You have held curatorial roles in the past. When selecting films, what are the most important criteria for you?
I always look for work that's formally and visually pushing at boundaries and shirking conventions. Shorts are such an incredible form for experimentation, but I think they're extremely difficult to get right. Working within a 10-15 minute timeframe and creating something that stirs emotions, visually excites, and delivers narrative beats — even in surreal or experimental work — is genuinely super challenging. But when it's done right, the viewer comes away with a sense of excitement and satisfaction that's hard to match.
You currently work in talent development. What do you think are the most essential traits a filmmaker should possess?
It's tough out there, so perseverance is a very necessary trait. Resourcefulness too — short films don't make easy money, let's be real! And then there's an insatiable curiosity, which I think underpins everything else.
The Reclaim the Frame program promotes the visibility of marginalized groups and relies on active audience participation. Could you tell us about how this is structured? It's been a while since I worked on the project, but I was there at its inception, helping to design the structure of the programme. In essence, it's about building community, conversation, and solidarity around films. The idea was simple: to work with cinemas and local community outreach people to build activities and conversations around films on their release, ensuring strong opening weekend numbers so the films could hold in cinemas for as long as possible. It was amazing diving deep into both the films and local communities to better understand how films land in different environments. That experience has informed all my work since — I now always think about audiences when I watch a film, and not just those in the cinema. 'Audience' can mean programmers, critics, sales agents, distributors. When I work with early career filmmakers now, we talk a lot about how to convey the essence of a film to these different groups. Being able to imagine how they think is genuinely helpful for filmmakers trying to better express their ideas and intentions.
How do you watch a film as a jury member, a curator, and as a "regular" viewer? Are you able to separate these roles when watching a film just for pleasure?
When I was working full-time as a film programmer, I found I couldn't stop thinking about how to programme films, even ones I watched for pleasure. But part of being a good programmer is being cinema literate and watching as much as you can, so you have a solid bank of comparative titles in your head. The lines between 'work-viewing' and regular viewing are very blurred, because all viewing experiences inform your overall relationship with cinema — the more you watch, the better. Now in my talent development role, I watch as many shorts as I can. I love this process: not only is it incredibly varied, but it's also a really powerful sense-check on humanity. What's preoccupying emerging artists right now? What new formal trends are appearing, and why?
What are your expectations for this year’s Friss Hús international competition program?
I'm looking forward to seeing a wide variety of top quality films, meeting engaged and dynamic audiences, and having some exciting, insightful conversations with my fellow jury members. I'm genuinely so excited to be part of it.