JURY
Nick Vallelonga
Producer, winner of two Academy Awards and two Golden Globes for Original Screenplay and Best Picture for "Green Book"
Nick Vallelonga is an American actor, director, screenwriter, and producer, and a recipient of both the Academy Award (Oscar) and the Golden Globe. He is best known for the film Green Book, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay, directed by Peter Farrelly. The project established Vallelonga as a powerful storyteller with a strong sensitivity to human stories inspired by real-life events and intercultural dialogue. Currently, Nick is developing several new productions, including That’s Amore!, a romantic comedy musical starring John Travolta, Katherine Heigl, and Christopher Walken. His upcoming projects also include Reunion, based on the novel by Dan Walsh, as well as the miniseries MESSIAH. At the same time, Vallelonga is writing and producing Gambino together with George Gallo and is producing the buddy comedy The Big House. Among his previous film works are Songs of Solomon and Unorganized Crime, a television pilot that he directed and produced, starring Chazz Palminteri. As an actor, Nick has appeared in The Many Saints of Newark, Monstrous alongside Christina Ricci, and The Birthday Cake with Ewan McGregor, Val Kilmer, William Fichtner, and Lorraine Bracco. His work is distinguished by humor, emotional depth, and strong characters that bridge mainstream audiences with auteur cinema and universal values in contemporary world filmmaking.
Osvaldo De Santis
Honorary Jury Chairman
Osvaldo De Santis is a legendary figure in the global film industry, with an exceptionally influential and long-lasting career. For thirty-three years, he served as President of Twentieth Century Fox Italy, where he played a decisive role in the distribution, positioning and success of some of the most iconic films in cinema history. During his professional journey, De Santis also held the position of General Director of SKY TV, contributing to the evolution, growth and internationalization of the Italian television market. As of this year, he serves as Chief Consultant for Paramount Pictures in Italy, offering strategic guidance and creative insight based on decades of top-level experience. His career is closely connected to world-famous productions such as Titanic, Avatar, Star Wars, Ice Age, and many other masterpieces that have shaped modern film history. In 2019, the producer was an official guest at the 10th Anniversary Ceremony of the “Flight in Art” Awards of the Stoyan Kambarev Foundation in Sofia. For young Bulgarian filmmakers, his role as Chairman of the international jury of the Cinema Award 355 represents a rare honor, inspiration, and opportunity for creative dialogue, professional growth, and meaningful international collaboration in the future ahead.
Gary Stretch
Actor, director, producer
During the early 1990s, Gary Stretch was the glamour boy of British boxing. Alongside his sporting success, he built an international modelling career, working with high-end fashion brands including Calvin Klein and Versace. Stretch later turned to acting, and in 2004 his dedication was rewarded when he was cast as the psychotic gangster Sonny in Shane Meadows’ critically acclaimed Dead Man’s Shoes. His powerful performance earned him a British Independent Film Award (BIFA) nomination alongside fellow British talents Paddy Considine and Toby Kebbell, bringing him widespread recognition. He went on to co-star opposite Sir Anthony Hopkins, Colin Farrell, and Angelina Jolie in Oliver Stone’s epic Alexander, and later appeared in Savages alongside Benicio Del Toro and Salma Hayek. Gary also expanded into filmmaking, producing and directing Through My Father’s Eyes: The Ronda Rousey Story (Lionsgate), which earned Best Film accolades. His most recent film is the thriller Devil’s Play, directed by Ben Charles Edwards and produced by and co-starring Dessy Tenekedjieva, in which Stretch stars opposite Mickey Rourke. His lead performance received multiple Best Actor awards during the film’s successful festival run.
Fabian Gasmia
Producer, Jury Chairman
Fabian Gasmia is renowed as one of Europe’s leading film producers. He is an alumnus of Filmuniversität Babelsberg, Atelier Ludwigsburg-Paris, and ACE. He entered the international co-production arena with DETAiLFILM, co-producing numerous award-winning films that played at festivals worldwide and sold all around the globe, including PERSONAL SHOPPER - which won Olivier Assayas Best Director in Cannes -, L'AVENIR - which won Mia Hansen-Løve a Silver Bear as Best Director in Berlinale competition -, and Léos Carax' ANNETTE, which is opening Cannes 2021 in Official Competition. To further strengthen his reach throughout Europe, he started a joint-venture with Lars von Trier's Zentropa Entertainments in 2015 before initiating artist-led production house Seven Elephants in 2018. Fabian serves as vice president of the Franco-German film academy and board member of Berlin's film-school dffb. He teaches regularly at film schools and is a frequent guest speaker at international panels.
