The 16th Odesa International Film Festival Announces the Jury Members

The 16th Odesa International Film Festival announces the jury of the competition programs — the European and National Competitions, the Film Industry Office section and the International Federation of Film Press FIPRESCI.

The jury includes well-known directors, producers, film critics and experts, whose professional achievements and experience shape the modern film process both in Ukraine and abroad. They will determine the winners of the competition programs.

Tickets for screenings are already available online at: ttps://new.oiff.com.ua/tickets

, and there is also an opportunity to purchase a festival pass: https://new.oiff.com.ua/festivalpass.

The Jury of the European Competition

Gyda Velvin Myklebust is a Norwegian producer, head of New Nordic Films and the international co-production market of the Norwegian Film Festival in Haugesund. She has a Master of Arts in Film from the National Film School of Norway. As a producer, she created the films “As I Fall” (nominated for the Amanda Award, screened at international festivals) and “The Comet”. Member of the European and Norwegian Film Academies.

Denys Tarasov is a Ukrainian director, member of the Ukrainian Film Academy and the Council for State Support of Cinematography, has been working in the industry for over 18 years. He has created dozens of series, shows and documentary projects. His feature-length debut "Diagnosis: Dissent" was awarded at international festivals. Recent works include the TV series "Shlyakh", "Evakuatsia", "Mytets", "I Am Hope", as well as the comedy "Shlyakh". He is also an active volunteer in the field of supporting the film industry.

Irena Katsialovich is a Belarusian film critic, journalist and cultural manager. Co-founder of the “Red Heather” film award and the Belarusian Independent Film Academy. Member of FIPRESCI and the jury of the Golden Globe award. Currently heads the culture department at the National Representation of the United Transitional Government of Belarus.

Peter Rommel is a German producer, founder of the Rommel Film company. He began his career by collaborating with Friedrich Thor Fridriksson ("Children of Nature"), and later worked on a number of international co-productions. His films — "Summer in Berlin", "Cloud 9", "Wetlands", "Alphabet" and others — have been successful at festivals in Locarno, Sundance and Berlin. In 2017, he was awarded the Max Ophüls Festival Award for Outstanding Achievement.

Piotr Bartuszek is a casting director from Poland, working both locally and internationally, especially in the Eastern European market. Founder of the Polish Casting Directors Guild (PCDG), active member of the International Casting Directors Association (ICDA). Initiator of the Best Casting Award at the Polish Film Festival in Gdynia (2022) and the introduction of the Casting Directors Award within the European Film Academy, which will debut in 2026.

Serhiy Lavreniuk is a Ukrainian film, theater and television producer, general producer of Solar Media Entertainment, co-owner of the TV channel "Sontse". Member of the Ukrainian and European Film Academies. His filmography includes international co-productions ("When Trees Fall", "Mountain Woman: At War", "A Gentle Creature"), TV series ( “Kava z Kardamonom", awarded the "Golden Spinning Wheel"), as well as numerous feature-length works shown at the Berlin and Cannes Film Festivals.

Jūris Poškus is a Latvian director and producer, known for his feature and documentary films. He studied film at the California Institute of the Arts. His films are distinguished by their unusual humor and unconventional characters, some of which have become cult classics. He is a member of the Latvian Producers Association and the European Film Academy.

The National Competition Jury

Aliaksei Paluyan is a Belarusian film director who has lived in Germany since 2012, where he studied at the Kassel Academy of Arts. His film SEE DER FREUDE (2019) has won numerous international awards, was nominated for the European Film Award (2020) and was longlisted for the Oscars (2021). His documentary debut Courage (2021) premiered at the Berlin IFF and was screened at IDFA, Visions du Réel, CPH:DOX, HotDocs and other festivals, and was also longlisted for the Oscars (2022). He taught at the Mozarteum in Salzburg (2022–2024). Member of the European Film Academy, co-founder of the Belarusian Independent Film Academy, participant of Berlinale Talents (2022) and TorinoLab (2024).

Cătălin Moldovai is a Romanian film director and screenwriter. Her debut feature film Without Air (2023) received over twenty international awards, including the FIPRESCI Prize and the victory in Competition 1–2 at the Warsaw Film Festival, as well as honors from Hungarian film critics. Her previous short film “As Up to Now (2018) participated in the Cinéfondation in Cannes and won the Directing Award at CPH:DOX. Her work has been screened in Toronto, Gothenburg, Sofia and other major festivals.

Konrad Szołajski is a Polish screenwriter and director of documentary and feature films, known for his satirical view of modern Poland and his humorous approach to complex topics. His works have participated in numerous festivals, been broadcast on television and released in theaters. In 2005, he founded the film company ZK Studio, which specializes in films with a strong social subtext.

