STE Pitching Forum 2025

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FILMVÆRKSTAD AARHUS

JENS-JULIUS DALL, DENMARK

Jens-Julius Dall is a filmmaker based in Denmark with a bachelor’s degree in Multiplatform Storytelling and Production from the film school in Aarhus. He specializes in writing, directing, and editing, with a strong focus on narrative-driven work. After graduating, he created the short film Neurolink and became a member of the documentary film collective Doktrin, where he took his first steps into non-fiction storytelling. His documentary work—including Anomalia—reflects a growing interest in personal, socially relevant narratives. Alongside his passion projects, Jens-Julius also works as a freelance editor on commercial productions.

«It’s not that bad, I’m fine» is a short documentary about living with ulcerative colitis – a chronic disease that affects the gut, but also the mind. It’s a personal story told with honesty and a touch of humor, showing what it’s like to deal with something most people find too embarrassing to talk about. The film shares my own experience and aims to break the silence around a condition that many live with but few openly discuss.

FILM I SKÅNE

FINA HÖGLUND, SWEDEN

Fina Høglund is a screenwriter and director based in Skåne and Stockholm. Born in 2003, she has been passionate about filmmaking since childhood, driven by a deep curiosity about people and the society around her. Her work explores the beauty of unpredictability and the honesty found in emotional complexity, often centering on stories that challenge convention and provoke thought.

She has studied directing, dramaturgy, and screenwriting at Sigtuna Folk High School, and her short films have been screened at festivals across Sweden. Fina has also studied Film Studies at the Swedish Film Institute.

It is late autum and John is up for a hazing arranged by his older brother Filip and his friends.
But the evening takes a darker turn when Filips friends betrays and challenges him.
Blood is thicker than water — how far would you go to save one of your own?

MOIN FILMFUND HAMBURG & SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN

ANNA-LENA HERZMANN, GERMANY

Anna-Lena Herzmann is a German film producer currently studying at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg. With a background in documentary, fiction, and factual formats, she brings a strong focus on socially relevant storytelling. Her early experience includes roles at the Green Screen Wildlife Film Festival and ZDF Schleswig-Holstein, and she has worked at Latemar Film and Tobis in international acquisitions. Currently in a gap year, Anna-Lena is producing a documentary on climate and coastal protection in her home region of northern Germany. She is connected to Filmwerkstatt Kiel and passionate about cross-border collaboration and environmental storytelling.

In Eckernförde, global climate change becomes a local reality: The aftermath of the storm surge in October 2023, combined with the growing awareness of rising sea levels, reveals the tensions between climate action, economic interests, and social responsibility. The coastal town stands as a striking example of the major challenges humanity faces worldwide – what ideas and solutions can help shape a path toward a sustainable future? 

MEDIEFABRIKKEN

NORA NIVEDITA TVEDT, NORWAY

Nora Nivedita Tvedt is a Norwegian director with a background in documentary filmmaking, known for her intimate, visually sensitive approach to storytelling. Her work centers on relationships, vulnerability, and existential themes, with a focus on trust and emotional authenticity. Nora has directed several short documentaries and recently completed her first feature-length film, Small Dogs Bark Loud, set to premiere in cinemas in 2026. Based in Oslo and connected to Mediefabrikken, she continues to develop deeply personal projects that challenge silence and promote connection—particularly around themes of masculinity and mental health.

In weathered fishing villages, older fishermen break the silence to reveal a new side of masculinity and what it truly means to be a man today.

NATIONAL TALENT ACADEMY FILM & TV/ ARDÁN

HUSNI HAFID, IRELAND

Husni Hafid is a Libyan-born, Sligo-raised producer drawn to stories that delve into the human condition through culturally rooted, emotionally resonant narratives. A graduate of IADT, his thesis film Williton’s Way was nominated for Best Screenplay at CayFilm. He went on to produce Jungle, a short exploring the refugee crisis in Calais, which received an Honourable Mention at Out of Bounds in Italy and screened at Roze Filmdagen in Amsterdam.

His Screen Ireland-funded short Ogham premiered at the Galway Film Fleadh, screened at DIFF, and is set to screen at Beeston—where it’s nominated for Best International Short. It also received Best Cinematography at the Corti in Cortile Festival.

Based in Dublin, Husni runs Hal Pictures, where he is developing Gyro, a feature set in the city, alongside a slate of Arab and Irish stories with a strong focus on Libya. He is currently being mentored by Paul Mayeda Berges through Screen Ireland.

