Speakers & Juries

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Cinematic Focus Speakers Screen Focus Speakers Czech Film Industry Forum Speakers Moderators Eurimages Co-production Development Award Jury KVIFF & MIDPOINT Development Award Jury MIDPOINT Feature Launch Script Consultant Trainees Casting Day Speakers Workshop Stage Speakers

Aňa Geislerová

Aňa Geislerová is one of the Czech Republic’s most acclaimed and internationally recognized actresses. Her award-winning performance in Happiness earned her the Concha de Plata for Best Actress at the San Sebastián International Film Festival in 2005, and she has since won five Czech Lion Awards. She was also named a Berlinale Shooting Stars talent and received the Angela Award at the Subtitle European Film Festival.

Internationally, she is known for her roles in Anthropoid alongside Cillian Murphy and Jamie Dornan, and in the acclaimed The Ipcress File with Joe Cole and Tom Hollander. In 2025, she starred in & Sons, directed by Pablo Trapero, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. That same year, Caravan, directed by Zuzana Kirchnerová, premiered in Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival.

Her latest film, Only Beautiful Things to Look At, directed by Ivan Ostrochovský, premieres this year in competition at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. Alongside acting, Aňa has co-produced Only Beautiful Things to Look At and Caravan, and produced A Pint of Ink, also premiering at KVIFF this year. In 2025, she joined L'Oréal as an ambassador. She is also a published author of two books and is currently working on her third.

Piotr Bartuszek

Piotr Bartuszek is a Poland-based casting director with over two decades of experience casting feature films and television across Eastern Europe and internationally. He has cast more than ninety titles and is widely recognised as a leading authority on casting in Central and Eastern Europe. He is the founder of the Polish Casting Directors Guild (PCDG) and active in fostering international collaboration. His professional affiliations include the International Casting Directors Association (ICDA) - where he serves on the board -, the Casting Society (CSA), the European Film Academy (EFA), and the Polish Film Academy (PAF).

Domnica Circiumaru

Domnica Cîrciumaru is a Romanian casting director with over 24 years of experience in film and television. She has worked on more than 100 feature films and major international productions, collaborating with acclaimed directors such as Francis Lee, Claude Lelouch, Veit Helmer,Martin Campbell, and Mona Fastvold.

Her television credits include leading Romanian series such as Subteran (Netflix), Umbre (HBO), Clanul (Pro Tv), and Las Fierbinți (Protv),as well as international productions including Spy/Master, Django, and Rise of Empires: Ottoman. A member of ICDA, CSA, and AMPAS, she became the first Romanian casting director invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2021.

Sam Jones

Sam Jones is a UK based Casting Director working in the UK and internationally across film, television, theatre, dance/theatre, opera, cross-genre, multi-media and art projects. She was previously Head of Casting at the Royal Shakespeare Company, Almeida Theatre and National Theatre Wales. She is an Honorary Fellow at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, member of the Casting Directors’ Guild, the International Casting Director’s Association and BAFTA.

Nancy Bishop

Nancy Bishop, CSA, ICDA, is an award-winning international casting director, currently based in London (formerly Prague). With an extensive portfolio spanning major studio films and television for many of the major networks and streamers, Her recent film, Kristallnacht staring Clive Owen and Melanie Laurent will open later this year.

Other recent credits include working with Sacha Baron Cohen on Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm, which earned her a CSA Artios Award. She has also cast scores of independent films, including Miranda’s Victim, the final film of Donald Sutherland’s prolific career. She was an early member of the ICDA, and the founding member and former President of the Global branch of the Casting Society of America (CSA).

Anila Gajević

Anila Gajević was born in Sarajevo in 1979 where she graduated in Bosnian literature and language. As a former journalist and editor, in 2008, she founded ZONA, the first talent agency in Bosnia and Herzegovina which is today among the leading agencies in Southeastern Europe and beyond.

Her agency represents some of most prominent actors and young talents from the Balkans, but also from Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Spain... As an agent she has represented actors in numerous international projects such as Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, The November Man, Snowpiercer, Legends ,Skyfall,The Last Christmas, Gomorrah, Game of Thrones, In Order of Disappearance, Der Pass, Success, Cold War, Jack Ryan, Munich Games, Before We Die, 42 segundos, Diva Futura, iHostage... Screen International listed her in 2016 as one of the „Future Leaders: Agents“. In her country, she received two awards Lady Boss and Woman of the Year for entrepreneurship.

She is a member of the Association of Filmmakers in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European Film Academy.

Tonia Mishiali

Tonia is a director/producer, member of the EFA and Berlinale Talents alumna. She has served as a juror at festivals including KVIFF and Thessaloniki. Her films have won awards and been selected by major markets and prestigious festivals such as Locarno, Karlovy Vary, Cairo, Palm Springs, Clermont, PÖFF, Sofia, Santa Barbara.

At Sydney, she was selected as one of Europe’s ten most outstanding women directors. Her debut feature Pause won the FIPRESCI Prize and was listed among Rotten Tomatoes’ “20 Most Daring Films of 2019”, while it was released theatrically in USA and Europe and streamed on Amazon Prime and HBO Europe.

Timka Grin

Born in Sarajevo, Timka Grin had an intense experience of working as a casting director on numerous feature films, shorts and TV series, many of them internationally acclaimed and award-winning. She is a member of Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), European Film Academy (EFA), International Casting Directors Association (ICDA) and Casting Society of America (CSA).

She gained the most valuable professional lessons through working with some great directors, just to mention a few: brothers Dardenne, Jean-Luc Godard, Danis Tanovic, Ursula Meier, Aida Begic, Marco Bellocchio, Jasmila Zbanic and many others. Timka also owns T.G. Casting, working throughout the former Yugoslav countries and internationally in film and television. She has worked on numerous acclaimed projects, while also focusing on discovering new talent and championing exceptional performers who have yet to receive the recognition they deserve. She has also conducted extensive children's casting for film.