Majid Majidi, the most popular Iranian director is president of the
JURY OF THE 26th WORLD FILM FESTIVAL

Majid Majidi three times awarded Grand Prize of the Americas of the Montreal World Film Festival (BARAN in 2001, THE COLOUR OF PARADISE in 1999 and THE CHILDREN OF HEAVEN in 1997) who will be the president of the Jury of the coming MWFF.

Members of the Jury 2002 are:

ANTONIO BETANCOR
Born in 1944, Antonio Betancor brought a new elan to the Spanish cinema in the late 1970s and early 1980s with such films as Sitting on the Edge of Tomorrow With One's Feet Hanging (1978) and VALENTINA (1982), both winners of prestigious prizes in Spain. His latest film, MARAR�A (1998), adapted from the novel by Rafael Arozarena on life in the Canary Islands in the 1940s, was shown in a score of festivals worldwide. It won the Goya (the Spanish Oscar) for best cinematography as well as first prize at the 1999 Miami Hispanic Film Festival.

CHARLES BINAM�
Quebec director and screenwriter Charles Binam� first worked as an assistant director at the National Film Board of Canada. He moved to Radio-Qu�bec then began a prolific career in commercials before directing television films such as UN AUTRE HOMME (1991) and popular TV series such as Blanche (1993) and Marguerite Volant (1996). He made his big screen debut in 1994 with CHILI'S BLUES and followed that with his critically acclaimed Montreal trilogy, ELDORADO (1995), STREETHEART (1998) and LA BEAUT� DE PANDORE (2000). His latest film, UN HOMME ET SON P�CH�, a remake of the 1950 classic, will open in November.

NINA COMPANEEZ
French screenwriter and director Nina Companeez first came to international attention authoring the scripts of Michel Deville's early films � ADORABLE LIAR (1961), BECAUSE, BECAUSE OF A WOMAN (1963), GIRL'S APARTMENT (1963), LUCKY JO (1964), THE THEFT OF THE MONA LISA (1996), BENJAMIN (1968), BYE BYE, BARBARA (1968), THE BEAR AND THE DOLL (1969), RAPHAEL OR THE DEBAUCHED ONE (1971). She made her own directorial debut in 1972 with FAUSTINE AND THE BEAUTIFUL SUMMER (1972), and went on to direct some of the most popular series in French television, including, most recently, L ALL�E DU ROI (1995) and LA POURSUITE DU VENT (1998).

HEINO FERCH
Heino Ferch, born in 1963, is one of the most versatile � and in-demand � of the new generation of German actors. He made his debut in theatre and television at the beginning of the 1990s, and soon began appearing in films by some of the top German and French directors: THE OGRE (Volker Schl�ndorff, 1996), LUCIE AUBRAC (Claude Berri, 1997), THE COMEDIAN HARMONISTS (Joseph Vilsmaier, 1997), and two by Tom Tykwer, WINTERSLEEPERS (1997) and RUN, LOLA, RUN (1998). He starred in Roland Suso Richter's hit film THE TUNNEL (2001), winner of the audience award at last year's Montreal World Film Festival, and his most recent film, THE SEAGULL'S LAUGHTER, is also showing at this year's Festival. He represents the new wave of german actors.

MAJID MAJIDI
Born in Tehran in 1959, Majid Majidi studied drama at Tehran University before beginning his cinematic career in 1980 as an actor. He then moved behind the camera to direct several short and medium-length films: Explosion, Hudaj (1984), Examination Day, The Last Village (1993) and God Will Come (1994). Majidi directed his first feature, BADUK, in 1991, and he followed that with THE FATHER in 1996. His next three films, THE CHILDREN OF HEAVEN (1997, nominated for an Oscar), THE COLOUR OF PARADISE (1999) and BARAN (2001), all won the Grand Prize of the Americas at the Montreal World Film Festival as well as numerous other awards around the world.

MAURIZIO NICHETTI
Italian writer, producer, actor, director and all-round funnyman, Milan-born Maurizio Nichetti began working as a screenwriter for animator Bruno Bozzetto in the 1970s, directed shorts for the RAI TV network, then made his acting debut in ALLEGRO NON TROPPO in 1976. Three years later he made his feature debut as a director with RATATAPLAN, a critical and commercial hit. He hosted shows on television and has continued turning out comic shorts and features, including THE ICICLE THIEF (1989), a sophisticated lampoon/homage to De Sica, and VOLERE VOLARE (1991), which won both best script and the audience prize at the Montreal World Film Festival.