Juliette Binoche to Preside over European Film Academy

Juliette Binoche, the Oscar-winning French actress whose sprawling career shows no signs of slowing down, is set to succeed Polish filmmaker Agnieszka Holland as president of the European Film Academy.

The role was previously held by Ingmar Bergman, who served as the first president and was originally chosen by the 40 founding Academy members in 1989. Wim Wenders, who succeeded Bergman in 1996, served until 2020, followed by Holland, who became the first female president and has now decided to step down.

“We want to honour Agnieszka Holland’s wish and completely understand that responsibilities besides filmmaking, however inspiring and important, can sometimes stand in the way of creating art,” said the chair of the Board Mike Downey and Academy CEO Matthijs Wouter Knol in a statement shared with all Academy members in 52 European countries. 

“A decision like this is also one that makes us realise how much we owe to Agnieszka Holland’s work for our institution. On behalf of the European Film Academy, we would like to thank her for her tremendous support, strength and strong vision in all the functions she has fulfilled within the structure of the Academy.”

Holland’s recent movie “Green Border” won the Special Jury Prize at Venice and she is preparing to start filming her Kafka biopic “Franz” which Mike Downey is co-producing.

An active member of the European Film Academy for many years, Binoche will formally begin her new role on May 1, after her nomination to be president has been formally approved by a majority of the Academy members. 

Binoche most recently starred in “The Taste of Things” which competed at Cannes and won best director for Trần Anh Hùng and the AppleTV+ limited series “The New Look” in which she plays Coco Chanel opposite Ben Mendelsohn.