Dessy Tenekedjieva
Actress, producer, director
Dessy is an internationally acclaimed actress and producer. Since 2000, her production companies, NOVA Film and later Black Sea Film, have produced over 200 art projects, including feature films, documentaries, short films, TV shows, commercials, music videos, and albums. Her multi-award-winning films have been showcased at the world’s most prestigious film festivals. For her role as Maria de’ Medici in Il Mestiere delle Armi, directed by Ermanno Olmi, Dessy became the first Bulgarian actress to appear at the Cannes Film Festival in a leading role in a film selected for the Official Competition (Palme d’Or). She has co-starred opposite Gérard Depardieu, Ron Perlman, Geoff Bell.. Her most recent work as a producer is the fantasy thriller Devil’s Play, directed by Ben Charles Edwards, in which she also stars alongside Mickey Rourke, Gary Stretch, and Geoff Bell. The film enjoyed a highly successful festival run and received multiple international awards, including several for Dessy’s performance, as well as Best Producer honors. Devil’s Play is now available worldwide. Since 2016, Dessy has been based in London.
Phillip Roth
Producer, writer, director
Phil Roth is an accomplished producer, screenwriter, and director with a career spanning more than one hundred feature films and television projects created for major Hollywood studios, including Universal, Warner Brothers, Sony, Paramount, and Columbia–TriStar. He is the creator of A.P.E.X., widely recognized as one of the most successful low-budget science fiction films of 1993, which earned cult status for its innovation and commercial impact. Roth is also considered one of the early pioneers in digital visual effects. In 1989, he developed his own proprietary technology, making him one of the first film producers to use computer-based platforms for digital special effects in cinema. His groundbreaking work helped shape modern visual storytelling, and his technology was later adapted by James Cameron and Lightstorm Entertainment for the digital effects used in Titanic. Beyond his achievements in Hollywood, Phil Roth has played a significant role in the growth of the film industry in Eastern Europe. He founded UFO Films and TV Studios in Bulgaria, which has become one of the largest independent film studios in the region. The studio has attracted numerous international productions and has served as an important creative hub, supporting co-productions, technological innovation, and the development of emerging filmmaking talent.
Pascal Vicedomini
The International Film Festival on the Isle of Capri, Italy
Producer, TV Host
Pascal Vicedomini is one of the most established Italian figures in global show business—a producer, journalist, and television host. He is the founder of prestigious international festivals such as Capri, Hollywood, the Ischia Global Film & Music Fest, and Los Angeles, Italia. Since the 1990s, he has worked with RAI and Mediaset, creating and hosting numerous cultural and entertainment television programs. Vicedomini has played a key role in securing Hollywood Walk of Fame stars for renowned figures including Bernardo Bertolucci, Andrea Bocelli, Ennio Morricone, and Lina Wertmüller. Throughout his career, he has interviewed world leaders and cultural icons such as Nelson Mandela, Bill Clinton, and the Dalai Lama. As a producer, he has been involved in major international music and film events. In 2018, he was honored with the Italian government’s Ufficiale al Merito della Repubblica Italiana for his contribution to promoting Italian culture. He continues to build international partnerships and actively promote Italian cinema, music, and cultural values worldwide.
Gaby Whyte Hart
Producer & Casting Director (UK)
Gaby began her film career at 17 and earned a master’s in producing at the New York Film Academy, Kings University London. She produced award-winning shorts and her first feature, Dead End, which won Best UK Feature at the International TV and Screen Awards. After moving to Los Angeles, she produced Becoming, starring Toby Kebbell, Jason Patric, and Penelope Mitchell, named a top 20 horror film of 2020 by Thrillist. As a casting director, Gaby has worked with Nicholas Cage, Ruby Rose, Eva Green, Maria Bakalova, Alex Pettyfer, Guy Pearce, Dominic West, Alexander Dreymon, and Samuel L. Jackson, casting Dirty Angels (Martin Campbell) and Wind of Change for Warner Bros and Fox Studios and currently casts and produces Just Play Dead while maintaining strong ties with top UK and US agencies.
Elizabeth Kormanova
Producer & Lawyer - Rocket Science (UK)
Elizabeth Kormanova is an established film lawyer and producer with a strong international career. She holds a law degree from the Sorbonne in Paris and a degree in film production from La Fémis. Her producing career began with the short film Lifelong, which premiered at the San Sebastián International Film Festival. For six years, she served as Head of Business Affairs at the UK-based company Hanway Films, founded by Academy Award–winning producer Jeremy Thomas. During this time, she was involved in the financing and development of internationally acclaimed productions such as The Killing of a Sacred Deer by Yorgos Lanthimos and Pinocchio by Matteo Garrone. Currently, Elizabeth leads the Business Affairs team at London-based studio Rocket Science, which finances and produces feature films selected for the Cannes Film Festival and recognized with nominations for the Academy Awards, BIFA, and other major honors, including Living, Crimes of the Future, May December, and The Apprentice.
