Ted Hope & Former EFM-Chief Beki Probst Join Locarno’s New Industry Advisory Board

Melanie Goodfellow
·2 min read

Veteran producer Ted Hope and former European Film Market head Beki Probst have been named as members of the Locarno Film Festival’s new industry advisor board.

They will be joined by Mubi Senior Vice President Bobby Allen, Locarno Industry Academy International Project Manager Marion Klotz; Emmanuel Cuénod, the former director of the Geneva International Film Festival (GIFF) and the current head of the Swiss Digital Creation Hub, top Swiss exhibitor Edna Epelbaum, and Gerardo Michelin, the founder of the trade website LatAm cinema.

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The new board’s mission will be advise the festival on how to keep in step with developments in the audiovisual sector and remain relevant to the film industry at large.

The new initiative was first announced last September when Maja Hoffmann was unveiled as the festival’s new president, replacing outgoing Marco Solari who held the role for 23 years.

As previously announced, long-time Locarno collaborator Nadia Dresti will head up the new board. The former marketing director of 20th Century Fox Switzerland spearheaded the festival’s industry-focused Locarno Pro in 2000 and has been on its board of directors since 2022

She will work with the seven other board members, who each bring expert knowledge of the workings of various sectors of the industry, to ensure the evolution and adaptability of the festival in the coming years.

“I am delighted that, in this ever-changing audiovisual landscape, the Locarno Film Festival has decided to initiate an ongoing conversation with industry professionals who will advise the Board of Directors on issues that consider the festival’s future. Together we will tackle relevant issues with the aim of providing invaluable industry insights,” said Dresti.

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