Pro Hub mentors 2026

Isona Admetlla is a sociologist, cultural manager and audience designer. Born in Barcelona and based in Berlin since 2001, she works internationally at the intersection of audience design, impact strategies, and cinema as a tool for social transformation. For over 16 years, she coordinated the Berlinale World Cinema Fund, while also collaborating with funds and training initiatives across Europe and Latin America.

As an audience designer, she consults on film projects, designs and leads workshops and masterclasses worldwide, and actively contributes to the development of the discipline, including training future audience designers. She is a consultant for TorinoFilmLab (TFL).

She selects projects and designs industry programs for initiatives such as CineMundi (Brazil) and MAFF – Málaga Co-Production Event, and directs Terra#Lab, the residency program of Novos Cinemas in Pontevedra. She also works regularly as a project reader and analyst for programs including Creative Europe MEDIA, and serves as an evaluator, juror and advisor for other international labs and institutions.

Educated in Spain and Germany and trained through renowned international industry programs like EAVE or TFL, she supports filmmakers worldwide in refining their artistic vision and strengthening meaningful connections with audiences and communities.

Originally from Honduras, Marjorie Bendeck holds a BA in communications and marketing, and an MA in organisational psychology, besides film production studies in Mexico and the EICTV in Cuba.

Based in Germany since 2003, where she headed the selection committee of Berlinale Talents until 2012, while also working for funds and training initiatives in Europe and Latin America. Her areas of expertise include evaluation of feature film projects as well as workshops for pitch, script and project development. Engaged as a regular consultant with organisations like the Mediterranean Film Institute, ACE Producers and the Berlinale World Cinema Fund. She is project manager for the Locarno Open Doors Projects Hub, currently focused on the Sub-Saharan Africa region, and head of Connecting Cottbus, an East-West co-production market focused on the wider Eastern Europe.

Hayet Benkara is a French-born, Toronto and Paris-based film industry advisor.

For over 15 years she had the privilege to work at TIFF, the Toronto International Film Festival, under the stewardship of Piers Handling and Cameron Bailey.

She was the Manager of the market and TIFF Studio, the first year-round training programme for film professionals (producers, directors, and screenwriters) still running until this day. She also produced TIFF Talent Lab which takes place during the festival.

Hayet worked for many prestigious international film festivals such as Cannes, Berlinale, Locarno, IFFR, Marrakech, Abu Dhabi, Guanajuato to name a few. She launched the industry departments in Dubai and DFI, the Doha Film Institute.

In 2021, she launched le Nouveau Marché, a ‘’boutique’’co-production market as part of the Festival du cinéma nouveau in Montreal, creating a bridge between north America and the rest of the world.  Because of her extensive international network and holistic approach to the film industry, she is often invited to conduct workshops,  moderate panels on topics related to the film industry.

Year round Hayet advises producers and directors from all over the world on development, production, co-production, distribution, marketing, and festival strategies.

Samm Haillay founded his BAFTA and Independent Spirit nominated production company, Third in 2001, dedicated to the creation of visionary artistic works in cinematic and gallery contexts. Working across narrative and documentary, Samm has produced or executive produced eleven features, often in complex co-productions with multiple territories.

His features have premiered at festivals including Cannes, Venice, Rotterdam, Sundance, Tribeca and Toronto and his shorts have collected over forty-five awards including top prizes at Berlin, Venice, Edinburgh and Chicago. Samm is a member of BAFTA, EAVE and ACE and delivers mentoring and training through EAVE, Feature Expanded, the Venice Biennale College Cinema, Film London, Creative England, For Film’s Sake and Visions du Reel. He is also the creator of the BFI’s Producer Training Programme that has been delivered in four countries and counting.

In 2019 he founded Kirlian, supported by Creative England, to develop an assistive tech solution to effective development of artist-driven cinema.

Marjan van der Haar is a Dutch cultural and film professional with over 25 years of experience across the international film industry, combining strategic leadership with hands-on expertise in film sales, distribution, production, and film festivals.

In 2025, she served as Managing Director of Film by the Sea (Vlissingen). She works as an independent professional and freelancer, advising film organisations, producers and public bodies, and as an expert and assessor for the Creative Europe MEDIA Programme. From 2018 to 2023, Marjan was Managing Director of International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR), where she was responsible for overall strategy, business affairs, funding, partnerships, and organisational development, while supporting emerging talent through initiatives such as CineMart, the Hubert Bals Fund and Rotterdam Lab.

Earlier in her career, she held senior management positions at Fortissimo Film Sales, one of the leading international sales companies for independent cinema, as well as at Film Producers Netherlands, representing Dutch producers at national and international level. She began her career in film festivals, working in programming and co-production platforms at IFFR and the Holland Film Meeting.

