Michael Gubbins is an Experienced analyst, journalist and consultant with particular expertise in film and digital media. He is the author of numerous studies and reports on changing media markets, with particular emphasis on consumer behaviour. He was the editor of major magazines covering film (Screen International), music (Music Week) and business technology (Computing), giving him a rare overview of the transformation of consumer behaviour in a number of creative industries. A respected speaker and chair of film industry events around Europe, he chaired the national film body, Ffilm Cymru Wales for seven years until 2019.

Matīss Kaža (1995) is a writer, director and producer who grew up in Riga, Latvia and got his BFA in Film & TV from Tisch School of the Arts in New York. He is the founder of Trickster Pictures, a young, but already prominent Latvian production company. He is dedicated to bringing youthful, adventurous and innovative films from emerging international talents to the big screen. Kaža’s first documentary “One Ticket Please” (2017) screened in Krakow, Tempo, Beldocs, Goteborg and other festivals around the world, winning several awards. Most recently, he has produced “Neon Spring” (2022) and “Sisters” (2022), both of which have won awards at film festivals and are now available on HBO Max in Europe. Currently, he is producing the second feature from Annecy winner Gints Zilbalodis – “Flow”, co-producing Venice winner Laurynas Bareiša’s “Drowning Dry”.

Nebojša Taraba is a producer and partner in the leading Croatian independent production company Drugi Plan, established in 2004 alongside Miodrag Sila. Drugi Plan specialises in production of high-end dramas and documentaries. Some of their recent work are drama series The Paper (Netflix, HRT), Success (HBO Europe),and documentary series Love Around The World (Arte, BR). Nebojša Taraba has also been working as a producer tutor on MIDPOINT Institute TV Series Launch Programme since 2019. 

Alise Ģelze is a film producer and founder of the “White Picture” studio. Some of her most notable produced films include Juris Kursietis’ Oleg (2019), internationally acclaimed Jānis Nords’ feature film Mother I Love You (2013), and Renārs Vimba’s Mellow Mud (2016), which received the main award in the children’s film program “Crystal Bear” at the Berlin International Film Festival.

Jarmo Lampela is the Head of Drama at YLE, Finland’s national public broadcasting company, since 2015. He has worked as director, scriptwriter and producer with numerous productions for cinema, television and theatre, including Joki (2001), Karppi (2018-2021) and Aikuiset (2019-2022). Jarmo’s background includes working as the Professor of Film Directing and Head of the Department of Film, Television, and Scenography at Aalto University, Helsinki.

As SVP International Fiction – Coproduction & Acquisition, Simone Emmelius is responsible for the ZDF company with its entities ZDF main channel, ZDFneo (entertainment channel for a younger target audience 25-50 years), 3sat (cultural channel, target audience German speaking territories), arte (cultural channel, target audience Germany and France), and funk (nonlinear program offer, target audience 14-29 years). Until May, 2018, she was SVP ZDFneo, responsible for one of the top 10 channels in Germany, basically focussed on drama, crime, and comedy series, feature films and on entertainment programs (e.g. “neoMagazin Royale” / Jan Böhmermann). From 1987 to 2009, Simone Emmelius was in charge of various functions for the strategic development of the upcoming digital market activities of ZDF, setting up digital channels and initial interactive programs. 

Starting his career as a film critic, Karlo Funk has been working in various positions in the Estonian film industry for more than 20 years. He has been the head of production in Estonian Film Foundation, managing the acquisitions on digital television platforms of telco and buying documentaries for national broadcasters. After assignments in the cultural sector, he is currently an adviser in the Ministry of Culture on audiovisual and digital culture. In cooperation with genre films festivals in Europe, he is running a genre-oriented training programme European Genre Forum focusing on first-time film-makers.

Laimonas Ubavičius is the director of the Lithuanian Film Centre. Prior to this role, he was the Chancellor of the Ministry of Culture in Lithuania for five years starting in 2015. He also held positions as Attaché for Cultural Policy, Audiovisual Issues, and Copyright at the Permanent Representation of Lithuania to the EU in Brussels and as the Chairman of the Audiovisual Affairs Working Party of the Council of the European Union.

Dita Rietuma, Dr.Art. Film historian, film critic, director of National Film Centre of Latvia.  Graduated from Moscow Film Institute (VGIK) in 1992. From 1993 until 2014 – the editor and film critic of Latvia’s biggest daily newspaper Diena. Since 2007 – the Lecturer and currently – the Assistant Professor of Riga Stradins University Communications department.The author (and co-author) of six books dedicated to the history of world cinema. Since 2014 – the director of the National Film Centre of Latvia – a State institution of direct administration under the supervision of the Ministry of Culture, which implements the national policy in the cinema and film industry. D.Rietuma is a member of the European Film Academy since 2014. Member of EFAD (European Film Agency Directors Association) and representative of Latvia in EFP (European Film Promotion). Establisher of the Latvian branch of FIPRESCI (in 1995).

As the head of Production and Development at the National Film Centre of Latvia, Inga holds a detailed overview on the current films and series made in Latvia. Well versed in the European funding mechanisms and film policies, Inga has a rich background in the work of the field of culture – her previous role was that of programme curator at the State Culture Capital Foundation of Latvia. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and Business Administration from Stockholm School of Economics in Riga and has also obtained a Master’s degree in Politics and Political Economy from the Central European University in Budapest, Hungary.

Elīna Ļitvinova completed her BA studies at the Baltic Film and Media School in Tallinn (2010), followed by Simon Perry’s international co-production training at Cologne International Film School (2011) and Master degree at the National Film and Television School (UK). After working as a line producer on commercials and features for international producers, Elina founded her company THREE BROTHERS in 2015. With passion for powerful author’s handwriting the company’s first feature credit was critically acclaimed Martti Helde’s SCANDINAVIAN SILENCE. Elina is one of the EFP Producers on the Move, belongs to EAVE, Berlinale Talent Campus and Ex Oriente Networks and is also a member of the Estonian Film Industry Cluster and European Film Academy. Her latest co-production, series “Estonia” premiered at TIFF 2023.

Arta is  the Editor-in-Chief at RedDotMedia, a non-governmental organisation with international recognition. As the Senior Editor-in-Chief, her responsibilities include developing news stories, reporting, producing audio-visual content, making decisions on editing strategy, and overseeing media coverage. Her most well-known TV project is the investigative weekly TV program ‘Nekā personīga’ on TV3 Latvia.

At the same time, she works on film projects and has produced  series “Red Forest” (Sarkanais mežs, 2019), “Crime Solving for Beginners” (Krimināllieta iesācējam, 2022), as well as art and documentary films.