Asian Films Competition Section
Ms. Ingrid Lill Høgtun
President – Norway
Ingrid Lill Høgtun is a Norwegian film producer and the Managing Director of Barentsfilm AS. She also works as Producer for International Co-Productions at DUOfilm AS. She studied film, philosophy, and business in Norway, the USA, and Italy — including at UC Berkeley, University of Oslo, and the Norwegian School of Business. After spending 16 years in Rome working in the international film industry, she is now based in Norway and actively co-producing films worldwide. Her major works include Essential Killing, Amal, Cactus Flower, 1982, You Will Die at Twenty, Costa Brava Lebanon, Day After…., Ma-Cry of Silence, This City is A Battlefield, Backstage, and Once Upon a Time in Calcutta. Her films have premiered at leading festivals like Venice, IDFA, IFFR, TIFF, and Sundance. A graduate of the EAVE program, Ingrid specializes in connecting Nordic producers with bold, artistic stories from around the globe.
Ms. Syeda Tuhin Ara Karim
Member- Bangladesh
Syeda Tuhin Ara Karim popularly known as Aupee Karim is a highly acclaimed actor, presenter, architect, and teacher, celebrated for her versatility across various media. Appeared in a vast number of TV dramas, telefilms, series, and commercials, establishing her as a leading figure in Bangladeshi entertainment. Recipient of the prestigious National Film Award for her compelling performance in the movie Bachelor. Honored with Best Actor Awards in both the popular and critics’ categories. Her performance in the Indo-Bangladesh joint film, Mayar Jonjal, also garnered high international praise. Established her prominence as a television host, presenting highly popular interview shows such as Amar Ami and Aupee’s Glowing Chair, where she interviewed successful personalities from the creative arena.
Ms. Lydia Genchi
Member – Italy
Lydia Genchi is an Italian film Producer and DISTRIBUTOR and acquisition manager of NO.MAD entertainment. She studied Architecture and Scenography and Costume at Sapienza University in Rome Italy, International Business School in France. After spending 10 years in France Côte d’Azur working for international film Industry she is now bases in Rome and actively distributing many international films and coproducing several documentaries (Pensando ad Anna, I ribelli…). Her film (L’attachement, Grand Ciel, Shahed, Le Mohican to name a few recent ones) have premeried at the most important international festivals (Cannes film festival, Venice film festival, Berlin film festival) and many Italian film festivals.
Mr. Masahiro Ota
Member – Japan
Masahiro Ota, born in Tokyo in 1980, began as a theater actor before moving to independent filmmaking in 2006. After being detained for over 30 days in 2011 for violating the Unauthorized Computer Access Law, he drew on this experience to direct Sonoda (2016), which was nominated for the Skip City International D-Cinema Festival and won the Grand Prix at the Fukui Film Festival. S is his low-budget yet commercially-oriented directorial debut.
Mr. Reyis ÇELİK
Member – Turky
Reis Çelik was born in Ardahan, in east Anatolia, in 1961. He moved to Istanbul after junior high school and studied music and theatre at the State Conservatoire. In 1982 he began a career in journalism, working as an economics/political correspondent for various national newspapers. In the following years, both his interviews and photographs appeared in several international newspapers and magazines. Around the same time, he began making documentary films, commercial and political campaign films, as well as maintaining an active interest in still photography. To date Çelik’s photographic work has been featured in exhibitions in over 12 countries. In 1996 he directed his debut feature, “Let There Be Light”, which won several awards on the international festival circuit. He followed this with another feature ‘Goodbye Tomorrow’ in 1998. He made his third film ‘Tales of Intransigence’, all improvised feature, in 2004. Fallowing “Refugee” in 2008, “Night Of Silence” 2012 is Reis Celik’s 5th feature film. ‘Food For A Funeral’ (2019).
Interfaith Jury for the Spiritual Films Section
Ms. Teresa Vena
President – Switzerland
Teresa Vena studied history, art history and Spanish philology in Geneva. She has worked in Switzerland and Berlin in various contemporary art galleries and art historical institutions. She works as a project manager in the cultural sector and as a curator for art and film. In Berlin, she founded several film festivals such as Film:Schweiz and Prachtige Films! She also works as a cultural journalist and film critic. Her expertise is on cinema from Europe and Asia, where she travels regularly to, especially to the Busan Film Festival in South Korea. She is a member of the Fipresci association. Since the end of 2022, she has been co-editor-in-chief of the Swiss film magazine Cinébulletin.
