Jury

Tara Karajica is a Belgrade-based film programmer, critic and journalist. She is currently a Live Action Shorts Programmer and Head of the Industry Program at PÖFF Shorts. Previously, she has also been the Narrative Features Programmer at the Durban International Film Festival, a Narrative Features Screener for SXSW and Head of the Short Film Program and Live Action Shorts Programmer at SEEFest. Her writings have appeared in Variety, Indiewire, Screen International, MovieMaker, Little White Lies, Business Doc Europe, and Film New Europe, among many other media outlets, including the European Film Academy’s online magazine, Close-up, and Eurimages. She is a member of the European Film Academy, FIPRESCI, the Online Film Critics Society and the Alliance of Women Film Journalists; a Golden Globes International Voter as well as the recipient of the 2014 Best Critic Award at the Altcine Action! Film Festival. In September 2016, she founded Yellow Bread, a magazine dedicated entirely to short films, ranked among the 25 Top Short Film Blogs and Websites on the Planet in 2017. In February 2018, she launched Fade to Her, a magazine about successful women working in Film and TV and in 2019, she was a member of the Jury of the European Shooting Stars (European Film Promotion). Tara is a regular at film festivals as a film critic, moderator and/or jury member.

Vytautas Katkus is a Lithuanian cinematographer and director. As a cinematographer, his projects range from movies to visual art. His films as a cinematographer were selected and had won in various festivals: “Toxic” (director: Saulė Bliuvaitė, 2024), “Renovation”, (director: Gabrielė Urbonaitė, 2025), “Holy Destructors” (director: Aistė Žegulytė, 2025), “Techno, Mama” (director: Saulius Baradinskas, 2021) and more. He has directed three short films: “Community Gardens” (Cannes, Semaine de la Critique, 2019), “Places” (Venice FF, Orizzonti, 2020), and “Cherries” (Cannes FF, official selection,2022). Vytautas debut feature film “Visitor” premiered in main competition at the 59th. Karlovy Vary Film International Festival where it won Best Director award.

Riina Mikkonen is an executive director and programmer at Tampere Film Festival. Mikkonen is in the competition selection committee and has curated numerous short film programmes since she started her short film journey in 2005. Mikkonen has a Master’s Degree in Media Studies from University of Turku and has also studied literature, art and culture history, gender studies and information science. She has experience also as a film critic, editor, librarian and information specialist. In cinema, she appreciates both the aesthetics and ethics.