Gabrielle Brady is an award-winning director and screenwriter whose work has screened in competition at major international festivals including Toronto, London, IDFA, MoMI and Marrakesh. Her films have received over 40 awards, an Independent Spirit Award nomination, and Critics’ Picks in The New York Times and The Guardian. Her latest film, The Wolves Always Come at Night (2024), premiered in Official Competition at TIFF and was selected as Australia’s submission for Best International Feature Film at the 98th Academy Awards. Her previous feature, Island of the Hungry Ghosts (2018), won Best Documentary at Tribeca and major awards at Visions du Réel, IDFA and Mumbai. She also works internationally as a script consultant, is a tutor at Le Groupe Ouest, and studied at EICTV in Cuba.

Dominic Davis returned to the Sundance Institute in 2022 as Manager of the Documentary Fund. In 2011, Dominic worked in the Artist Relations Office of the Sundance Film Festival. He went on to programme for the American Museum of Natural History, Tribeca Film Festival and Rooftop Films. He has reviewed applications for Catapult Film Fund and Creative Capital and managed the Rooftop Films Filmmakers Fund. Dominic was born in Germany and grew up on military bases but adopted Kentucky and Florida as his home states. He has a degree in mass media studies and political science from the University of Kentucky. When not watching movies, he goes for very long runs. 

Gaia Furrer is a film curator and programmer. Born in Italy, she studied Film History at Sapienza University of Rome and has collaborated with Film Italia – the public agency in charge of promoting Italian cinema abroad – for national and international projects. She was Head of Programming for the Noir in Festival, an Italian festival dedicated to noir cinema, from 2003. She has also served as programmer, consultant and jury member at several international film festivals. Since the founding of Giornate degli Autori (Venice Days), she has been closely involved in its programming and development and in 2020 she was appointed Artistic Director.

A graduate of studies in law, film studies, and cultural management, Karim Aïtouna is a producer based in France and Morocco, with a portfolio that spans fiction and documentary, reflecting his commitment to supporting diverse storytelling across borders. With more than 22 feature films produced, his productions have screened at festivals such as Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Toronto, and Sundance.

Salomé Jashi is a documentary filmmaker and chairperson of Documentary Association Georgia (DOCA). Nominated for the European Film Awards, her Taming the Garden (2021) premiered at Sundance and the Berlinale Forum. Her The Dazzling Light of Sunset (2016) won an award at Visions du Réel, and her mid-length Bakhmaro (2011) was nominated for the Asia Pacific Screen Awards. Her work was celebrated with a series of screenings and talks at BAMPFA in 2023. In 2024, she received the Berlin Art Prize and the European Cultural Award KAIROS Prize.

Ilse Ronteltap is International Officer at the Netherlands Film Fund, focusing on international co-productions and collaborations, including Thuthuka (South Africa), partnerships with the Hubert Bals Fund and IDFA Bertha Fund, and work with Indonesia and BeNeLux. She oversees funding for festivals, labs, the Netherlands Film Commission, NL Wave, New Dawn and the International Film Production Inclusion Fund. Eurimages contact for the Netherlands, she attends board and Executive Committee meetings. Former line producer, EAVE graduate.

John Canciani (Scotland/Italy/Switzerland) joined Internationale Kurzfilmtage Winterthur in 2009 and became Artistic Director in 2012. He also curates at Kino Cameo Winterthur, holds an MA in Curating (ZHdK), and has published various texts on short films. He is a member of the Swiss and European Film Academies, co-founded Pro Short, serves on the Short Film Conference board, and since 2019, sits on the visions sud est board, selecting feature and documentary projects as expert. He advises festivals, film schools and filmmakers.

Stefanie Rusterholz is Co-head of the Swiss film distributor trigon-film. The film foundation trigon-film has been releasing carefully selected films from Latin America, Asia, Africa and Eastern Europe since 1988 and runs its own DVD edition and the streaming platform filmingo.

Sarah comes from a background in Political, Social and Media Studies, which she combines in her current roles. Since 2016, she has been active within Open Doors – Locarno’s talent development programme dedicated to film professionals from underrepresented regions, currently focusing on 42 countries across the African continent. She currently holds the position of Deputy Head of the programme. Since 2022, Sarah has also been producing films with Amka Films Productions and Lido Pictures in Switzerland.