2021 International Nominations Council

Hong-Joon Kim was Festival Director of the Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival and Commissioner of the Korean Film Council from 2000-2005. He is the Artistic Director of the Chungmuro International Musical Film Festival and Gangneung International Film Festival. His published books include I, a Filmmaker: Kim Hong-Joon’s Film Notes and Two or Three Things You Want to Know About Movies. Hong-Joon Kim is an award-winning director, and screenwriter of films including Jungle Story and La Vie En Rose. 

Anne Démy-Geroe has a strong background in Asia Pacific cinema. She currently lectures on Asia Pacific Cinema at Griffith Film School, is a Vice President of NETPAC, the Network for the Promotion of Asia Pacific Cinema, and a director of the Asia Pacific Screen Lab. As inaugural Artistic Director of the Brisbane International Film Festival until 2010, she built a solid reputation for its Asia Pacific programming. She was also an inaugural co-Director of the national Iranian Film Festival Australia from 2011 to 2017. Anne was awarded a PhD for her work on Iranian Cinema and her Routledge publication, Iranian National Cinema, was published in 2020. She produced the docu Imaginary Border (Alireza Ghanie, 2016), in competition at APSA. Anne is a past Council Member of the National Film and Sound Archive, for many years was a judge for Script on the Premier’s Literary Awards, has worked on numerous special film events over the years and continues to serve on international juries from Busan to Tehran. She also does the odd programming gig! In 2003 was awarded an Australian Centenary Medal for services to the film industry.

Anderson Le diligently works in the global promotion of independent and world cinema as Artistic Director of the Hawaii International Film Festival (HIFF). In addition to his duties at HIFF, Le also serves as a program consultant for several film festivals including the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, focusing on international and gala presentations; the Far East Film Festival in Udine, Italy, where he is in charge of the annual documentary sidebar and Southeast Asian selections. Previously, he has consulted with Singapore International Film Festival and Reel Asian in Toronto. Le previously worked as the international programmer for Comcast, working in providing monthly content for Xfinity on Demand with a focus on Asian and Asian American content. He recently co-founded a US/Vietnam joint venture called EAST, a transpacific production company producing global content. Their first production, Rom (2019), won the New Currents Prize at Busan. Their current project, Be Water (2020), was an official selection of both Sundance and Cannes Film Festivals, and was broadcast on ESPN as part of the ’30 for 30′ series. 

Deepak Rauniyar (b. 1978) is a filmmaker and teaching artist. He became the first Nepali filmmaker to compete at a prestigious international film festival. His debut Highway world premiered at the Berlinale 2012 and also played at Locarno Film Festival. Before this film, Rauniyar worked as a writer and producer for the BBC Media Action. In 2010, Rauniyar co-founded Aadi Production along with his wife/actor Asha Magrati. Their second feature, White Sun (directed by Rauniyar) premiered at the 2016 Venice International Film Festival to rave reviews, the Hollywood Reporter calling it “A standout – it’s a delicately-observed, multi-generational story which will prove awards-bait at festivals across the world over the coming months – “. The film was Nepal’s official selection for 90th Academy Awards Best Foreign Language Film and was nominated for the Satellite Awards Best Motion Picture, International Film category. White Sun won several awards including the Interfilm award at the Venice Film Festival, Best Asian Feature at Singapore as well as the New Voices/New Visions Grand Jury Prize at the Palm Spring, and four prizes (Audience, Ecumenical Jury, Don Quixote) at Fribourg Film Festival. It has played in over a hundred international film festivals since its premiere including the Toronto, Rotterdam, New Directors/New Films, Edinburgh, Karlovy Vary, Busan, Sydney, Hong Kong, Golden Horse, and Mumbai film festivals. The New York Times listed Rauniyar among “The 9 New Directors You Need to Watch”. Rauniyar is an alumnus of the Toronto and Berlinale Talent Campuses as well as the Cannes Cinéfondation program and has served a member of the jury at Locarno and Sydney Film Festivals, and Asia Pacific Screen Awards.  Besides developing his third feature as writer/director The Sky Is Mine (TFL World Co-production Award 2019 winner and Berlinale Co-pro 2020), Rauniyar is currently developing three features as producer TFI Sloan Fund award winner David Barker’s Wiring Utopia, Asian Cinema Fund winner Anil Baral’s The Palace and Kesang Tseten’s The Law, and teaching film production in two the City University of New York’s schools. 

Delphine Garde-Mroueh has had more than 15 years in the film, art, and cultural industries in the United Arab Emirates. For ten years she was the Head of Programme Administration & Film Services for the Dubai International Film Festival and programmed the highly-regarded Arabian Nights section. Pursuing her aim to connect audiences to Arab and world cinema, champion emerging and acclaimed filmmakers, and promote Arab film and talent on the international stage, she is currently collaborating on various research and curation projects. 

Dr. Gulnara Abikeyeva is a film critic from Kazakhstan and is the author of several books about films and cinema. The second book Cinema of Central Asia: 1990-2001 was awarded the White Elephant Award, from the Russian Guild of Film Critics, for the best book about cinema of the year published in CIS. The book Nation-Building in Kazakhstan and other Central Asian States, and How This Process is Reflected in Cinematography’ (2006) received a Kulager, the national cinema awards, in 2007. In 2013 she had three international publications: Cinema in Central Asia. Rewriting Cultural Histories (Great Britain), co-edited by Michael Rouland and Birgit Beumers, The Unknown New Wave of Central Asian Cinema (South Korea), co-edited by Kim Ji-Seok and Makhmalbaf’s Film House (Russia). She is a member of FIPRESCI, NETPAC and APSA film Academy. In 2016 she was awarded the honour of L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from the French Government.

Lorna Tee is a film producer, film curator, and a film industry veteran who divides her time between Asia and Europe. She has worked for Focus Films (Hong Kong), Variety (USA), Irresistible Films (Hong Kong/ Japan), and Berlinale, CinemAsia Film Festival & was the founder/ Head of Festival Management for the International Film Festival & Awards Macao. Selected filmography includes The Beautiful Washing Machine, Rain Dogs, Crazy Stone, Love Story, My Mother is a Bellydancer, The Shoe Fairy, At the End of Daybreak, Lover’s Discourse, Come Rain, Come Shine, Postcards from the Zoo and Mrs K. She is developing film projects in Asia with her production company Paperheart, mentors/ lectures with film training programmes/ labs and consults with various international film institutions and film funds. She is currently programming the year round and special programmes at the Cinematheque Passion in Macao.