Jury

Selene Caramazza, born in 1993, is a film and TV actor. A Sicilian from Agrigento, she moved to Rome after finishing secondary school. She studied acting at the “Teatro azione” drama school, while at the same time continuing her university studies, graduating in law. She made her feature film debut in CUORI PURI by Roberto De Paolis, presented at Cannes Film Festival's Quinzaine des Realisateurs in 2017. She received the De Sica Award for Best Debut Actress and the Best Actress Award at Seville European Film Festival. In 2022, she starred in Vincenzo Pirrotta's film SPACCAOSSA, presented at Venice Days at Venice Film Festival, and in the series “The Bad Guy” directed by Giuseppe Stasi and Giancarlo Fontana on Prime Video, earning a nomination for the Nastro d'Argento Grandi Serie award for her portrayal of Leonarda Scotellaro. She won the Nobis Foundation award at the 2023 Nastri d'Argento. In 2024 she returned to the screen in the film SEI NELL'ANIMA, a biopic about Gianna Nannini on Netflix.

Michael Dillon, from Australia, has been filming adventures for over fifty years. He made six Documentaries with Sir Edmund Hillary, the first of them, FROM THE OCEAN TO THE SKY, winning the Gold Gentian in Trento in 1980. He has made three Everest Documentaries. His film EVEREST SEA TO SUMMIT won the Gold Gentian in Trento in 1993 and the Grand Prize at seven other International Mountain Film Festivals. His career also includes many projects he worked on as a specialist cinematographer. He has received US Emmy nominations for cinematography for the series “Survivor” and the National Geographic Special “Those Wonderful Dogs”. His most recent film, THE GREAT WHITE WHALE, was awarded at last year’s Trento Festival the Premio “Mario Bello” by the Italian Alpine Club Cinematheque and the City of Bolzano Prize- Golden Gentian for the best film on Exploration or Adventure. In 2022 he was awarded the IAMF Grand Prize for Lifetime Achievement, the first person from the southern hemisphere to have received this honour.

A journalist, essayist and film critic, she has written for and continues to work with newspapers and magazines in the field. Since 2020 she has been Artistic Director of Venice International Film Critics' Week, having been a member of the selection committee since 2016. She has lectured in film and audiovisual language at the University of Primorska in Koper and is a fixed-term lecturer in the semiology of film and audiovisual media at the University of Trieste. She received the Akai Award for “Best Film Critic” at the 71st Venice Film Festival and is a member of the “Film della Critica” committee at the Sindacato Nazionale Critici Cinematografici Italiani. She works with D'A Film Lab Barcelona on the selection of projects for the Final Cut programme. She is a member of EFA (European Film Academy), the Accademia del Cinema Italiano - David di Donatello awards, and ICS (International Cinephile Society). In 2023 she was editor of the book “Nuova Storia del Cinema. Dalle origini al futuro”, published by Hoepli.

Born in 1973 in Paraná, Argentina, in 1991 she moved to Buenos Aires, where she studied photography and later film direction at the Universidad del Cine. She has directed and written the screenplay for five feature films: ANA Y LOS OTROS (2003), UNA SEMANA SOLA (2008), ESCUELA NORMAL (2012), LA TERCERA ORILLA (2014) and EL AROMA DEL PASTO RECIÉN CORTADO (2024). All these films have been presented at important international festivals such as Berlin, Venice, Toronto, Rotterdam and San Sebastián, among others. She has taught Film Direction since 2002 and also works as a tutor for various screenwriting and project development programmes in Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Colombia and Spain. Retrospectives of her work have been organised at the Sderot Cinematheque, Israel, Cinemateket in Sweden and the Uruguayan Cinematheque. She has been a jury member at festivals in Munich, Stockholm, Toulouse, Valdivia, Buenos Aires (BAFICI), Mar del Plata and Freiburg, among others. She has also given master classes at several universities in Sweden, Spain and the USA.

Sean Villanueva O'Driscoll is rock climber with an adventurous spirit and an impressive track record of first ascents on some of the world's most challenging big walls. In 2021, he made history by becoming the first person to solo traverse the stunning Fitz Roy range in Patagonia. For this incredible feat, he was honored with the Piolet d'Or, a highly-regarded award in the climbing community. Beyond his physical accomplishments, Sean is known for his humility, humor, and joyful approach to climbing, often documenting his adventures in videos that capture his light-hearted spirit. He is a multi-award winning filmmaker with documentaries such as ADVENTURES OF THE DODO, ASGARD JAMMING, COCONUT CONNECTION, VENEZUELA JUNGLE JAM. His unique combination of skill, creativity, and philosophy has earned him a place among the most respected and admired climbers of his generation. Asgard Jamming was recipient of both the Public’ choice Prize and the Mario Bello Prize at the 58th Trento Film Festival in 2010.