The Film Prize Experts
Mentors, consultants and trainers from the international film industry supported the Film Prize Nominees during the workshops to further develop their project, to strengthen the idea of co-producing and to train and rehearse their pitch to the jury.
Ayman El Amir
is an Egyptian script consultant and film producer. He works as a script consultant for many programs, labs and institutes including TorinoFilmLab, Doha Film Institute, The Film Prize of the Robert Bosch Stiftung, International Marrakesh Film Festival Atlas Workshop and The Royal Film Commission of Jordan. El Amir consults privately on films and leads several international script development workshops and masterclasses. Ayman established his production Company (Felucca Films) in Egypt in 2016, which focuses on fresh and new talents and contemporary social issues. During the same year, he implemented the Mahd Film Lab, a Cairo-based script development programme open to filmmakers working on Arab film projects and Arab-European co-production. As a producer, his latest work includes the short fiction, FAKH, selected for the official competition of Semaine de la Critique at Cannes Film Festival 2019 (also, a winner of the The Film Prize of Robert Bosch Stiftung 2017) and the feature documentary HAPPILY EVER AFTER, premiered at IDFA 2016. Ayman supports the Nominees as script consultant.
Irit Neidhardt
graduated in political science, Islamic science and anthropology from the university of Muenster/Germany. She worked as trainer for self-defense and assertiveness for girls and women, managed an adult education center for political and cultural learning and has been acting as avocational author, curator and speaker in the field of cinema and the Middle East since completing her studies in 1995. In 2002 she decided to devote her working life to cinema and funded the distribution and sales company mec film complementary to her free-lancing. Irit Neidhardt is associate producer of Mahmoud al Massad’s award winning feature-documentary RECYCLE (Jordan/NL/CH/GER/USA 2007) and co-producer of Simon el-Habre’s highly acclaimed THE ONE MANY VILLAGE (Lebanon 2008), his latest GATE #5 (Lebanon/UAE 2011), Kamal Aljafari’s critically acclaimed PORT OF MEMORY(Palestine/GER 2009), Damien Ounouri’s prizewinning FIDAI (Algeria/FR/China/Kuwait/ GER 2012) and Raed Rafei's ECCOMI … ECCOTI (Lebanon 2017). She worked as development consultant for Tamer El-Said’s IN THE LAST DAYS OF THE CITY (EG/VAE/UK/D 2016) and as dramaturgic consultant for Pary el-Qalqili’s THE TURTLE’S RAGE (GER/Palestine 2012). She is author of various articles on subjects related to cinema and the Arab World, focusing on issues of co-operation and financing. From 2014 till 2016 Irit was Honorary Fellow at the European Centre for Palestine Studies at the University of Exeter (UK) with a research on PLO-German cooperation in film-making. Irit is member of the board of the German edition of the Global Media Journal and German quarterly inamo. She is member of the German Documentary Association (AG DOK), German Association of Art House Theatres (AG Kino-Gilde) and The German Middle East Studies Association for Contemporary Research and Documentation (DAVO). Irit supports the Nominees with her expertise on Arab cinema and with a conceptual look on the context of the projects.
Myriam Sassine
Myriam Sassine majored in audiovisual studies and received an M.A. in Cinema Research. In 2010, she joined Abbout Productions producing several features and documentaries such as TRAMONTANE by Vatche Boulghourjian (Cannes Critic’s Week 2016), ALL THIS VICTORY by Ahmad Ghossein (Venice Critic’s Week 2019), 1982 by Oualid Mouaness (TIFF 2019), PANOPTIC by Rana Eid (Locarno 2017) and AMAL by Mohamed Siam (Idfa 2017). Since 2016, Myriam is also the COO of Schortcut Films dedicated to co-producing international films and the Executive Director of Maskoon Fantastic Film Festival, which she co-founded. Myriam shared her expertise and her individual experiences on producing in these challenging times.
Raed Andoni
Is a Palestinian filmmaker and producer based in Paris. Raed has been working in independent cinema since 1997. He co-founded Dar Films, a production company based in Ramallah, producing and securing a wide international distribution for a number of award-winning documentaries. In 2008, he co-founded Les Films de Zayna, a Paris-based production company. His first feature documentary as a director, IMPROVISATION (2006) has screened in various international festivals and received the 2006 Art and Culture Award at the International Mediterranean Documentary Competition run by CMCA. FIX ME (2010), has premiered at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival and won several awards in international and Arab film festivals. It was commercially released in France in November 2010. GHOST HUNTING (2017) has premiered at the 2017 Berlin International Film Festival, winning the Best Documentary Award and an audience award. Raed supports the Nominees as a mentor for project development and as a pitching trainer.
