International Competition Award

Elegance Bratton is an award-winning director, writer, and producer whose work explores resilience, identity, and the universal power of shared humanity. A former US Marine, he began filmmaking after a decade of homelessness. His films, including Pier Kids (Independent Spirit Award winner), The Inspection (A24, TIFF, NYFF), and the music documentary Move Ya Body: The Birth of House (Sundance, Tribeca, Sheffield, Sydney), have screened at over 200 festivals worldwide. Bratton also created Viceland’s My House and was named one of Variety’s “10 Directors to Watch” in 2023. He co-leads Freedom Principle with producer Chester Algernal Gordon and is completing his next feature, By Any Means.

Thania Dimitrakopoulou is part of The Match Factory, one of the leading sales companies in the world, which represents, among others, Aki Kaurismäki, Jim Jarmusch, Alice Rohrwacher, Christian Petzold, Fatih Akin, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Maren Ade, Lukas Dhont, and Oliver Laxe. She joined the company for a short four-month internship in 2007. Since then, she has collaborated with many brilliant minds: filmmakers, film enthusiasts, and industry professionals, while leading the company’s sales division.

Frederick Elmes has been a cinematographer of dramatic feature films, television limited series, and commercials for most of his life, and now lives in New York. He was educated at Rochester Institute of Technology, NYU Tisch School of the Arts, and the American Film Institute. He has collaborated with directors including David Lynch (Eraserhead, Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart), John Cassavetes, Ang Lee, Jim Jarmusch, Lisa Cholodenko, Steve Zaillian, Mira Nair, and Charlie Kaufman. His films have been shown at festivals worldwide, garnering numerous awards. He is currently teaching at New York University Graduate Film School.