Diana Iljine is a Culture, Media, and Film Professional, formerly Director of International Filmfest Munich and a board member. She regularly teaches film at the Munich Film School and Ludwigsburg. Her master’s thesis on film production was published as a book titled “Der Produzent”, which has since established itself as an authoritative work. Her career continued in television, as a feature film Acquisitions manager. From 2011 until October 2023, Iljine was the director of Filmfest München and Filmschoolfest Munich. As a board member of KJDF Film, a subsidy organization for young people she helped fund features, shorts, and documentaries.
Over the years, she has received various awards and decorations.
Koen Mortier is active in the film industry as an author, director, and producer.
In 2007, Koen directed ‘Ex Drummer’, his fiercely noticed first full-length film. This film was selected for many festivals and won several prestigious awards. Ex Drummer was sold to more than 20 countries. Three years later, Mortier made his second full-length film: ‘22nd of May’. This movie was also a success. His third full-length film, ‘Un Ange’ (Angel), premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival 2018. In May 2022, his 11-part documentary TV series, ‘Voices of Liberation’ was launched on Netflix NL and in September that year on Streamz in Belgium.
Koen's fourth feature film ‘Skunk’ (based on the book of the same name by Geert Taghon) premiered at the Just Film Festival in Tallin and earned him the ‘Just Film Youth Jury Best Film Award’. He also received a Special Mention from the International Jury. The film was a great success in Belgium with over 70K viewers.
Mortier also made a name in advertising and as a director of music videos, thanks to his remarkable style and visual approach. He was awarded several times for Best Director. Together with director Joe Vanhoutteghem he has been working since 2001 as a director team (Lionel Goldstein) for commercials and music clips (eg. Canal Digital Norge AS, Canvas, Center Parks, Equal Payday, Zwangere Guy, ...). With their absurd, almost documentary style, Lionel Goldstein has won many international prizes.
"Tanel Toom is an Oscar-nominated film director and screenwriter. He studied filmmaking at Tallinn University, Estonia and National Film and Television School, UK. His films have been screened worldwide in numerous film festivals (including Venice Film Festival, Busan, Warsaw, San Sebastian, Black Nights Film Festival etc) and won several awards. His short film The Confession won the Student Academy Award and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film.
His first feature film Truth And Justice (2019) broke all the box office records in Estonia and quickly became the most-watched film in the country. It was Estonia's submission for the 2020 Academy Awards, making it to the shortlist in Best Foreign Language category. His second feature film Last Sentinel (2023), starring Kate Bosworth, Lucien Laviscount, Martin McCann and Thomas Kretschmann, premiered in March 2023. In 2020, Tanel was chosen by Variety as one of the ""10 Europeans to Watch""."
Janne Vierth has been writing mainly for children and youth since 1998 – television, film, radio and early in his career for games – puppets, animation and live action. Janne has been nominated twice for a “Guldbagge” (Sweden’s Film award) in the category best screenplay – the only two scrips written for children that have been nominated in the category.
Janne has been part of the coaching staff at Cinekid for many years and is a member of the board of ECFA. Since 2021 Janne Vierth is the commissioner of feature films, short films and documentaries for children and youth (2-18) at the Swedish film institute."
Teresa Lima is the Co-founder, programmer, and director of PLAY - International Film Festival for Children and Youth
in Lisbon, since 2014. Initially educated as a teacher and post-graduated in Contemporary Art History at FCSH-Universidade Nova de Lisboa.
Eva-Maria Schneider-Reuter is the Artistic Director of the Sehpferdchen Film Festival for the generations in Hannover, Germany, works as a media educator and presenter. She works freelance in cinema and at numerous festivals. Working primarily with young audiences, she explores the workings of cinematic storytelling in all her projects, drawing on her background as an actress and storyteller. When she gets to the bottom of stories, she takes a very lively approach, questioning the script or film for its thematic content, cinematic devices, and impact. For her, everything starts with the question "What does this have to do with me?".