Mr. Tanveer Hossain
Member – Bangladesh
Tanveer Hossain is a Bangladeshi film producer and writer, serving as Executive Director of Green Screen since 2013 and co-founder of Katalog, a boutique film company bridging South and Southeast Asia. His film ALI (dir. Adnan Al Rajeev) won a Special Mention at Cannes 2025 — the first-ever recognition for Bangladesh at the festival. He co-produced Radikals (Cannes 2024) and The Wrestler (Busan 2023 New Currents Award winner). Two of his feature projects are selected for IFFR 2026. His project in development, Red Lights Blue Angels, won 1st Prize at both the WME Screenplay Lab Dhaka and HANIFF Vietnam. An alumnus of AFiS, BAFA, APN, APostLab, Produire Au Sud, and EAVE, and an IEFTA scholar, Tanveer has participated in major project markets including APM, NAFF, NFDC Film Bazaar, and CPM. He has also actively taken part in leading film festivals such as Festival de Cannes, Toronto, Busan, Rotterdam, Singapore, and IFFI Goa.
Ms. Daria Schlifstein
Member – Germany
Daria Schlifstein, born in the Soviet Union, holds a Master’s degree in Religious Studies from Humboldt University in Berlin. She has been active in filmmaking since 2015, co-producing her first feature film, “Summer of Frozen Fountains.” Daria has participated in several prestigious producers’ workshops at the Cannes Film Festival and Berlinale, further refining her expertise in international co-productions. Her collaborative projects span the USA, Latin America, and Europe, featuring notable titles such as “Nevada,” “Love Contract,” “Fellini,” and “Minsk.” These films have been showcased at numerous film festivals, including several classifieds as A-list events. Recently, Daria founded a social-impact company in France, where she is exploring themes related to spirituality, nature, and consciousness through a multi-disciplinary lens.
Mr. Ehsan Kaveh
Member – Iran
Ehsan Kaveh is an Iranian producer, film maker, Sobh International Festival Director, University Lecturer, Editor, Broadcast Manager. Jury member of some Local film festivals. He graduated MA in Media Management. Currently he is the deputy to the IRIB WORLD SERVICE. CEO of IFILM group channels. He is working in IRIB for 26 years ago and produced lots of documentaries, animations and some short films and drama series. His new animation movie is very interesting and hugely successful in last two months.
Women Filmmaker Section
Ms. Aleksandra Markovic
President – Croatia
Aleksandra Markovic is a UK-based documentary filmmaker, editor, and educator whose work explores stories of resilience, identity, and belonging. Originally from Croatia, she spent over a decade producing and directing non-scripted television before relocating to London in 2013 to pursue her creative vision and complete a Master’s degree in Documentary Filmmaking (with distinction) at Queen Mary University of London. Her films and teaching are guided by a deep belief in the power of storytelling to reveal hidden perspectives and amplify women’s voices. Alongside her own creative practice, Aleksandra serves as a juror for the International Documentary Association (IDA) and lectures in documentary filmmaking and post-production at SAE Institute London, where she inspires emerging filmmakers to find authenticity and courage in their work.
Ms. Ronak Taher
Member – Australia
Ronak Taher is an Iranian–Australian filmmaker and visual artist based in Melbourne. Her films have earned the Master of Film & TV Best Production Script Award—supported by the Australian Directors Guild and Moving Clickers—and have been nominated for multiple distinctions, including Best Master of Film & Television Production, Best Overall Production, and the Sarah Watt Award. Her work has screened at film festivals around the world, and her most recent film received First Prize for Best Film at the 43rd Fajr International Film Festival. Beyond her filmmaking practice, Ronak is an accomplished illustrator whose books have been published internationally. One of her titles was shortlisted for the 2019 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards in Australia.
Ms. Afsana Mimi
Member- Bangladesh
Afsana Mimi, a Dhaka University graduate, built a distinguished 40-year acting career and became one of Bangladesh’s most celebrated television, film and theatre actors. She also excelled in modelling, voice acting, dubbing, radio dramas, and program presentation. A dedicated social activist, she works for children and women’s welfare and founded the cultural center “Ichchhetola,” now over 10 years old. After her acclaimed acting career, Mimi transitioned into directing-producing-writing, pioneering limited-duration TV series that reshaped Bangladeshi television. Over the past 24 years, she has directed and produced more than 1500 episodes of fiction and non-fiction productions.
