Producer Maria João Mayer, actor Rafael Morais, screenwriter Tiago R. Santos and German director Marten Persiel, based in Portugal, are among the new members of the European Cinema Academy, it was announced today.
Coinciding with Europe Day, which is celebrated today, the European Film Academy announced the entry of 709 new members, professionals linked to cinema, four of which are from Portugal.
According to the European Film Academy, this is a record number of new members joining an organization that currently has 5,000 members from 52 countries.
Among new members, 49% are women, 50% are men and 1% represent non-binary people.
The majority of professionals now joining are from Germany (114), Italy (58), Greece (50), the United Kingdom (50), Switzerland (37), France (36) and Poland (36).
Among the new members of the academy are directors Matteo Garrone (Italy) and Cristi Puiu (Romania), actress Cate Blanchett (Australia/United Kingdom) and screenwriter and director Latifa Said (France).
“The members of the European Film Academy are linked by a common idea of European cultural identity and by a dedication to showing the diversity and richness of European cinema”, highlights that organization.
The European Film Academy was founded in 1989 with the purpose of “defending the interests of the European film industry”, and the first president was Swedish director Ingmar Bergman.
Since May 1st, the academy has been presided over by French actress Juliette Binoche.
In 2023, among the new members who entered the academy were directors Marco Leão and André Santos, film critic Francisco Ferreira, programmer Carlos Nogueira and casting director Patrícia Vasconcelos.
