ISI Industry Talk @ Sustainability Management
On Sovereignty and Self-Determination – What Makes a European Film?
Join us for the Industry Talk during our Sustainability Management programme.
International Screen Institute × D—Arts invite Victoria Thomas (ARTEF – Anti Racism Think Tank for European Film) and Vera Lacková (filmmaker & producer, Media Voice) for a conversation about who gets to shape the stories we recognize as European cinema. ARTEF’s recent research into European screen narratives asks a deceptively simple question: what makes a European film? Looking at the structures through which films are funded, produced, celebrated and circulated, it reveals patterns in whose experiences are understood as representative of Europe and whose remain peripheral. Vera Lacková’s filmmaking and documentary production center Romani self-representation at the heart of of Europe’s cinematic landscape. The conversation looks at the structures and choices that define European cinema: who has access to funding, who gets to produce and circulate images, whose histories enter the archive, and whose realities become part of Europe’s cinematic imagination. The aim is to share visions of a European film landscape that is closer to the realities of the people who live in it and to consider what needs to change for such a landscape to become possible.
Moderation: Djamila Grandits (CineCollective, D–Arts)
Date & Venue
23 September 2026 | Hotel Schani Hbf
17:30 Panel Talk | 19:00 Networking
Event language: English
Open to all industry professionals!
About the Panelists
Victoria Thomas is a filmmaker, lecturer, and member of the steering committee of ARTEF (Anti Racism Taskforce for European Film). She is the cofounder of No Password Required®, an ongoing pan European mapping of Global Majority owned production companies in Europe that informs strategic initiatives including policy advocacy, convenings, and access to market programmes developed with industry partners to advance economic equity in European cinema. She is also Course Director of the MA International Film Business at London Film School and lectures in the Media, Communication and Performing Arts department at Queen Margaret University.
Vera Lacková is a film director and film producer of Roma origin based in Vienna. She is the founder of the production company Media Voice. Through her close work with Roma communities, their stories and movements, she brings a unique insider perspective on urgent and political Roma issues into her films. She is currently developing a new documentary titled DO MAGIC with HBO Europe. The film explores Roma magic and spirituality through the personal story of director Vera Lacková, who embarks on a playful and satirical quest to find a Roma witch who could break the generational curse affecting her family.
Join us for a deep dive into festival strategy and global distribution – and stay to connect with international Market Ready participants and local industry professionals.
We would also like to thank our partners — D–Arts Projektbüro für Diversität and FAMA – Fachverband der Film- und Musikwirtschaft — for their invaluable contribution to this year’s Sustainability Management Programme.
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