A Knock at Your Door follows Florence and James, a suburban Irish couple whose quiet life is upended when Alex, a wounded Eritrean man, arrives at their doorstep. As Florence cares for him, James is drawn into a swirl of online misinformation accusing Alex of violence. With a mob forming outside and tensions rising within, their home becomes a battleground of fear, trust, and ideology. The story examines how digital misinformation infects real lives, homes and relationships, holding up a mirror to the systems shaping us and the damage they leave behind.

GMAC

JESS KELLY AND MONIKA NAVICKAITE, SCOTLAND

Jess Kelly is a Scottish filmmaker whose work explores identity and offers sharp commentary on contemporary society through grounded, character-led storytelling. Her 2023 short Care, a social realist drama set within Britain’s private care system, premiered at EIFF, won the GSFF Audience Award, received a Special Mention at LIFF British Shorts, and was nominated for a BAFTA Scotland Award in 2024.

Her latest film, Code of Conduct, funded through GMAC’s Little Pictures scheme, premiered at GSFF 2025 and is currently on the festival circuit. She is also co-producing a 35mm short set on the Isle of Skye, executive produced by 16 Films, which centers on a five-year-old processing a local tragedy.

Based in Scotland, Jess has worked in the screen industry for four years, beginning as an AD before moving into script departments—most recently on Richard Gadd’s Half Man (BBC/HBO). She continues to develop socially conscious projects that reflect the complexities of modern life.

Monika Navickaite is a Lithuanian film writer-director based in Scotland and a graduate of the University of Edinburgh’s BA (Hons) Film and Television programme, working across the screen, performing arts, and cultural events sectors. Her most recent short, Flowers, So Many Flowers (2023), was nominated for the Young Scottish Filmmaker Prize at the Glasgow Short Film Festival, while her earlier film Little Jerusalem (2017) screened internationally at festivals including the Vancouver International Film Festival, InShort Film Festival, and Vilnius International Film Festival Kino Pavasaris, among others.

Alongside her creative practice, Monika is the Co-Director of Edinburgh’s ShortScape Film Festival which is dedicated to highlighting emerging Scottish talent. She also works as Programme Assistant at the Oscar-qualifying Vilnius Short Film Festival. In addition, she leads Media and Communications at Be United—a Creative Scotland-funded SCIO—where she mentors young creatives and develops marketing campaigns that advocate for Black people working across the performing arts, screen, and cultural events sectors.

Set against the misty, rugged backdrop of the Scottish West Highland Way in 2017, a chance encounter between Egleė, a young Lithuanian hiker, and Igor, an older Russian man, forces them into an uneasy alliance as they navigate a desolate trail in the hope that it will lead them to the end of the road.

MOIN FILMFUND HAMBURG & SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN

ARNIT LIKAJ, GERMANY

Arnit Likaj is a filmmaker and actor currently in his sixth semester of Film & Media Arts at Hochschule Flensburg, where he has built experience across directing, producing, cinematography, and editing. His work centers on identity, cultural hybridity, and post-migrant narratives told with subtlety and realism.

In 2023, Arnit co-directed his first short film, how long will you stay?, which premiered at DokuFest in Kosovo. The film reflects on growing up between two cultures and the feeling of belonging to neither. His 2024/25 fictional short sdi – I don’t know is based on a personal story and seeks to portray post-migrant life in high-rise housing through an understated, anti-stereotypical lens while staying authentic to the setting.

Also active as an actor, Arnit was selected as one of the MOIN Talents by the MOIN Film Fund in 2025.

When Can, a young student teacher with a Kurdish background, unexpectedly meets Sesko, an elderly Bosnian man stranded at a gas station, he offers him a ride. What begins as a simple favor turns into a heartfelt conversation, revealing a quiet bond between two strangers from different generations.

CINENORD

VERA WOLDHEK, THE NETHERLANDS

Vera Woldhek is a Dutch screenwriter and dramaturge with a background in creative writing and theatre. A graduate of the Minerva Academy for Popular Culture, she has spent the past two and a half years focusing fully on film, working across roles including screenwriter, script editor, assistant director, and script supervisor.

Her collaborative and story-driven approach has led to work on a range of independent productions, with highlights including screenings at Cannes and in Los Angeles. Vera recently completed her first indie short, When the Wind Stops, as script editor, dramaturge, and assistant director; the film is currently awaiting festival premieres.

