The European Film Academy’s next president will be Juliette Binoche
According to Variety magazine on Thursday, Juliette Binoche, the Oscar-winning French actress, will take over as head of the European Film Academy from Agnieszka Holland, the Polish filmmaker.
Ingmar Bergman, the first president of the organization, was chosen in 1989 by the 40 original members of the Academy to serve in this honorary capacity. After Wim Wenders succeeded Bergman in 1996, the first female president Agnieszka Holland served until 2020, when she announced her decision to resign.
„We want to respect Agnieszka Holland’s wish and fully understand that responsibilities outside of filmmaking, however inspirational and important, can sometimes get in the way of the creative process,” released a statement from the Academy’s executive director, Matthijs Wouter Knol, and chairman of the board, Mike Downey, to all 52 European Academy members. Such a choice also serves to highlight the enormous debt of gratitude we owe Agnieszka Holland’s efforts to our organization. On behalf of the European Film Academy, we would like to congratulate her for the remarkable support, fortitude, and vision she has shown in all the roles she has undertaken within the Academy’s institutions.”
The Polish director’s most recent picture, „The Green Border,” took home the Venice Film Festival’s Special Jury Prize. Agnieszka Holland is getting ready to film „Franz,” a biographical picture co-produced with Mike Downey about Kafka.
Binoche, who has been a longtime active member of the European Film Academy, will take over as president on May 1. Recently, Binoche participated in two limited series on AppleTV+ called „The New Look,” in which she co-stars with Ben Mendelsohn as Coco Chanel, and in the film „The Taste of Things,” which was chosen for the Cannes Film Festival competition and for which Tran Anh Hung won the directing prize.
Photo source: Celeb Mafia
