Jury of the International Debut Feature Film Competition of the Baku International Film Festival

Huseyn Mehdiyev (Azerbaijan)

film director, screenwriter

The films he authored were awarded prizes at a number of prestigious international film festivals. His film "Ozge vakht", which was awarded at the International Film Festival in Madrid in 1997, is one of the rarest examples of Azerbaijani cinema. The artist development of auteur cinema in the history of national cinema with films such as "Urban Reapers", "Pain of Milk Tooth", "Melody of Place" and recognized our cinema in the world arena. He was the author and director of the "International Audiovisual Festival" and the "Gizil Peri" (Golden Fairy) Professional Award projects of the Azerbaijan Film Academy. Honored art worker of Azerbaijan and a member of the European Film Academy, the director is currently the chairman of the board of the Azerbaijan Professional Film Directors Guild, which he is the founder of.

Siddikh Barmak (Afghanistan/France)

Film director and producer

The director, who wrote his name in the history of world cinema with his debut film "Osama", received the "Golden Globe" for this screenplay, and was awarded prizes at the Cannes, Busan, and London film festivals. The second film "Opium War" won the title of "best film" at Rome, Batumi, Pristina, Kish and other international film festivals. The artist, who received a master's degree from VGIK in Moscow, played an important role in the publication of "Cinema", the first film magazine in Afghanistan, in addition to directing. He also taught cinema at Kabul University. Author of several documentary films, he also signed projects as a producer. He is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, as well as Netpac. 

Mahmut Fazıl Coshkun (Turkey)

Director, screenwriter

The director, who made his first steps in the cinema with documentaries, made his first feature fiction film "Uzak İhtimal " in 2009 and was awarded "Best Film" at the Rotterdam Film Festival, "Best Director" at the Istanbul Film Festival and Adana Golden Goza Film Festival. The film "Yozgat Blues", which had its world premiere at the San Sebastian Film Festival, received the "Best Film" award at the Adana Golden Goza and Malatya Film Festivals, and the "Best Balkan Film" award at the Sofia Film Festival. The film "Anons ", which had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival, won more than thirty awards at national and international festivals. He is also the author of the contemporary art documentary film “Crossroads” and the series “Derin Mor” for the digital platform. 

Jury of the International Competition - Short Film 

Esmaeel Monsef (Iran)

Film director and editor

He born in 1975 in Ardabil, northwestern Iran, is a film director and editor. He graduated from the Behandish Cinema School of Tehran and is a founding member of the Association of Independent Iranian Filmmakers. Esmaeel directed four short fiction films, two short documentaries, and a first fiction feature. His directing work has been presented at the world’s most prestigious festivals such as Clermont-Ferrand, Telluride, Chicago, Thessaloniki, Leeds, Winterthur, etc. As an editor (over sixty shorts and features, documentaries and fictions) his work was presented at Cannes, Berlin, IDFA, HotDocs, Rotterdam, Tampere, Tokyo, etc Esmaeel has been awarded both as a director (in Ismir, Dakha, Geneva, Athens, Trento, etc.) and as an editor (Iran Documentary Independent Award).

Teymur Hajiyev

Director, producer, screenwriter

He was accepted to the Summer Academy under Locarno International Film Festival in 2014. “The Wound” short debut work has displayed at the Palm Springs International Film Festival. The premium of “Shanghai, Baku” short film took place at the Tampere Film Festival. “Salt and pepper to your own delight” short film has participated in the competition section of the Rotterdam International Film Festival, one of the most prestigious film forums in Europe. In 2020, the film “Towards the Evening” was included in the program of  Critic's Week (Semaine de la Critique) of Cannes Film Festival. 

Evgeniy Maisel (Russia)

Film scholar, film critic

Regular author and editor of the magazine "Iskusstvo kino ", editor-in-chief of old.kinoart.ru, deputy editor-in-chief of the scientific peer-reviewed magazine "Kinema". Program director of the Moscow Premiere MFF .

Published in the publications  "Iskusstvo kino ", "Seans", "Kinema", " Xudojestvennıy jurnal", kinote.info, cinematheque.ru and others. Teaches the history and theory of cinema in Moscow and St. Petersburg film schools and universities. Author of numerous lecture series. Member of the Expert Council of the Guild of Film Scholars and Film Critics of the Russian Federation. Member of FIPRESCI.