She is currently serving as dramaturge on the feature film Patriarch, co-writing the short Lexie, and developing several original projects—including one through the Go Short Festival writers’ room and another she plans to pitch at Grimstad.

Everyone here is (un)happy is a darkly tender coming-of-age short about Alma, a 13-year-old diver caught between ambition and anxiety. On the final day of summer, her strained relationship with her mother—who is also her coach—comes to a quiet breaking point. As Alma climbs the high dive, her reality begins to slip: the pool water beneath her has vanished.

Blending magical realism with quiet dark comedy, this stand-alone pilot is part of a planned anthology series set at the same outdoor pool. Each story explores the hidden inner lives of people who pass each other without truly connecting. A surreal, sun-drenched reflection on how much we carry beneath the surface—and how deeply we might understand one another, if only we knew how to communicate what we feel.

FILM I STOCKHOLM

SEPEHR NOSRATI, SWEDEN

Sepehr Nosrati is a Swedish director currently completing his final semester in Directing at Stockholm University of the Arts. His journey into filmmaking began as a child—picking up a camera at age nine and exploring storytelling through play. Though initially self-taught, a formative experience applying to Valand deepened his understanding of cinema and marked a turning point in his creative development.

Since then, Sepehr has transitioned from making films independently to collaborating closely with other artists and professionals. At Stockholm University of the Arts, he has created two short films he is deeply proud of—projects that reflect a growing commitment to craft and a passion for collective storytelling. His work is rooted in curiosity, emotion, and a sense of discovery that continues to drive his evolving voice as a filmmaker.

HALV is a 15-minute psychological horror about Adriana, a rising pop star who crafts a bold campaign around her cultural identity — only to unravel when a real-world encounter challenges her authenticity. After a confrontation with an older Iranian woman ends in violence, Adriana is haunted by guilt as she prepares to perform her own symbolic act of empowerment. Caught between personal truth and public image, she questions whether the story she’s telling is hers to claim. HALV explores how identity, once commodified, can turn from power into peril.

CINESÜD

LUKA KLUSKENS, THE NETHERLANDS

Luka Kluskens is a Dutch filmmaker and actress whose work explores intimacy, trust, and the emotional undercurrents of human connection. She graduated from the Institute of Performative Arts in Maastricht in 2021, the same year she wrote and directed her debut short film, The Great Appeal of the Cherry Blossom, supported by CineSud and pitched at the Norwegian Short Film Festival during its online edition.

In 2024, Luka was selected for Het Beloofde Land, a talent development program by Screen Talent NL and the Netherlands Film Fund, through which she created her second short, Blin Fiducie (Blind Trust), now beginning its festival journey.

Currently, she is developing her third short film with IJswater Films and co-writing a feature with London-based director Floris Ramaekers, in collaboration with Pupkin Film. Her practice blends performance and filmmaking, shaped by a strong visual sensibility and an interest in fragile, layered storytelling.

When 28-year-old theatre actress Twilly, working in her father’s eccentric hair salon, discovers that he has been using her as a pawn in his deceitful, addicted life, she faces the role of a lifetime: to continue playing along in his performance — or to rewrite the script and set herself free.

FILMCLOUD

NILS ALATALO

Nils Alatalo is a Swedish screenwriter and director whose work blends satire, genre, and social commentary with a distinct DIY spirit. He studied Film Production at Göteborgs Folkhögskola (2016–2018), where he created several short films, including his thesis project Murder! Murder! Murder!, a dark satire of the meat industry that screened at Gothenburg Frame Festival.

In 2020, he wrote and directed the micro-budget feature Rave, which won Best Feature Film at the Houston Horror Film Festival. He went on to study Screenwriting at Yrgo Gothenburg (2020–2022), where he interned at Cinenic Film. The company later optioned his thesis script The Medieval Heist, which is now in development, and the project also received support from the Adlerbertska Foundation.

In 2023, Nils released Person X, a four-part web series funded by Film i Väst’s Talent to Watch initiative. The series is available on YouTube. He continues to develop projects that fuse bold concepts with sharp commentary and genre play.

A young woman living with paranoid schizophrenia tries to navigate a world that fears her and doesn’t understand her. She also has to handle the sensation of being watched and filmed by sinister strangers every hour of the day. The story is told completely through these imagined spy cameras, making her delusion the viewer’s reality.