Taras Tomenko is a Ukrainian film director and screenwriter, a member of the Ukrainian and European Film Academies. He is the author of documentary and feature films: “Boinya”(1999), “Tyr” (2001), “Lend of Plenty” (2004), “Liza” (2006), “Mamochky” (2007), “Slovo House” (2017), “Slovo House. Unfinished novel” (2021), “Terykony” (2022),

“A Sentimental Journey to the Parajanov Planet” (2024). His works have been shown at leading international festivals.

Hugo Rosák is the head of the industry office of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, heads the KVIFF Eastern Promises platform for projects from Central and Eastern Europe. Co-founder of the KVIFF Talents program. Works with the Midpoint Institute and First Cut Lab initiatives, is an expert of the European Commission. He also heads the development department at the Prague-based company Stairway Films. Member of the European Film Academy.

The Jury of the Film Industry Office

Viktoria Burdukova is a producer at Up-Hub. She has been working in the media since 1997. She started at New Channel, where she became a producer and co-author of the program “Revizor”. Since 2019, she has focused on series and film production. As part of Up-Hub, she works on modern series that have received recognition at Ukrainian and international festivals (“Kava Tvoho Mista”, “Potiah”). She is currently producing a feature film about the architect Vladislav Gorodetsky “House with Chimaeras”.

Volodymyr Tretyakov is a Ukrainian sound engineer and producer. He worked at Gala Radio, collaborated with leading artists (Oleg Skrypka, “Druha Rika”, Svitlana Loboda). He participated in the creation of the films “Sappho”, “The Hateful Eight”, “Twilight”, “The Illusion of Deception”. In 2018, he founded Cinema Sound UA Production, the first studio in Ukraine with international Dolby Atmos certification. Member of the European and Ukrainian Film Academies.

Kateryna Shevelyuk is the general producer of STB's serial production. She is known for creating modern female images on the screen that reflect the versatility of the Ukrainian audience. Despite the war, she supports the channel's course for the development of serial production, focusing on strong, life-affirming stories.

Laurent Danielou is a French producer, founder of Loco Films in Paris. He produced and distributed the films "Triple Agent" by Eric Rohmer, "I Killed My Mother" by Xavier Dolan, "Il Boemo" by Petr Vaclav, "Two Days in Paris" by Julie Delpy, "The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed" by Joanna Arnov.

Marina Kaplun is the head of the content department at Kyivstar TV. She has over 12 years of experience in media, having worked at 1+1 media since 2017. Since 2022, she has headed the content department of Kyivstar TV, where the team is preparing original projects, including the series “Vitya”, which is produced jointly with FILM.UA Group.

Eva Neuman is a Ukrainian film director. Her films have participated in leading international festivals. Her debut “At the River” (2007) was shown in Rotterdam, “The House with the Tower” (2012) won an award in the “East from West” section in Karlovy Vary, “Song of Songs” (2015) was celebrated at the OIFF and in Fribourg. The documentary “Pryvoz” (2021) participated in Doclisboa, Sheffield DocFest and DokLeipzig. The new feature film “When Lightning Flashes Over the Sea” (2025) was selected for the Berlin IFF program.

FIPRESCI

The Union of Film Critics of Ukraine is a Ukrainian non-profit public organization established in 2018 to consolidate film critical thought and develop film culture. The members of the Union, who are also members of the International Federation of Film Press FIPRESCI, have been forming the FIPRESCI jury at the Odesa International Film Festival for the second year in a row.

Dmytro Sydorenko is an independent film critic and freelance journalist. Member of the Union of Film Critics of Ukraine and FIPRESCI, member of the committee of the National Film Critics Award “Kinokolo”. He has been working in journalism since 2015, covering politics, economics and culture. He has been published in national and international media. In film criticism, he focuses on both feature and documentary films, especially on directorial styles and the development of Ukrainian and world cinema.

Igor Kromf is a Ukrainian film critic, author of media about new Ukrainian culture Lirum and LB.ua, host of the podcast “Director’s Version”. Member of FIPRESCI and the Union of Film Critics of Ukraine, member of the committee of the National Film Critics Award “Kinokolo”.

Serhiy Trymbach is a film critic, film scholar and screenwriter. Author of about three thousand publications (articles, reviews, interviews) and books on the history of Ukrainian cinema. Chairman of the National Union of Cinematographers of Ukraine (2009–2016), president of the Association of Film Critics, which is a member of FIPRESCI. Member of FIPRESCI, the Union of Film Critics of Ukraine and the committee of the National Film Critics Award “Kinokolo”.

The Odesa International Film Festival is supported by:

Ukrainian State Film Agency

The European Union and Creative Europe Desk Ukraine

Adam Mickiewicz Institute “Instytut Adama Mickiewicza”

Polish Institute in Kyiv

German Films

Official Sponsor – ARARAT

Official Automotive Partner – BMW Ukraine

General Partner of Film Industry Office – UPHub

Official jewelry partner - Carrera Y Carrera General

Technological Partner -Hisense

Official partner bank – Pivdenny