The European Film Academy membership has concluded its voting procedures for the 2026 intake, and as well as re-electing 10 members the election results bring three new members of the board for the next two years.
Romanian producer Ada Solomon has been elected chair of the institution’s board. Dutch producer Leontine Petit and France’s Matthieu Darras have both been elected as deputy chairs. The two-year mandate will start on 1 January 2026.
Solomon is no newcomer to the Academy board, since she served for 6 years as deputy chair herself alongside outgoing chair Mike Downey, and was a regular board member before. Leontine Petit has been a regular board member since 2021. Darras has been elected without previous experience within the board of the European Film Academy, but has been an active Academy member and brings extensive industry know-how with him into his new position.
Ada Solomon has built a long and impressive track record over the past decades. Memorable for her contribution to the Romanian and international film sector, her name appears in the credits of nearly 100 films over her 25-year career, winning two Golden Bears, first for Călin Netzer’s CHILD’S POSE (2013) and for Radu Jude’s BAD LUCK BANGING OR LOONY PORN (2021). Other renowned films include SORELLA DI CLAUSURA (Ivana Mladenovic, 2025), THE NEW YEAR THAT NEVER CAME (Bogdan Mureșanu, Best Film at the Venice Orizzonti section & European Film Academy Discovery nominee, 2024), DO NOT EXPECT TOO MUCH OF THE END OF THE WORLD (Radu Jude, Special Jury Prize Locarno, 2023). In 2013, Solomon received the European Co-Production Award – Prix Eurimages.
Outgoing chair Mike Downey commented: “To quote Shakespeare, 'Parting is such sweet sorrow.' But I am happy to leave the Academy in good shape and fit for purpose for the future. I welcome all new members in the new intake of 2026, and I am sure that their contribution to the membership of the European Film Academy going forwards will be as positive and as committed as the boards of recent years – who have not asked for what the European Film Academy can do for them, but demonstrated ably what they can do for the Academy."
Ada Solomon reacted to her election: "Being part of the European Film Academy board for a decade now, I took the responsibility to promote excellence in filmmaking in all the diversity of the European cinematic voices, but also to put the spotlight on the less visible ones – the smaller territories, the underrepresented forms of cinema, the crews behind the camera. It is a time of change, and I am ready to take the challenge knowing that I am backed up by the great executive team of the Academy and the amazing people in the board of the European Film Academy, and especially the newly elected deputy chairs: Leontine Petit and Matthieu Darras."
The board of the European Film Academy consists of 19 representatives and meets in a rhythm of three times a year in various locations in Europe to confirm procedures and regulations, discuss and support strategies developed by the Academy management, and confirm nominations voted for by Academy members. For the first time, a board seat has been created for a representative of transnational minorities in Europe. Petro Rusanienko (Ukraine) has been elected and will represent the community of Roma and Sinti filmmakers in Europe. In total, 74% of the board members is female and 42 % of the board members is a producer.
In their new role, Solomon, Petit and Darras will continue to work closely with the Academy CEO, Matthijs Wouter Knol, who was appointed 1 January 2021. In the first month of the new Academy board the upcoming edition of the European Film Awards ceremony will take place on 17 January in Berlin.
Since 2024, Actress Juliette Binoche is the President of the European Film Academy. The Presidency is an honorary position and as such independent from the board.
In 2026, the complete board of the European Film Academy will consist of
Chair
Ada Solomon
Deputy Chairs
Matthieu Darras and Leontine Petit
Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Slovenia
Danijel Hočevar (Slovenia), re-elected
Andorra, Portugal, Spain
Paz Lázaro (Spain), re-elected
Armenia, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece, Israel
Giorgos Karnavas (Greece), re-elected
Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein, Switzerland
Maria Schrader (current mandate until end 2026)
Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Palestine, Turkey
Najwa Najjar (Palestine)
Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands
Vanessa Henneman (Netherlands)
Bulgaria, Moldova, Romania
Mira Staleva (Bulgaria), re-elected
Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia
Hanka Kastelicová (Czech Republic), re-elected
Denmark, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden
Tine Klint (Denmark), re-elected
Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania
Marija Razgutė (Lithuania), re-elected
France, Monaco
Guslagie Malanda (current mandate until end 2026)
Indigenous People (currently Sámi)
Anne Lajla Utsi (Sápmi/Norway), re-elected
Ireland, UK
David Collins (current mandate until end 2026)
Italy, San Marino, Malta
Maria Nevina Satta (current mandate until end 2026)
Poland, Ukraine
Maryna Sofiichuk (current mandate until end 2026)
Transnational Minority (currently Sinti/Roma)
Petro Rusanienko (Ukraine)
About the European Film Academy:
The European Film Academy seeks to support and connect its 5,400 members and celebrates and promotes their work. Its aims are to share knowledge and to educate audiences of all ages about European cinema. Positioning itself as a leading organisation and facilitating crucial debates within the industry, the Academy strives to unite everyone who loves European cinema, culminating annually in the European Award Season and the European Film Awards, by including European film heritage in its portfolio and by expanding its focus on young audiences through the European Young Audience Award. www.europeanfilmacademy.org
