Editor

 The FIFF is delighted to unveil the names of the five personalities who will make up the International Jury, which will award the Regard d’Or – the Grand Prix du Festival International de Films de Fribourg. The Jurors are Iranian filmmaker Sepideh Farsi, Bangladeshi director Golam Rabbany Biplob, French film critic and producer Jacky Goldberg, Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof and Swiss musician and composer Franz Treichler.  The winner will be chosen amongst twelve films from non-European countries which are selected for the International Competition. In addition to the Regard d’Or, the International Jury will honour filmmakers and producers with several other prizes totalling CHF 60,000. Sepideh Farsi, director, Iran:Born in Teheran, the Iranian filmmaker Sepideh Farsi studied Mathematics in Paris before shifting her interest to photography and film. She directed several short films as well as documentaries, amongst others Harat (2007) and Teheran Without Permission (2009). In 2011 she participated at FIFF‘s International Competition with her film The House under the Water. Sepideh Farsi is currently editing her latest work. Golam Rabbany Biplob, director, Bangladesh:A collaborator for the inauguration of the section Terra Incognita, this year featuring Bangladesh, Golam Rabbany Biplob is known in his country foremost as an activist in the film club movement and founder of the Dhaka International Film Festival. Film director (On the Wings of Dreams 2007, presented in the Jury Screenings), he is also the vice-president of the International Federation of Film Societies. Jacky Goldberg, producer and film critic, France:Well known to French-speaking film lovers for his contributions to the French magazine Les Inrockuptibles, Jacky Goldberg has just produced Davy Chou’s splendid documentary Golden Slumbers (Le Sommeil d’or, 2011), which the FIFF is very pleased to present in its section Jury Screenings. He has directed three short films, among them Far From Manhattan (2010). In 2009, he founded the film club “Thursday Night Live”. Mohammad Rasoulof, director, Iran:Graduate of Shiraz University (Sociology) and Sooreh Higher Education Institute (Film Editing), director Mohammad Rasoulof stands for independent Iranian filmmaking with its particular focus on the poetic rendering of social realities. He is celebrated internationally for his successful films Iron Island (2005) and Good Bye (2011). Nevertheless he faces an occupational ban and imprisonment back home. FIFF features his film Good Bye (2011) in the Jury Screenings. Franz Treichler, musician, Switzerland:Very few Swiss musicians have exerted the kind of influence that Franz Treichler has. One day in 1985, The Young Gods started in Fribourg, and Franz Treichler was their heart and soul, right from the first beat. Before long, they were being talked about by the likes of David Bowie and U2. Today he has turned to dance and cinema, for example by creating musical illustrations for old Dada films.  The Awards
The Regard d’Or carries with it a cash prize of CHF 30,000 to be divided between the director and the producer in the amounts of CHF 20,000, and CHF 10,000 respectively. It will be awarded to one of the twelve films selected for the International Competition. The name of the winner will be announced at the closing ceremony on Saturday, 31 March 2012 at 5 p.m. at the Rex Cinema. In addition to the Regard d’Or, the International Jury will award the following prizes:- Talent Tape Award: This prize amounting to CHF 19,000 is awarded to a producer for the quality of his or her film.- Special Jury Award: This prize consisting of CHF 10,000 is bestowed on the director of the film chosen by the International Jury for the inventiveness of the screenplay and the direction, the rejuvenation of the cinematographic language, or the thematic and formal audacity shown.  Save the Date:
Press conference on March 7, 2012:Fribourg, Ancienne Gare (east wing), 10:30 a.m.R.S.V.P. by email to presse@fiff.ch