JURY
Maxine Brabant
Entertainment Partnerships @ Meta. Maxine Brabant first stop in Hollywood was as Toni Howard’s intern at ICM, followed by stints at Pantheon, ICM, Fox Searchlight and CAA, where she was at the forefront of transitioning influencers into mainstream media and guiding legacy clients into digital media. Eventually, Meta recruited Brabant to steward celebrity innovation partnerships, oftentimes dealing with AI initiatives.
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British Producer Julia Verdin has established herself as one of Hollywood’s leading independent producers, with over 42 critically acclaimed feature films produced to date.
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Julia is known as an accomplished producer, award-winning Director and has written a number of screenplays. Having been in the film business for over 30 years, Julia has established herself as one of Hollywood’s leading independent producers, with over 40 critically acclaimed feature films produced to date. She founded and has been running Rough Diamond Productions since 1995. She has also recently made her mark as a writer and director; and has just completed directing her fifth film.
Julia’s comprehensive understanding of filmmaking encompasses every stage of the production process, from story development and casting to budgeting, financing, and distribution strategy. Her adeptness extends to on-set management, where she excels in fostering a collaborative environment that brings out the best in her team. Known for her creative acumen, interpersonal skills, and problem-solving abilities, Julia is adept at navigating the complexities of film production while ensuring a seamless execution.
Andrea Dimity
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Andrea Dimity is a seasoned film producer and literary manager whose projects consistently balance commercial appeal with compelling storytelling. She executive‑produced Kandahar, the first major U.S. action film shot in Saudi Arabia. starring Gerard Butler and produced by Thunder Road Pictures, and produced the Amazon Prime feature Viral Viral. On the literary side, she represents screenwriter Pete Barry, writer of the action‑adventure film Marian, currently in development with producers Amy Pascal and Donald DeLine. Her broader management career has included guiding bestselling authors such as Sara de Waard, whose 2024 novel Defy earned critical acclaim and strong sales. With a global production perspective, a keen eye for emerging talent, and unwavering advocacy for the creatives she champions, Andrea Dimity continues to shape engaging stories for screens and shelves alike.
Chris Coggins
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Chris Coggins has over 2 decades of experience in feature, television and digital series development and production. She began her career directly after graduation from The University of Southern California School for Cinematic Arts working as a Creative Assistant at Escape Artists/Sony Pictures.
At Escape Artists she assisted on productions The Pursuit of Happyness, The Weather Man, The Taking of Pelham 123, Knowing and The Great Debaters. There, she ascended through the ranks and procured numerous projects for the company including The Ends of the Earth, Fall From Grace, Seven Pounds, Masterpiece, Rumspringa! and I Want to *$&% Your Sister. She also secured the scripts for and co-produced The Back-Up Plan and Hope Springs .
Coggins then moved on to working at Allison Shearmur Productions at her home studio Lionsgate and procured projects Burial Rites, Endangered and Nerve for the studio. There, she also developed Pride, Prejudice and Zombies and Cinderella.
She then progressed to Rock Paper Scissors Entertainment as Head of Development. There she built a production slate, produced the PSA Take Yourself on a Date and was responsible for development on the company’s new media projects for The Oscars, HBO and Amazon.
Coggins’ independent projects include producing the spec pilot Angelino Heights, PSA Not on My Watch and the music video for Alekesam's All is Forgiven.
Next, Coggins worked at Luc Besson’s studio EuropaCorp and procured projects Unt. Aniston Superhero Project, Fae and the English-language remake for the Japanese blockbuster Shield of Straw.
She then moved into management at Heroes and Villains Entertainment representing writers, and directors with clients working on such TV series as All American, High Potential and Elsbeth.
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Ben Lewin
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Ben Lewin is an Australian film and television director.
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Ben Lewin has made feature films in Australia, England, France, and America. Some of his notable films are The Dunera Boys (1985), Georgia (1988), The Favour, the Watch and the Very Big Fish (1991), and The Sessions (2012), for which he also wrote the screenplay, based on an essay by Mark O'Brien. Lewin gained further notoriety for writing and directing the romantic comedy film Lucky Break (1994), released outside of Australia as Paperback Romance, which was a critical success in Australia and launched/revived the careers of Gia Carides and Rebecca Gibney, the latter of whom was nominated for the AACTA Award for Best Supporting Actress by the Australian Film Institute for her performance in the film.
He also directed the films Please Stand By (2017), The Catcher Was a Spy (2018) and Falling for Figaro (2021)
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Alison Mann
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As an artist, Alison Mann always knew she wanted to work in Animation. She began her career at Nickelodeon Animation Studio as a finance department intern while attending Columbia College Chicago. After graduating, she was offered the amazing opportunity to continue working with Nickelodeon/MTV as their Recruiter/ Coordinator of Talent Relations. Through her 20 years in the industry, she gained experience in TV, Film and Gaming while working at Walt Disney Animation Studio, Zynga, Disney Interactive, Paramount Pictures Animation, Illumination Entertainment and Sony Pictures Animation.
Mann is the co-founder of the BRIC Foundation, an organization set up to solve how to create new access points for women and people from underrepresented groups so they can excel at creative leadership and to enable culture change through engaging and empowering talent. As a creative and supporter of talent, Mann is passionate about storytelling and identifying and working with inspiring creators that can continue to elevate the animation industry.
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Academy Motion Picture Arts & Sciences
Officially recognized by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, some of these films may go on to receive Oscar nominations.
British Academy of Film and Television Arts
Official qualifying event for the British Academy of Film and Television Arts BAFTA short film awards. Award-winners at the festival are eligible to win BAFTA's
Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television
ACCT presenters of the Canadian Screen Awards – eligible international film festivals
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The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of Spain
Official qualifying festival for the Goya Awards, Spanish short films selected for the festival are able to to submit for the 36 edition of the prestigious Awards.
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