Our team
Our team of writers is exceptionally diverse, hailing from four different continents, each bringing unique sensitivities to the table. We take pride in our collective ability to advocate for cinema that resonates with our varied perspectives.
Mehdi Balamissa
Mehdi Balamissa is a French-Moroccan documentary filmmaker and passionate advocate for the genre, currently based in Montreal, Canada. He has worked in programming, partnerships, and communications at film festivals around the world, including Doc Edge, the Austin Film Festival, FIPADOC, and RIDM. In 2019, he founded Film Fest Report as a way to share his deep love for independent cinema.
Michael Granados
Michael is an engineer and film writer based in Los Angeles. He regularly attends international film festivals such as Rotterdam, Berlin, Cannes, Locarno, and more. As a member of screening committees for the True/False Film Festival and AFI Fest, Michael has a keen interest in experimental, international, and non-fiction cinema.
Polina Grechanikova
Polina, originally from Kazakhstan and now based in Berlin, holds a Master’s degree in Theater, Film, and Media Studies. She works as a Producer at a PR agency, where she is part of the in-house photo and video production team. Previously, Polina held various roles at film festivals such as the Berlinale, DOK Leipzig, goEast, and Filmfest Munich. She also writes film reviews for several online magazines and has a particular passion for documentary filmmaking.
Martha Bird
Martha is a British writer based between Berlin and Bologna. With a Masters in Gender Studies, she is active in left wing politics, and studied at a Berlin based film school. She has co-written and creatively produced a short film based in Southern Italy, worked on a number of independent film festivals across Europe, and is passionate about radical, art-house cinema.
Prachi Bari
Prachi Bari, a journalist and filmmaker with 23 years of experience, contributed to leading Indian newspapers (Times of India, Mid-Day…) and news agency ANI. Her filmmaking journey began with Between Gods and Demons (2018). Her German film, In Meinem Pune, won top honors in Pune. Prachi’s latest work, Odds & Ends, is making waves in the festival circuit, earning numerous accolades.
Aurélie Géron
Aurélie is a Paris-born independent film critic and voiceover artist based in Montréal, Canada. With a passion for creative documentaries, she regularly covers prominent festivals such as Visions du Réel, Hot Docs, Sheffield DocFest, and CPH:DOX, among others. Aurélie is also a frequent attendee of Quebec’s key festivals, including FNC and RIDM.
Ramona Boban-Vlahović
Ramona is a writer, teacher and digital marketer but above all a lifelong film lover and enthusiast from Croatia. Her love of film has led her to start her own film blog and podcast in 2020 where she focuses on new releases and festival coverage hoping to bring the joy of film to others. A Restart Documentary Film School graduate, she continues to pursue projects that bring her closer to a career in film.
Kristin Ciliberto
Kristin has been inspired by and loves films. She grew up going to the theater with her family deciding later on to make this her full time career. Kristin has her Masters Degree in Screen Studies and has always loved watching independent films as well as the big budget cinematic films as she is a true film enthusiast. She is a former Assistant Editor for Video Librarian and has written for Celebrity Page, Scribe Magazine, and Sift Pop.
Niikhiil Akhiil
Niikhiil Akhiil believes that art has its own breathing mechanism. He’s a Malaysian-born journalist and film critic who loves matcha, sushi, and everything Japanese. He believes in having a mediocre, zen life filled with the blessings of indie films. His alter ego is probably Batman, who possesses a wealth of mind metaphors and a fondness for dark, slow-burning films. He has written reviews for films from Cannes, Rotterdam, Berlin, Venice, IFFK, and SGIFF, among others. He also feels that Michael Haneke deserves to be immortal.
Ambroisine Dubois
After living in Australia and Canada, Ambroisine joined the Malaga French Film Festival as a film programmer and continues to cover the most important European film festivals. Her interest in non-fiction cinema has deepened over the years through her participation in international film festivals (Cannes Film Festival, CPH:DOX, Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival, RIDM…). In addition to her passion for cinema, Ambroisine has worked in various cultural fields such as music production, auctions and festival organization.
Abdul Latif
Latif is a film enthusiast from Bogor, Indonesia. He is especially interested in documentaries and international cinema, and started his film review blog in 2017. Every year, Latif covers Sundance, Berlin, Cannes, Venice, while frequently attending festivals in his home country (Jogja-Netpac Asian Film Festival, Jakarta Film Week, Sundance Asia,…).
Inge Middel
Inge Middel is a passionate documentary film enthusiast from the Netherlands. Her journey began with an internship at Doc Edge in New Zealand in 2019, followed by her role as a location manager for IDFA in 2021, a position she will reprise in 2024. Inge’s love for non-fiction cinema has deepened through meaningful conversations and connections made at these festivals. Beyond her work in documentaries, she is also active in the arts and culture sector, contributing to projects in festival organization, event planning, and cultural programming
Auriane Loizeau
Auriane has three of passions in life: sorry-telling, activism and cheese. With a background in political sciences and journalism, based in Madrid, she works as a correspondent for Arte, France 2 and RTS. She has also directed a short film awarded at Humus Film Festival. As a camerawoman, a theater actress and an activist, she loves non-fiction films and usually attends FIPADOC, Rizomafest and Another way Festival.
Manuela Ayuste-Azadian
Manuela is a cinephile from Marseille, France. With a background in political sciences, Manuela believes in the power of movies to convey strong messages. She was previously a member of the staff of BUFF Malmö Film Festival in Sweden, and served as jury member for the South American Film Festival in Marseille. While stepping into a career in film distribution, Manuela also regularly attends film festivals, and joined the Film Fest Report crew for Cannes 2023.
Yohana Benattar
Yohana is a French documentarist based in Paris with a background in social sciences. She likes to collaborate with artists and researchers while developing her first feature film and documentary performances. She has worked for various non-fiction production companies, as a reader for Arte, and is now directing her debut feature documentary.
If you are passionate about independent cinema and would like to join our diverse team of writers, please don’t hesitate to reach out and introduce yourself. We welcome your enthusiasm and unique perspective!