, thriller or detective story for its distinctive qualities and potential for adaptation into an audiovisual series. It was created with the support of SCELF – Société Civile des Éditeurs de Langue Française, as part of the Polar Connection professional programme, to encourage links between literature and the audiovisual industry.

The award is based on a call for entries launched with the Scelf among publishing houses. The call for entries attracts a great deal of interest from publishers, with almost 70 books submitted in 2025. First, a pre-selection committee examines the works and draws up a final list which is sent to the jury. This committee is made up of members of Quais du Polar, Initiative Film and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Cinéma, partners from the outset, as well as scriptwriters from the CinéFabrique in Lyon.

At the awards ceremony, the 6 books in the shortlist will be presented in the form of pitches by the publishers, prior to the announcement of the award-winner by the jury. This is an opportunity to establish links between publishing houses and authors, particularly those looking for projects.

The books running for the next edition will be announced from January 2026.