Jan Naszewski owns the Warsaw-based boutique world sales company New Europe Film Sales, which sold the Icelandic film RAMS (Un Certain Regard Prize 2015 in Cannes, sold to over 50 countries), alongside many acclaimed debuts, animations and short films (10 Oscar-shortlisted titles, including 2017 winner SING and shorts by Ruben Östlund). Jan regularly acts as an expert for festivals, the European Film Academy, Creative Europe and EAVE.

Filmmaker Carla Simón’s career is closely connected to the Berlinale. In 2017, her autobiographical feature-length film debut “Estiu 1993” celebrated its world premiere in the section Generation, and won both the Best First Feature Award as well as the Grand Prix of the Generation Kplus International Jury. The film went on to win three Goyas and over 30 more awards at international festivals, was nominated for an European Film Award in the category Best First Feature, and selected as Spain’s submission for the Academy Awards. This past year, the director, who grew up in a Catalan village, won the Berlinale Golden Bear for her second film “Alcarràs” and was nominated for eleven Goyas and three European Film Awards. In 2019, Carla Simón won the Eurimage Co-Production Development Award for the project at the Berlinale Co-Production Market. Her most recent short film “Letter to My Mother for my Son” screened at the 2022 Venice Film Festival.

Valérie Delpierre created Inicia Films in 2006, specialising in international co-productions and the development of new talents. She recently produced SUMMER 1993 by Carla Simón (GWFF Best First Feature Award at the Berlinale 2017) and LOS DESHEREDADOS by Laura Ferrés (Leica Cine Discovery Prize for Short Film at La Semaine de la Critique, Cannes 2017). She is currently developing LAS NIÑAS by Pilar Palomero and ALL FOR ONE by David Ilundain.

Stefan Butzmühlen is a film and video artist and the founder of the German distribution company Grandfilm. As a director and author, he has shot several videos, among them the award-winning short NACH KLARA. His first feature SLEEPLESS KNIGHTS premiered at the Berlinale in 2013 and was shown at numerous international festivals. His second feature RADIANT SEA was released in Germany in 2016. He also works as a director of theatre and radio plays.

After working for the Bologna Film Archive, Rebecca De Pas joined FID Marseille’s selection committee in 2009 and co-heads the co-production platform FID Lab. She is on the Berlinale Talents selection committee and advises the Feature Expanded programme. She has been artistic director of the Journées Cinématographiques Dionysiennes and has collaborated with a number of festivals including the Venice Film Festival’s Orizzonti strand. She recently became the manager of the international training programme Ex-Oriente Film.