INTERNATIONAL JURY PRESIDENT

Branko Schmidt is a multi-award winning director and TV editor. Feature films „The Watermelon Road“ (2005, Octavian for Best Feature Film of the Year), „Metastases“ (2009, The Great Golden Arena in Pula), „The Vegetarian Cannibal“ (2012, Golden Arena for Directing in Pula, Octavian for Best Feature Film) and the documentary „Stump Full lead“ (2007) confirms the status of one of the most prominent contemporary Croatian film directors.

Beate Thalberg studied stage directing and dramaturgy at the Academy of Theater Arts / Conservatory of Music and Art in Leipzig. She has lived and worked in Vienna since 1992. She makes "author's films" in which she always researches and writes the story herself. Her documentaries often deal with marginal, socio-politically explosive areas that come to light by individual destinies and decisions. Beate has participated in several festivals across Europe and the United States such as the Sundance Film Festival, Utah, the New York Jewish Film Festival, the Palm Beach International Film Festival, the Jewish Film Festivals in Vienna or Warsaw. She has won awards such as the "Golden Rose of Montreux", the Austrian "Romy" or was nominated for the German "Grimme Preis".

She has been engaged in journalism since 1987 and in the organization and promotion of cultural events since 1994. Since 2015 she has been engaged in film production. Since 2016 she is the founder and artistic director of the Dok'n'Ritam music documentary film festival.