Ms. Geraldine Maria Villamil
Member – Philippines
Geraldine Villamil is a Filipina character actress known for her work across film, television, and theatre. She graduated with a B.A. in Theater Arts from the University of the Philippines. She played Myra in Six Degrees of Separation from Lilia Cuntapay (2011), for which she won Best Supporting Actress at the Cinema One Originals Digital Film Festival. Her first film role was in Grandmother (2009), a Philippine‑French independent film that competed at the Venice Film Festival. With more than 50 acting credits in film, television, and theatre, she has built a reputation for consistent, skilled performances.
FIPRESCI Jury: Bangladesh Panorama Film Section
Mr. Rafiquzzaman
President – Bangladesh
Rafiquzzaman is a Journalist, Film maker, screenwriter, critic and socio-cultural activist. He completed film appreciation course in 1973 in Dhaka Film Institute under the guidance of famous filmmaker, critic, author, teacher and freedom fighter Almagir Kabir. He started his career as journalist in Bengali daily ‘Purbodesh’ in 1968. After Liberation war he joined in weekly ‘Charmpatra’, then daily ‘Janapad’. From 1975, he worked in Cine Weekly, ‘Purbani’ then daily ‘Ittefaq’. He is a film society activist and active member of cultural and social welfare organizations.
Ms. Sadia Khalid
Member – Bangladesh
Sadia Khalid Reeti is a film critic and screenwriter. She studied Screenwriting at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Sadia served as a jury member at different international film festivals in Italy, India, England, Iran, Nepal, France, Russia, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. She served as a FIPRESCI jury at Cannes Film Festival (2019, 2024), International Film Festival of Kerala (2019), Bengaluru International Film Festival (2023) and Dhaka International Film Festival (2018, 2021, 2025). She is the first international voter for the Golden Globe Awards from Bangladesh. A Berlinale Talents alumna, she attended mentorship programs with Film Independent and Locarno Open Doors and is the recipient of Charles Wallace Fellowship from the British Council. She is co-convener of West Meets East Screenplay Lab and director of Women in Cinema Conference of DIFF. She also teaches film studies at different universities and institutions and is a member of the National Film Advisory Committee of Bangladesh.
Mr. A M Mamunur Rashid
Member – Bangladesh
Mr. A M Mamunur Rashid is working in versatile creative field, he is a Painter, Illustrator, Graphic Designer, Screenwriter, Cultural activist, Film society movement activist and freelancer film critic. He is a Bachelor of Fine arts in Painting & Drawing from Institute of Fine Arts, Dhaka University, ‘FAMU’ in Documenter Film from Film & Television Faculty of the Academy of Arts, Prague, Czechoslovakia. He has attended in many International Film Festivals. Rashid also a member of FIPRESCI Bangladesh. He previously served as a jury member in the same section at the 19th Dhaka International Film Festival (DIFF).
Special jury for the Wide-Angle Section
Ms. Polina Piddubna
Ukraine
Polina Piddubna is filmmaker, artist and activist with Ukrainian and Central Asian Tatar and Bashqort roots. Polina was born in Kharkiv, started her career in Kyiv, and has been living in Berlin since 2019. She has a bachelor’s degree in animation and is currently doing her master’s as an animation director at the Film University Babelsberg Konrad Wolf in Potsdam. Polina also organizes social and educational projects, works at film festivals and does artistic research on decolonial topics, gender issues and women rights.
Mr. Bidhan Rebeiro
Bangladesh
Bidhan Rebeiro is a Bangladeshi film critic, writer, journalist, and teacher. He is the editor of monthly magazine Cut To Cinema and a yearly journal Cinema Dorshon. Since 2005, he has been working as a journalist. He has worked for RTV, Boishakhi Television, ATN News, NTV Online, and other media contractually and temporarily. He graduated in computer science and has completed his Masters from the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism of Dhaka University with a scholarship from the Norwegian government. He also completed his second Master’s from Stamford University with a film and media studies degree. Later, he completed Film Appreciation Course from FTII, Pune, India. At Jahangirnagar University, he teaches as an adjunct faculty member in the Journalism department. His notable books are Film Lesson Guide, Film Judgment, Shahbag: Politics, Religious Consciousness, and Miscellaneous Lack: Leonardo Lalon Lacan, Bollywood Bahas, etc. Besides making documentaries, he has also been a judge at various international film competitions and festivals. As a FIPRESCI jury, he served at Cannes, Berlinale and Dhaka international film festival. He teaches film theory at Jagannath University and Stamford University Bangladesh.
