The LUX Prize panel

Mr Andrle is a cinema operator in Prague and a film distributor via Aerofilms.

Ms Binns is an operator.

In the business for some 30 years, Mr Branco has produced more than 200 films with such directors as Manoel de Oliveira, Wim Wenders, Sharunas Bartas or Michel Piccoli. He has received numerous awards and accolades in festivals and film museums all over the world. Since 2007, he is also the Director of the Estoril Film Festival.

Ms Buresi has been working in the media and film industry for almost 20 years. She is also Former Deputy Director of the European Film Market for the Berlinale.

“I always considered cinema as a mind opener and a particularly important media in to-day Europe. Working for a film market, my daily job is to offer a service structure allowing films to sell well and circulate all over Europe. The LUX prize is certainly a most important and adapted support in this field and shows the commitment and concern of the European Parliament towards the film industry.”

Mr Courcol is an actor by training. He has played in some 30 theatre plays and 20 films for cinema and television before turning to script writing. As a scriptwriter, he co-signed with Philippe LioretMademoiselle, L’Echiquier and Welcome.

Mr De Potter has been working for more than 15 years in Independant Distribution Companies. He joined Cineart in 1997 as General Manager Benelux and is in charge of acquisitions and theatrical releases in Belgium and The Netherlands.

“The Parliament's support of films representing the diversity and the values of Europe will benefit the whole film community. By the quality and the messages they bring, the Prize will also favour the spread of culture among all the Member states and to the European citizens".

LUX Prize selection panel 2015: Founder Member without voting rights

Ms Djoumer joined Europa Cinéma in 1993 as Head of International Relations. Europa Cinéma supports the circulation of European films outside their country of origin. It works with young audiences to develop their interest in European films. Since 2004, Europa Cinéma has expanded its film theatre network outside Europe, particularly in Asia, South America and the Mediterranean.

"I am happy the European Parliament created the LUX Prize. This is the best political guarantee for the cultural diversity of European cinema across Europe!"

Jonas Dornbach worked as the line producer for Maren Ade's films "Everyone Else" (2009) and “Toni Erdmann”(2016), the winner of last year’s LUX prize. Raised in Italy, he later completed his studies at the German Film and Television Academy in Berlin (dffb) with the film "On the safe side?" in 2006. He founded his film production company Kinoherz in 2002 and served as CEO until 2009. Since 2010, he has joined the team of Komplizen Film as a producer, since 2014 as a shareholder and managing director.

Ms Echerer is an actress and a cinema moderator in television. She was a Member of the European Parliament between 1999-2004.

Francesca Feder is a feature films and television producer. She created  ÆTERNAM FILMS. Among the most recent films and documentaries produced: "Shun Li and the Poet" by Andrea Segre (2011), "Pauline et François" (2010) by Renaud Fély,"The Ditch" by Wang Bing, "The Green Blood" by Andrea Segre, "My Father, Francis the Belge", and many others.

Ms Gabereau is the Managing Director of the UK-based independent distribution company Soda Pictures. Founded in 2002, the company now boasts a library of over 100 films, including many award-winning films from around the world. She has a background in film journalism, festivals and new media; she came to cinema through a love of intercultural communication and visual expression.

Mr Gonzalez Kuhn is in charge of acquisitions at the distribution company Alta Films, and a cinema operator.

The Danish Film Institute Children & Youth department is responsible for film promotion and film education for children and young people. Based on the key words: Experience, understand and create, the strategies and activities is focused on all aspects of film education at all levels.

Previously, Claus has held the position as Senior Advisor at the Danish Ministry of Culture and at Local Government Denmark (the national association of local authorities in Denmark). Claus has a Master’s Degree in Political Science.

One of the best known film critic in Germany, Paul Peter Huth is currently running a film critic programme at 3SAT, cinema channel of the ZDF. Co-writer and co-director for several documentaries on European cinema (Kennwort Kino - Mot de Passe Cinéma), he is the author of some of the most important interviews of European directors.

Ivana Ivisic is a film industry professional from Croatia.

A graduate of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Zagreb, Croatia, where she studied Italian and English language and literature, Ivana Ivisic began her professional career organising and producing film and music (jazz) festivals in Motovun, Sarajevo, Zagreb and Berlin.