Roman Paul
holds a Master Degree in Theatre-, Film- and Media Studies from Goethe University in Frankfurt. He started his career in the film business as Director of Acquisitions for the arthouse distributor Prokino in Munich. In 1999 he took over as Head of International Acquisitions at Senator Film Distribution in Berlin. In October 2002 he founded Razor Film Produktion in Berlin along with Gerhard Meixner. From October 2002 until April 2006, besides working as a producer, he also served as an acquisitions consultant for Celluloid Dreams World Sales in Paris. Roman Paul is a member of the European and German Film Academy, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), as well as ACE (Atelier du Cinéma Européen). Since October 2013 he is also the co-director of the International Production Masterclass Atelier Ludwigsburg-Paris at the Filmakademie Ludwigsburg and La Fémis Paris. In 2019 he was named professor at the Filmakademie Ludwigsburg, and Chevalier des Arts et Lettres by the Republic of France. Roman consulted the Nominees on the budget and financing strategy.
Roshanak Behesht Nedjad
began working in the film industry as a festival coordinator and production manager. In 1999, she started her first production company Flying Moon. Until 2014 they produced arthouse films, with over 30 international awards, among them the German Film Award in Gold and the Prix Europe Iris. In 2012, Roshanak ventured into Serious Games for children and won the 2016 German Computer Game Award for Best Serious Game. Under the label In Good Company she started yet another enterprise with a focus on international coproductions, with an emphasis on European features, aiming to entertain on a smart level. Roshanak also works as an expert and consultant for various institutions and training organisations such as EAVE. She is a member of the German as well as the European Film Academy, an EAVE graduate and group leader. Roshanak shared her expertise and her individual experience on producing in these challenging times.
Selina Ukwuoma
is a freelance script consultant who began her career at literary agency Curtis Brown working on theatre, film, and television projects including 2008 BAFTA winner BOY A. She has since gone on to advise on award-winning indies such as 2014 Teddy winner THE WAY HE LOOKS and last year’s Goyas triumph SUMMER 1993. As well as consulting for production companies and designing and running development initiatives such as Realness Screenwriters' Residence, Selina teaches screenwriting at the UK’s National Film and Television School and regularly mentors and leads workshops at film festivals, including Berlinale Talents Script Station, TIFF Writers’ Studio, Talents Sarajevo Pack&Pitch, and CTIFMF ADAPT. Prior to her career in the film industry, Selina travelled, taught English, and completed degrees in screenwriting, professional writing, and social anthropology. She has various interests, but is always keen to learn something new. Selina supports the Nominees as a mentor for project development, as a consultant for the dossiers and as a pitching trainer.
Sibylle Kurz
is a merchant and psychologist by training. She has longtime working experience in the music/event business as well as in acquisition/distribution for the German film industry. Since 1995 she freelances as communication trainer. She is of decisive influence as a pitching expert and coach on a range of Creative Europe / MEDIA training programs. Her clients are from arts, cultural, media and publishing, anyone who wants to position their idea/concept in the “cultural market” and to make it accessible to audiences. Sibylle teaches „The Art of Pitching“ at acclaimed national/international film schools, gives in-house seminars and supports in personal coaching planning and fine-tuning pitches and public appearances. She has mentored many emerging filmmakers and producers in Europe through project pitching workshops, film labs and festival internship programs. She is a member of: European Film Academy (EFA), European Woman’s Audiovisual Network (EWA) and part of EAVE’s pedagogical and expert team. Her book 'Pitch It' has been published in 2015 in its third revised edition. Her motto is: say, what you think - do, what you say, - be, what you do!
Stefano Tealdi
Born in Johannesburg (South Africa), he studied architecture in Torin, Italy and co-founded Stefilm in 1991. He directed A WORLD OF PASTA, DOCTOR ICE (Science Film Festival - Milano 2009), is now directing the series FODD MARKETS – IN THE BELLY OF THE CITY (20x52 ZDF/Arte) and is the co-author and producer of FOOD MAKERS GO GLOBAL (5 x 26 MDR/Arte). His recent film productions are: EXEMPLARY BEHAVIOUR (Golden Dove, FIPRESCI and Interreligious Jury awards, DOK Leipzig 2019), MY HOME, IN LIBYA (Locarno Film festival, DOK Leipzig, Chicago Int.Film Festival 2018, Premio Corso Salani - Trieste FF e Best Doc Glocal - Torino 2019), WONDERFUL LOSERS. A DIFFERENT WORLD (Best doc feature Warsaw FF 2017, Trieste FF 2018 and Lithuania’s candidate to the Academy Awards 2019) and THE STRANGE SOUND OF HAPPINESS (special mention Next Masters DOKLeipzig 2017, Terra di Siena – Premio della Critica, Special mention In-Edit, Barcelona 2018). Other films include: The QUEEN OF SILENCE (IDFA 2014, Silver Horn, best feature length doc Krakow FF 2015, Golden Nanook - Flahertiana IDF Perm 2015); Char, no man’s island (Berlinale Forum 2013), VINYLMANIA (IFF Rotterdam 2012), MOSTAR UNITED (IDFA 2009). He tutors for: Biennale Cinema and VR College Venice, Fabrique Cinema - Marché du Film Cannes, Documentary Campus, Dok Leipzig, Eave, ESoDoc, Films de 3 Continents – Produire au Sud, Med Film Factory, New Chinese Film Talents, Palestine Film Lab, Ouga Film Lab, TFL-Torino Film Lab, Scuola Holden, ZagrebDox Pro, ZELIG Film School. Stefano supported the Nominees as a pitching trainer at the Pitch Forum.