Today, European Film Promotion (EFP) announced the ten European newcomer actors who will be honoured at the upcoming Berlinale as EUROPEAN SHOOTING STARS 2014. Actress Maria Dragus from Germany is among the best European talents.
An international expert jury selected the year's ten best European talented newcomers from the candidates who were nominated by 24 EFP member organisations, including our partners at
German Films.
The German director Hermine Huntgeburth was part of the five-person jury.
This year saw the German SHOOTING STAR Maria Dragus being named, among others, as Best Actress at the BC Film Festival Brazil for her lead role in SUMMER OUTSIDE (DRAUSSEN IST SOMMER) by Friederike Jehn (DE/CH).
She first attracted international attention in Michael Haneke's Palme d'Or-winning film THE WHITE RIBBON (DAS WEISSE BAND – EINE DEUTSCHE KINDERGESCHICHTE) and won the German Film Award as Best Supporting Actress for her role as Klara.
And she also had a lead role in KILL ME (TÖTE MICH) by Emily Atef, for which she was named Best Actress at the Romanian International Film Festival and a smaller role in "If Not Us, Who?", which we showed in our GOETHE FILMS series.
The jury says about the 19-year-old:
"Maria's personality infuses her work with a quiet strength that demands our attention. Not yet 20, she brings interior depths that suggest an actor of great maturity and accomplishment. We were captivated by her intriguing screen presence.“
Maria Dragus is excited to be taking part: "The SHOOTING STARS at the Berlinale were always for me those actors I could look up to, actors whose careers were ground-breaking and whose acting on screen I grew up with. Now having myself been chosen as a EUROPEAN SHOOTING STAR is absolutely surreal! I am thrilled!"
Former German SHOOTING STARS have included David Kross, Daniel Brühl, Hannah Herzsprung, Anna Maria Mühe and Moritz Bleibtreu. Saskia Rosendahl was selected last year.
This year also saw Nikola Rakecevic selected for his role in the German co-production CIRCLES by Srdan Golubovic (RS/DE/FR/SI/HR) as the EUROPEAN SHOOTING STAR 2014 for Serbia.
European Film Promotion will present the EUROPEAN SHOOTING STARS to the international film world at the Berlinale during a three-day event from 8 to 10 February, 2014. A particular highlight is the ceremony for the SHOOTING STARS Awards on the stage of the Berlinale Palast. In addition, the European talents will be introduced to international casting directors, agents, directors, producers and representatives of the press.
