European Film Academy CEO and Greek New Wave Director Join Emily Watson on Sarajevo Jury
The Sarajevo Film Festival has named the jury for its feature film competition, joining British actress Emily Watson with European Film Academy CEO Matthijs Wouter Knol, Greek producer Athina Rachel Tsangari, Croatian filmmaker Igor Bezinović and North Macedonian actress Sara Klimoska. The panel will decide the Heart of Sarajevo Awards at the Bosnian festival, continuing a tradition of high-profile juries that has previously included Mike Leigh, Jeremy Irons and Asghar Farhadi.
The festival runs for a week in mid-August, with the awards ceremony held on 21 August. Watson, recently seen in Chloé Zhao's Hamnet and known for Breaking the Waves and Gosford Park, currently stars in HBO/Max's Dune: Prophecy. Her fellow jurors bring varied credentials: Bezinović won a European Film Award for his documentary Fiume o morte!, Klimoska has starred in several Milcho Manchevski films and passed through the festival's own Talents Sarajevo scheme, and Knol has led the European Film Academy since 2021.
In short
- Emily Watson to head Sarajevo Film Festival's feature jury
- Joined by EFA's Matthijs Wouter Knol, Athina Rachel Tsangari, Igor Bezinović, Sara Klimoska
- Heart of Sarajevo Awards ceremony set for 21 August
Explained simply
The Sarajevo Film Festival is an annual film event held in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Its feature film competition brings together films from the region and beyond, with an international jury choosing the winners of the Heart of Sarajevo awards.
The European Film Academy is a Europe-wide organisation that promotes cinema and presents the European Film Awards. Its chief executive, Matthijs Wouter Knol, joins filmmakers and performers from several countries on the jury, bringing experience from across the film industry.
The festival has built an international profile since it began during the 1990s siege of Sarajevo. Its awards can help draw attention to films and film-makers, while the jury’s varied backgrounds reflect the festival’s links with both regional cinema and the wider European industry.
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