BERLIN: Romanian producer Ada Solomon is the new chair of the Board of the European Film Academy, as Mike Downey’s term has come to an end. Her new deputy chairs are Dutch producer Leontine Petit and French consultant Matthieu Darras.
Their two-year mandate will start on 1 January 2026.
“Being part of the European Film Academy board for a decade now, I took the responsibility to promote excellence in filmmaking in all the diversity of the European cinematic voices, but also to put the spotlight on the less visible ones: the smaller territories, the underrepresented forms of cinema, the crews behind the camera. It is a time of change, and I am ready to take the challenge knowing that I am backed up by the great executive team of the Academy and the amazing people in the board of the European Film Academy, and especially the newly elected deputy chairs: Leontine Petit and Matthieu Darras,” said Ada Solomon in a statement.
In 2026, the complete board of EFA also includes Danijel Hočevar (Slovenia), who was re-elected for Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Slovenia; Giorgos Karnavas (Greece), who was re-elected for Armenia, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece, and Israel; Mira Staleva (Bulgaria), who was re-elected for Bulgaria, Moldova, and Romania; Hanka Kastelicová (Czech Republic), who was re-elected for Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia; Marija Razgutė (Lithuania), who was re-elected for Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania; Maryna Sofiichuk for Poland and Ukraine (current mandate until end 2026), and Maria Nevina Satta for Italy, San Marino, and Malta (current mandate until end 2026), among others.
For the first time, a board seat has been created for a representative of transnational minorities in Europe. Petro Rusanienko (Ukraine) will represent the community of Roma and Sinti filmmakers in Europe.
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