The International Juries of the 27th Olympia International Film Festival
International Feature Fiction Jury
Tamara Bos
She was born in 1967. She is a productive scriptwriter and children’s book author. Her stories always have identifiable subjects, often written from the child’s perspective. Apart from her own original scripts, she has made adaptations of popular children’s books by the famous Dutch writer Annie M.G. Schmidt. Tamara was responsible for the scripts of the family films Minoes (2001), Pluk and his towtruck (2004) and The Amazing Wiplala (2014). The feature films based on her own stories have received national and international acclaim, and awards from all over the world. These films are Winky’s horse (2005) (directed by Mischa Kamp), Fidgety Bram (2011) (directed by Anna van de Heide), and recently Romy’s salon (2019). This last film, based on her own novel, won twenty national and international awards. Her latest work, the series Escape from Albatros, is currently airing on the Dutch national broadcaster. Lately she has been working on two feature film scripts for children and their families, Hanneke & Fiet (about a six year old girl that has to hide during World War II) and The Gorgels (a humorous adventurous story). Tamara Bos has written twelve realised film scripts, and more than thirty children’s books, and worked on several television series and theatre plays.
Charlotte Giese
She graduated from Roskilde University in Denmark with a degree in Media and Social Science. Following graduation, she worked with art film and video dance festivals and was involved in audiovisual productions addressing global issues. Beginning in 1992, she served as Commissioning Editor at the Danish Film Institute, where in 1998 she established the Department for Children & Youth. This department, recognized both nationally and internationally, operates a comprehensive program across cinemas, streaming platforms, and creative film studios, and she currently serves as a Special Advisor. The Danish Film Institute is known for its professional expertise, political engagement, and diverse stakeholders. Driven by a strong commitment to international engagement, she also runs a consultancy, collaborating with film organizations primarily in Europe, Palestine, and East Africa, and co-founded Film Lab Zanzibar. This work includes training filmmakers, strategic development, promoting film literacy for future generations, and organizing industry and community events. Her programs view film both as an independent art form and as a significant catalyst for cultural development, economic growth, and social change.
Jaroslava Hynstova
She has been working as a film programmer at Zlín Film Festival – International Film Festival for Children and Youth since 2005. She studied Film and English Philology at the Palacky University in Olomouc. She is a journalist, screenwriter and director of an amateur theatre group in her hometown of Luhačovice. Jaroslava was regional correspondent for the biggest Czech newspaper. She has participated in juries all around the world (e.g.Japan, South Korea, India, Canada, France, Germany, Sweden, Italy, Ukraine, Spain, India).
Venia Vergou
She is the Manager of the European Film Commissions Network (EUFCN) since January 2024. As the former director of the Hellenic Film Commission at the Greek Film Centre (2017-2021), she has also been a member of the EUFCN Board of Directors from 2019 to 2021. An insider of the film industry in Greece for over 20 years, Venia started her professional years as a film critic. She then worked as a producer, as film projects coordinator at the acclaimed art exhibition documenta 14, and as head of communications and film programmer at the Greek Film Archive. Currently, she is also a member of the Crew United team, responsible for establishing the Greek channel of the biggest European online network for audiovisual professionals. Venia has a B.A. in Communication / Media from the Athens National Kapodistrian University and an M.A. in Film Studies and European Cinema from the University of the West of England in Bristol, UK.
Kids & Docs Jury
Dimitris Papadopoulos
He studied pedagogy, social exclusion, film education/literacy and media education/literacy. He holds a PhD from the School of Film of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. In his dissertation he explored contemporary developments in film education/literacy. He teaches issues of Film Pedagogy/Film Education & Music Documentary at the School of Film of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and directing in the subject "Film Studies: Screenplay, Filmmaking, and Research" of the Hellenic Open University. He has also taught at the University of Thessaly on issues of art, culture and education. He has scientific publications, participation in edited volumes and articles. He is the author of two books (one collective). He is one of the founding members and supervisor of the 'Regional Network of Film Education', which organizes the annual “student film festival” in Thessaloniki. He has organised numerous film education workshops for students and teachers and in this context has supervised numerous short films. She has directed three feature documentaries with participations and awards in numerous international festivals.
Tapio Riihimaki
He works as deputy director at the National Audiovisual Institute of Finland, where he is head of the institute’s programming (in Helsinki and 8 other cities nationwide) and library. He is also in charge of the institute's research, publications, and exhibitions.Tapio has had a long career in cinema. He has worked as executive director of DocPoint Film Events, which is the organization behind DocPoint – Helsinki Documentary Film Festival, as well as DOKKINO, a documentary film tour for children and youth, and DocPoint IMPACT, workshops and networking in impact producing. Tapio has worked as executive director of the Documentary Guild of Finland, and Filmihullu movie magazine, and as project manager for Helsinki University. He also has experience in art journalism, film criticism, and has worked in various roles at the Finnish Film Archive. Tapio studied at the University of Helsinki, majoring in Cultural Studies, and graduated with a Master of Philosophy in 1997. He has also studied Communications, Television and Cinema, and Development Research. Tapio – or Tape, as almost everybody calls him – has been a cinephile all his life. In the last fifteen years, his focus has shifted more and more to documentary film, as he believes that real life is more exciting than fiction.