She was the first project manager of the Sarajevo Talent Campus, which trains young film professionals from Southeastern Europe. In 2008 she started developing the Department of Promotion at the newly established Croatian Audiovisual Centre.

Last year, Ivana Ivisic became an independent consultant for the distribution and promotion of films touring the festival circuit.

As a director and producer he organized the Sofia International Film Festival (since 2001), as well as several smaller film events. The Sofia International Film Festival is the only Bulgarian film festival member of the European Coordination of Film Festivals and is considered as the biggest and most successful film festival in Bulgaria. He is a member of the European Film Academy.

Kitanov produced several films. He is also involved in distribution.

Born in Freiburg and a graduate of the University of Augsburg, Niombo Lomba is a policy offer for the Creative Europe programme of the European Commission. Prior to her current role, Niombo was Head of Staff of the State Counsellor for Civil Society and Civil Participation for the State Ministry Baden-Württemberg, as well as City Counsellor in Stuttgart. Prior to that, she was a public relations and public affairs consultant and a corporate external affairs manager for Celesio AG, a trading company and service provider for pharmaceuticals.

Honorary President of the LUX Prize Selection Panel 2012.

Radu Mihaileanu was born in Bucharest, in 1958, in a Yiddish-speaking Jewish family. In 1980, Radu Mihaileanu fled the country under the control of the dictator Ceaucescu and  reached France where he embarked a career as assistant director to Marco Ferreri, Fernando Trueba and others directors.

In 1992 he released his first film, Trahir, while in 1998 Train de vie won him international renown: Oscar nominations for best script and best actor, the Fipresci prize at Venice, the People’s Choice Award at Sundance and the David di Donatello for best foreign film. His third feature film, Va, vis et deviens about a Christian, Ethiopian boy pretending to be a Jew in order to immigrate to Israel for survival purposes, was an instant hit worldwide. The film sold 150,000 DVDs in France alone and won over 30 awards such as the César for Best Screenplay, Public Award at the Berlin Festival, Best Film and Best Screenplay at the Copenhagen Festival etc. In 2009, Mihaileanu released his fourth feature film entitled Le concert and last year in the Competition of the festival de Cannes La source des femmes.

In 2008, Mihaileanu was named European Ambassador of Intercultural Dialogue (by the European Commission) and in 2009, European Ambassador for Creativity and Innovation.

He's very active at the European political level, working for the promotion and protection of European cinema.

Mr Olla has worked for several years on the MEDIA Programme of the European Commission. Since 2008, he has become the director of the Council of Europe’s Eurimages fund.

“I am happy to be invited to take part to the selection of the LUX Prize as an observer and I am glad to the association done between the Fund Eurimages of the Council of Europe and this nice initiative of the European Parliament in favour of Cinema.”

Mr Pereira is the director of the Indilisboa Film Festival.

Ewa Puszczyńska graduated from the English Literature Department of the University of Lodz. Since 1995 she has been working for Opus Film, an independent film production company in Poland; for the last 8 years as a producer and Head of Development, managing the development and execution of their projects.

She is also the Head of International Department of the company supervising co-productions and foreign sales of the produced movies. In the recent years Ewa has produced films for Opus that have gained international recognition, among them Mr Kuka’s Lessons, Spring 1941, and Zero.

She is currently producing a Polish-Norwegian film, Kings of the Devil Island and coordinates the development of the latest Ari Folman feature project and an animated movie by the Quay-brothers. In 2007 she was appointed by the Minister of Culture as an expert for the Polish Film Institute.

She is the producer of Pawel Pawlikowski's Ida, the LUX Film Prize Winner 2014.

Ms. Ranucci started the only bookshop specializing in cinema and theatre in Italy. In 1989, she opened the Alcazar cinema in Rome (a Europa cinemas theatre) and joined the LuckyRed Distribution in 2000. She has organized the Cannes festival in Rome and Milano for the past 15 years, showing the best films of the festival in these two cities.

"One cinema for Europe, one language for cinema"

Honorary member of the LUX Prize Selection Panel in 2011

Mr Thiec is the General delegate for EUROCINEMA, an association of television and cinema producers. It defends their interest within the European Union and works with the European institutions to promote European productions.

Ms Vidal is a film critic.