Anca Păunescu studied German philology and film, and for the last 9 years she has been intensively involved in documentary film selection, curation and creative advising for special programmes at various European festivals.
Bogomil graduated from the New Bulgarian University with a bachelor degree in Film and Television, and later continued his education in the Master's program for Documentary Film Production and Research at the University of Birmingham.
Christine Gendre is a prominent French film industry professional who served for decades as the Head of the Short Film Department at Unifrance, the organization responsible for promoting French cinema worldwide.
Faisal Qureshi is a producer and scriptwriter with over 20+ years in the industry. His short film work has screened at Pucheon, Huesca, London and Leeds that led him to mentor filmmakers in Pakistan, Syria and Uzbekistan.
Jakov Poposki (b. 1988, Struga) is an award-winning screenwriter and founder of the Drim Short Film Festival. With a background in electrical engineering, he later pursued his passion for film, in Screenwriting at the Ohrid Film Academy and Film and TV Screenwriting at the FDA in Skopje.
Since 2023, she has worked for AG Kurzfilm, the German Short Film Association, which serves as a service center for Germany's entire short film industry and as a point of contact for policymakers, the film industry, cinemas, and film festivals.
IN THE PALACE International Short Film Festival team member Kaloyan Vasilev has been part of the festival for 15 years. He currently heads FILMER FORGE - the festival’s film project support program and student training initiative.
He has nomination for French "Cesar" (2001) and three nominations for the Oscar (2009, 2016 and 2026). Member of the French and American Film Academies.
Lee Knight is a 2026 Academy Award–nominated writer, director, and actor working across stage and screen. His writing and directorial debut, A Friend of Dorothy—starring Miriam Margolyes and Stephen Fry—earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Short Film and is available on Disney+ and airlines worldwide.
After successfully taking his first short film, Tea For Two, on to the film festival circuit, he later co-founded the Exit 6 Film Festival in 2015. This festival became a mainstay on FilmFreeways' Top 100 Best Reviewed Film Festivals list and a BIFA-qualifying festival in 2023. He is also a Festival Strategist & Liaison at the internationally renowned Festival Formula, an agency specialising in short film festival strategy.