Heleen Rouw
She is an experienced leader in media and entertainment, with a focus on young audiences. She started in the nineties in film distribution at Polygram Filmed Entertainment, Warner Bros and specialized in professionalizing the marketing strategies in order to optimize the audience potential of films. She developed an all-round experience in film production, publicity & financing (such as Jeroen Krabbe’s Discovery of Heaven , Renny Harlin’s Mindhunters) marketing and development (Dutch Film Fund) but also in corporate communications (public broadcaster merge AVROTROS). She developed a solid fundraising strategy and educational vision at the Amsterdam Royal Zoo as Director Development & Education, before she moved to Cinekid in January 2020. Actively involving children in high-quality media and film in order to help them to become true world citizens: that's what Cinekid is all about. For 38 years, the Cinekid Foundation has been committed to stimulating the production of film and media for children and to let the children themselves contribute to its creation, with the aim of guiding their media development, helping them to experience and explore media from different perspectives.
International Short Film Jury
Boris Bakal
He is a theatre and film director, actor, producer, intermedia artist, curator, writer, activist, public historian, and pedagogue. He has created numerous projects, performances, lectures, installations, and multimedia works showcased at festivals and exhibitions in over 20 countries across Europe, as well as in the USA, Senegal, Thailand, Armenia, and Jordan. His work has been featured at prominent events including the Bologna Cultural Capital of Europe 2000, the Venice Biennale, Dubrovnik Summer Festival, Akcent/Prague, and BITEF/Belgrade. His work is marked, among other, by pronounced exploration of the site/time-specific and the interactive elements of arts. He has served as a visiting scholar, researcher, and lecturer at institutions such as New York University, Columbia University, Stony Brook University, and universities in Florence, Exeter, Hamburg, and Manchester. He co-founded multiple artistic and activist initiatives including Flying University (Brussels), Orchestra Stolpnik (Bologna), Theatre of Obvious Phenomena, and the Croatian Antiwar Campaign. Since 2001, he has co-led Bacači Sjenki/Shadow Casters, an award-winning platform for interdisciplinary art. In 2011, he launched Frooom!, an innovative media and film education program in Zagreb.
Eleni Mouri
She studied Graphic Design and Animation. From 1979 to 1994, she worked as a freelance animator, producing animated commercials for television. Since 1987, she has taught Animation and TV Graphics in the Department of Graphic Design at the Athens University of Applied Sciences, initially as a scientific collaborator and, from 1994 onward, as a faculty member. She teaches Storyboarding, Cartoon, and Animation in the Department of Graphic Design and Visual Communication at the University of West Attica and has also taught in various postgraduate programs at the same institution. She is the director of the Master’s program in 2D and 3D Animation. She has authored Frame by Frame, on the art and techniques of animation, and Greek Animation 1960-2000, and has contributed numerous publications to collective volumes and conference proceedings.
Iris Verhoeven
She is the director of JEF, the youth film organization in Flanders, Belgium. JEF is involved in distribution, film education, and media literacy activities in schools and during leisure time. It also organizes an annual youth film festival in several cities. The festival has launched the largest medialab in Flanders and the online platform JEF in the Hospital, a project for children in hospitals and rehabilitation centers, which became international in 2018. Before this role, she was the business director of the European Youth Film Festival (Het Jeugdfilmfestival) for almost 10 years, where she was responsible for the business aspects and the medialab. Prior to the festival, she worked at the University of Antwerp, conducting research on museums for contemporary art and the audiovisual field. Iris has also been the director of a cultural center in Antwerp. She is a member of the board of directors of oKo (Flemish Federation of Employers in the Arts Sector), Sociare (the sociocultural employers federation), and the experimental film festival Courtisane. Iris studied Politics and Sociology, Comparative Cultural Sciences, and Cultural Management. She also spent two years in Barcelona, where she studied Catalan language and art at the University of Barcelona (UAB). In 2019, she completed the LinC leadership program at the University of Utrecht and Antwerp Management School.
International Youth Jury
The members of the International Youth Jury from abroad are representatives of collaborating with Olympia Festival organizations, Giffoni (Italy) and Schlingel (Germany).
Katerina Karantoni
Benedetta Polisetti
Serena de Santis
Johanna Toschev
Eleonore Trinks
English 
Greek