Rakhshan BANIETEMAD

Born in Tehran in 1954, Rakhshan Banietemad studied film directing at the University of Dramatic Artsin Iran. Following her graduation, she gained experience producing TV documentaries and in 1987, she directed her first feature film Off the Limits (1987), which was a critical success. In 1991 she became the first woman recipient of the Best Director Award at the Tehran Fajr International Film Festival for Nargess (1991). Under the Skin of the City (2000) garnered major awards at the Moscow, Seattle, Turin, and Karlovy Vary film festivals. Mainline (2006), which was invited to the 11th Busan International Film Festival received the Achievement in Directing Award at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards.

AOYAMA Shinji

Born in Fukuoka, Japan, in 1964, Aoyama Shinji has directed numerous films, including his first feature film Helpless (1996), An Obsession (1997), and Lakeside Murder Case (2004). From his rich filmography, Eureka (2000) won the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury at the 53rd Cannes International Film Festival and Tokyo Park (2011) won the Golden Leopard at the 64th Locarno International Film Festival. Aoyama has distinguished himself in the realm of film as well as in the fields of literature, theater, and music. In 2001, Aoyama received the honorable Mishima Yukio Prize awarded to budding writers of exceptional work, for the novelization of his film Eureka (2000). Aoyama occasionally composes original scores for his films and has ventured into theater, having directed David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross and a part of August Strindberg’s Creditors.

CHUNG Ji-young

Chung Ji-young entered the film industry as assistant director to Kim Soo-yong and debuted in 1982with Mist Whispers Like a Woman. Chung has been active as a director as well as participated in the movement to reform the Promotion of the Motion Pictures Industry Act and is an active screen quota advocate. Recently, Unbowed (2011) and National Security (2012) were invited to consecutive editions of the Busan International Film Festival and Unbowed went on to receive both commercial and critical success. His major films include North Korean Partisan in South Korea (1990), Beyond the Mountain (1991), White Badge (1992), and Life and Death of the Hollywood Kid (1994).

Scott FOUNDAS

Film critic Scott Found as was the editor-in-chief for L.A. Weekly from 2003 to 2009. A two-time finalist for the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies’ AltWeekly Award in the category of Arts Criticism, Foundas was named Critic of the Year by the Los Angeles Press Club in 2010. From 2010 to 2012, he also served as associate program director for the Film Society of the Lincoln Center. Foundas is currently the chief film critic for Variety and a special consultant to the Cannes International Film Festival.

Charles TESSON

Since the late 1970’s Charles Tesson has been writing for the French film magazine, Cahiers du Cinéma, where he was also editor-in-chief from 1998 to 2003. In 2011, he was named the artistic director of the Cannes Film Festival’s Critics’ Week, where he has consistently introduced up-and-coming directors to Cannes. Tesson is also a professor at the University of Paris III, teaching cinema history and aesthetics. A prolific author of books and essays on the subject of cinema, Tesson’s published works on directors include Satyajit Ray (1992), Luis Buñuel (1995), and Akira Kurosawa (2008). He has also authored books such as Photogénie de la Série B (1997) and Théâtre et cinema (2007). Tesson co-wrote the Cahiers du Cinéma special issue, Made in Hong Kong (1984), with Olivier Assayas and continues to contribute to an academic dialogue in the field of Asian cinema.

John BADALU

John Badalu has co-produced 3 Indonesian films: Parts of the Heart (2012) by Paul Agusta that premiered at the 2012 Rotterdam Film Festival, Peculiar Vacation and Other Illnesses (2012) by Yosep Anggi Noen that premiered at the 2012 Locarno Film Festival in Filmmakers of The Present Competition, and What They Don't Talk About When They Talk About Love (2013) by Mouly Surya that premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival in the World Dramatic Competition. He is one of the founders of the Q! Film Festival, a controversial queer film festival begun in 2002 in Indonesia (a predominantly Muslim country). He has also worked as a festival delegate for prestigious film festivals like the Berlin International Film Festival and Shanghai International Film Festival.

Ryan HARRINGTON

Ryan Harrington is the Director of Documentary Programming for the Tribeca Film Institute, where he provides grants to up to 45 feature documentary projects annually, while developing filmmaker training labs and workshops world-wide. Harrington managed production at A&E IndieFilms, the theatrical documentary arm of the A&E Television Networks, where he championed the films American Teen (2008) and My Kid Could Paint That (2007) and the Oscar-nominated Murderball (2005) and Jesus Camp (2006). He recently produced Participant Media’s A Place at the Table (2012) which opened in US theatres earlier this year.

MIN Hwan-ki

Min Hwan-ki is a Chung-Ang University professor teaching in the department of film studies since 2004. He also continues to make remarkable documentaries. His feature documentaries include Play It Again (2004), Sogyumo Acacia Band’s Story (2009), and Anxiety (2012). His direction of documentaries focuses on developing the advantages of a direct cinema form in a social and political context. He won the BIFF Mecenat award at the 17th Busan International Film Festival with Anxiety (2012).

Adolfo ALIX JR

Born in Makati City Philippines in 1978, he graduated magna cum laude from the University of the City of Manila and he now lectures at a college. He made his directorial debut after working as a scriptwriter for film and television. Currently, he is writer, director, and producer. His first feature Donsol (2006) was a finalist at the 2006 Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival and was the Philippines' official submission to the Academy Awards Best Foreign Language Film category. His filmography includes Donsol (2006), Drumbeat (2007), Imoral (2008), Aurora (2009), The Affair (2010) and Liberation (2011). In particular, Adela (2008), Chassis (2010), and Fable of the Fish (2011) were invited to previous Busan International Film Festivals. His latest work, Death March (2013), was screened in Un Certain Regard section at the 2013 Cannes International Film Festival.

Pascale FAURE

Pascale Faure is one of the French specialists in short films and served as artistic co-director of L'Oeil du Cyclone, a TV series documentary on alternative art which was aired from1991 until 1999. He is also co-writer of the feature Hypnotized and Hysterical (French title: Filles perdues, cheveux gras, 2002) directed by Claude Duty, which won the Prize Michel d'Ornano at the Deauville American Film Festival for its script in 2002. Since 2001, she has led the Short Programs and Creations' Unit of Canal+ France. She is also producer of L'Oeil de Links (a creative webzine) and Mickrociné (a weekly short film broadcast) both aired through Canal+ France. In addition, she has organized La Nuit gay of Canal+ France for several years, which is an annual special TV program entirely dedicated to Gay Culture.

JUNG Ji-woo

He directed several short films after graduating from the department of theater and cinema in Hanyang University. His 16mm short film A Bit Bitter (1996) gained the Best Film Award at the Seoul Festival of Short Films and defined him as an emerging star director of short films. His first feature Happy End (1999) created a stir after it was invited to the Critics’ Week of the Cannes International Film Festival. He went on to direct Blossom Again (2005), A Boy with the Knapsack (2005), and Modern Boy (2008). His latest feature EunGyo (2012), based on the novel by Park Bum-shin, was highly rated by critics and audiences.