The Jury of the 18th ŻUBROFFKA ISFF

We present The Jury of the 18th ŻUBROFFKA International Short Film Festival!

DOUWE DIJKSTRA (The Netherlands)

Is a filmmaker and visual artist, operating in a mixture of video, animation and VFX. His projects range from short films and documentaries to video installations and theatre performances. He moves freely and playfully in a meta-area he has hammered out on his own, a narrative style that crosses the traditional boundaries between documentary and fiction, essay and experiment. His films have screened at festivals around the world, most recently his documentary ”Neighbour Abdi”.

EWA SMYK (Poland)

Born in Białystok, Ewa is a director of animated films and a visual artist who has been living and creating in the United Kingdom for the past 10 years. Her short films “The Deal” and “Homebird”, produced in the UK, reflect a deep sentiment for the Podlasie countryside, the simplicity of everyday life, and a longing for family. Ewa’s films have been showcased and awarded at prestigious festivals, including the Encounters Film Festival, Cork International Film Festival, DOK Leipzig, and DokuFest. In 2022, “Homebird” was longlisted for a BAFTA award in the Best British Animated Film category. That same year, it won first prize in the Animacja.pl competition at ŻUBROFFKA.

GRZEGORZ DĘBOWSKI (Poland)

A graduate of Directing at the Łódź Film School. He gained experience as an assistant to Paweł Pawlikowski, Leszek Dawid, Martha Coolidge, and Gary Romolo Fiorelli. He made his feature film debut in 2023 with “Tyle co nic”. He is currently developing scripts for upcoming film projects. He tackles socially engaged themes and is interested in cinema as a modern mythology that gives human suffering and loneliness at least a bit of meaning. On 27 February 2022, he hitchhiked to Ukraine with José Andrés, helping him initiate the largest humanitarian aid operation in world history.