I am a 14-year-old film enthusiast. In 2022, I was part of the Just Film children's jury, where I had memorable and exciting experiences evaluating films. This year, I have joined the youth jury, where I can once again watch and evaluate different films. I hope that this experience, in addition to watching many films, will further broaden my understanding of films and everything related to them, and help me develop my mindset and shape my opinions.
I am 14 years old and in the 8th grade at Kadriorg German Gymnasium. One of my favorite activities is watching movies and seeing the small worlds of people through them. In my spare time, I like to play computer games and read books. I also love interacting with people and attending drama club.
I am a 15-year-old cheerful and open-minded girl. In my free time, I like to cook and listen to music, but most often I spend time watching movies. I have watched hundreds of movies, and it doesn't stop there. I enjoy discussing the content of movies with friends and acquaintances to broaden my horizons and create new connections. I feel that experiencing the world through movies has changed me tremendously and made me the person I am today.
I am 12 years old, and I love movies. I also enjoy making short films because I can create exciting stories. I like movie nights with my family, and they often let me choose the films because my family says they can count on me because I can find movies that are heartfelt and a little different.
Minu nimi on Juhan, olen 11-aastane ja käin Püünsi kooli viiendas klassis. Ma mängin tennist ja mulle meeldivad telekamängud. Olen juba väiksest peale palju filme ja multikaid vaadanud, nii kinos kui kodus. Filme vaadates ei pane ma tavaliselt midagi muud tähele, mis parajasti mu ümber toimub. Mulle meeldivad väga Marveli filmid, sest nendes on nii põnevust, kurbust kui huumorit.
I am 10 years old, and I study in class 3b at Püünsi School. I like doing sports, dancing, reading, and drawing, but my biggest favorites are movies and going to the cinema. I have been interested in movies for several years, and I like to evaluate them.
My name is Kadri-Liis, and I am 8 years old. My hobbies are singing, playing the violin, and acting. In my free time, I like to watch movies and draw.
I am 8 years old and in the 2nd grade. I really like movies and I always want to go to the cinema if possible.
I am 7 years old and in the 1st grade. I like building with Legos, and I am very energetic and fast. I attend swimming practice, a children's choir, and basketball. Basketball is the most boring. I like playing video games—Roblox, Minecraft, and Fortnite. I really want to watch horror movies, but my parents don't allow it. I would like to make movies myself someday, and I really enjoy drawing.
Piia is a marketing manager at Swedbank and has been part of the #noorfilmitegija jury for several years. She believes that movies are a great way to draw attention to various aspects of society that one does not tend to think about in everyday life.
Kaupo Kruusiauk graduated from the Baltic Film and Media School with a bachelor’s degree in film directing, and from the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre with a master’s degree in theatre and film directing. Kaupo Kruusiauk has directed several short films, one full-length feature film (Sandra saab tööd, 2021), and a few episodes of the project Estonian Stories for Estonian Public Broadcasting (Murust, Teaduse nimel, Kütt).
In his documentaries, Kaupo Kruusiauk has explored the chess player Jaan Ehlvest (Mängija, 2008), actor and musician Peeter Volkonski (Viimane vürst, 2018), musician and composer Maria Faust (Machina Faust, 2022), the president of Estonian Academy of Sciences, Tarmo Soomere (Mees missioonil, 2023), and tennis player Anett Kontaveit (Anett. 2023).
Alesja Suzdaltseva is an Estonian director known for her realistic tales set in fantasy worlds. She graduated from the Baltic Film, Media and Arts School as a film director. Her children sci-fi short film “The Rise” has won 13 awards and screened at 22 festivals. She also did two full-length documentary TV series in Arctic Norway, beyond the Polar Circle. In 2023 Alesja represented Estonia at the Cannes Lions Young Lions Film Competition. She is a director at Gorodenkoff Productions.