The American Film Festival has named Urszula Śniegowska as its new director while Marcin Pieńkowski will take over as director of the New Horizons International Film Festival. Both new directors assumed the functions from festival founder, Roman Gutek, who remains president of the New Horizons Association and who will continue his involvement in programming both events.

The New Horizons Festival and the American Film Festival are, along with the Gutek Film company and the Warsaw Film Festival, the most important projects in my professional life, says Roman Gutek. I have devoted over 20 years to them. It was a fantastic time, but now it's time for a change. I decided to hand over the festival reins to my long-term colleagues, Urszula Śniegowska and Marcin Pieńkowski. I am convinced they will succeed in their new roles. I will offer them all my support, continue to work on behalf the Association, as well as develop and implement innovative ideas in other structures.

Programming director of the American Film Festival since its inception in 2010, Śniegowska will now hold both positions. I am grateful to Roman and excited to continue producing, in this expanded role, the American Film Festival, an exceptional endeavor that owes its innovative formula to Roman. AFF is an important part of the New Horizons Association's activities and it is an honor for me to keep my hand on the pulse of American cinema, observe its development since 2010 and now lead the team that has helped the Wrocław festival attract young, independent filmmakers from the USA for the past 12 years, says Śniegowska.

Marcin Pieńkowski joined the New Horizons Association in 2011. As programming director of the New Horizons International Film Festival since 2016, he was also responsible for the purchase of films for distribution. Named acting director of the New Horizons Association Festivals and Distribution Department in 2018, Pieńkowski is also a co-creator of the New Horizons VOD platform. I joined the New Horizons team over 10 years ago and had no idea it would be such a long and exciting adventure. I would like to thank Roman Gutek for the trust he has placed in me. Continuing his mission is a great challenge, especially in times when production of such a large event requires great precision and flexibility. I look forward to seeing the audience at the New Horizons Cinema in August, says the new festival director. Through the upcoming edition, Pieńkowski will combine the functions of the director and artistic director of the New Horizons International Film Festival.

This year's New Horizons International Film Festival will be held in Wrocław on August 12-22 (in-theater) and online on August 12-29, while the American Film Festival will be held on November 9-14, also in Wrocław.