With extensive experience across the full film value chain, Marjan advises producers, filmmakers and organisations worldwide on development, production, project assessment, sales and distribution strategies, festival positioning, audience engagement, governance and sustainable international collaboration.

Tejinder Jouhal has worked across independent exhibition, distribution and international sales for over 20 years. She is currently director of marketing and distribution at HanWay Films, a leading international sales company based in London.

She represents a current slate of over 20 new features and a back catalogue of more than 300 titles for worldwide sales. New projects include Olive Nwosu’s Lady and Molly Manners’ Extra Geography, both premiering at Sundance Film Festival in January 2025, Jan Komasa’s Good Boy, Kasia Adamik’s Winter of the Crow and Alice Winocour’s Couture.

Jouhal specialises in devising international festival strategies for feature films, working closely with producers to help launch their films globally and with international distributors to support their local releases across the slate. In addition to her work at HanWay, she also consults for independent producers and filmmakers, offering advice and support on funding applications, creating marketing assets for their projects and devising festival launch strategies.

Previously, she worked at a number of other UK-based international sales agents as well as the London Indian Film Festival as festival producer and head of industry and partnerships. Prior to this, Jouhal was at the ICA in London for nine years, where she managed the cinema and distribution operations, launching independent features and documentaries from across the world in the UK. Internationally, she has worked for the Doha Tribeca Film Festival for two seasons as programme manager.

Madeleine Molyneaux is a US based producer and curator. With her company, Picture Palace Pictures, founded in 2004, she works closely with emerging and established artists and filmmakers to develop, produce, and represent creative documentaries, hybrid narrative fiction, artist moving image work and curatorial initiatives that often defy easy categorisation. Her productions and international co- productions regularly premiere at major international festivals, and screen, stream and exhibit worldwide. Her long standing collaboration with artist Kevin Jerome Everson includes producing and representing numerous features and shorts, many of which have screened at IFFR.

Madeleine also works as an grant reader, project consultant, archival researcher, music supervisor and post-production supervisor, with a particular passion and focus for issues of rights and clearance and fair use.  She was the U.S programmer for Festival du nouveau Cinema Montreal (2005-2015), Film/Video Curator at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, New Orleans (2008-2010), film festival juror (BFI/London Film Festival, Cinema du Reel, doc Lisboa, New Horizons, Glasgow Short Film Fest, exground Wiesbaden, and the NY Asian Film Festival) and served as a board member for the Media City Film Festival.

Madeleine loves genre in all its permutations and formalism in all its rigour. And humour. Always.

Katriel Schory studied at NYU Film School and has been an active producer since 1973.

From 1974 to 1999, he was founder and managing director of Belfilms, producing over 150 films and television programmes including feature films, documentaries, TV dramas and international co-productions.

From 1999, Schory served for more than 20 years as executive director of the Israel Film Fund, where he authorised support and promotion for over 300 full-length narrative feature films in Israel and worldwide. More than 80 of these were international co-productions, mainly with Europe. Many films he authorised won prestigious awards, including four Oscar nominations, Golden and Silver Lions in Venice, and Bears in Berlin.

Schory’s honours include: Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (France); Berlinale Kamera for outstanding contribution to the film industry; Telluride Film Festival Special Medallion for outstanding achievements; the Variety Award for creative impact; the FIAPF (International Federation of Film Producers Associations) Award; Jerusalem Film Festival lifetime achievement award; and Israel Film Academy lifetime achievement award.

He was a board member of the European Film Academy from 2017 to 2023.

Schory has served on juries at Venice, San Sebastián, Locarno, Istanbul and Sarajevo film festivals, amongst others.

Claire Dobbin is a script editor, executive producer and creative producer who works globally with development agencies, screenwriters, producers, filmmakers, broadcasters, streamers and film festivals.

Claire was senior executive (creative) at Australia’s national screen agency, where she was instrumental in establishing the First Nations Film Fund and supporting Australian writers and filmmakers.

From 2003 to 2019, she was chair of the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF), described as “Australia’s most significant screen event” by International Screen Guide. There she devised, established and secured funds for MIFF’s acclaimed industry programmes: the finance market 37 South, Accelerator Directors Lab and the MIFF Premiere Fund, which has invested in over 100 Australian films.

Claire has:

• Devised and run screenwriting labs in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, India, Iran and the Middle East
• Script edited projects and mentored writers from Europe, the UK, India, Australia, New Zealand and Iran
• Been a jury member at international film festivals, including chair of the Fajr Film Festival in Iran
• Lectured in screenwriting in Australia, London, New Zealand, Germany, Kosovo, the UAE, India, Ukraine and Norway

Currently, Claire is a global script development consultant, script editor, writing coach and mentor for production companies, producers and writers, providing feedback, script editing and writer training in script labs.

She was awarded an AM for services to the Australian film industry and the Jill Robb Award for outstanding leadership in the Victorian screen industry.