Awards & Jury Process
The festival awards are determined through a combined voting system designed to ensure a balanced evaluation and to reduce potential biases linked to popularity, influence, or visibility.
The final score is based on the following weighted system:
70% — Audience vote
30% — Vote from a professional jury
This method ensures that the awarded films receive both genuine audience appreciation and informed perspectives, while maintaining fairness throughout the process.
The ISFF Jury 2026 brings together complementary perspectives to enrich the artistic, cultural and societal interpretation of the works.
Ely C. – Filmmaker & Screenwriter (He/They)
After studying mathematics at ULB (Brussels), Ely Chevillot turned toward filmmaking. Their studies at the Institut des Arts de Diffusion (IAD) concluded with the short film Ce qui échappe, which was selected in numerous festivals. Ely continued directing short films, including Étouffés, their first professionally produced short film released in 2020, and La nuit des éclairs, a Belgian-French co-production currently in pre-production.
Ely also develops feature film projects and works as a screenwriter for other directors.
ADNANe kabaj - SEX-positive educator & cultural curator
Co-founder of Lovely Sins (2005), an inclusive erotic boutique and sex education platform based in Namur, Adnane has spent the past twenty years working to normalize sexuality through a rigorous sex-positive educational approach, in collaboration with a network of sexual health professionals. He also leads Inty Essentials, a Belgian intimate wellness brand, and develops editorial (Extralabiale podcast) and event-based projects (Lovely Talks) exploring desire, consent and the diversity of erotic practices.
His guiding principle: liberating bodies is an inherently political act.
pAULINE Q. – Sexologist & relationship therapist
Belgian sexologist and relationship therapist, founder of « Place Intime », a private practice combined with a training space dedicated to relational dynamics and BDSM practices, Pauline develop an approach to intimacy that is at once clinical, human and cultural.
As an author in the field of relationship development and someone deeply interested in artistic representations and the psychological dimensions of desire, she particularly drawn to shibari as an emotional, aesthetic and relational language.
Mango – shibari artist & international educator
Originally from Europe and residing in Ottawa (Canada) Mango (he/him) started his rope journey as a rigger in 2015.
In January 2022, Nawashi Akechi Kanna, one of Japan’s leading and most influential rope artists and teachers, named him an official instructor of their style.
Mango has performed and shared his knowledge about semenawa in over a dozen countries across the world (Latin America, Europe, Asia and Africa) and closer to home. He enjoys the playful art of challenging and tormenting ropes.
Baaltis – Shibari model & practitioner
As an experienced model, she discovered shibari in 2016 and has been practicing ever since.
Her journey has led her to explore various styles and approaches, shaping a perspective attentive to the relational, emotional and aesthetic dimensions of the practice.
She is particularly sensitive to the depth of encounters, shared vulnerability, and the spaces of intimacy and expression that shibari can bring forth.
Eric / « Desmond » – shibari rigger & educator
Rigger, model and co-founder of Atelier Mae since 2023, his shibari practice is rooted in a search for emotional intensity, presence and relational engagement.
Drawn to strong dynamics, attentive listening, subtle tensions and the experiences lived through his partners, he explores a form of rope that is at once physical, embodied and deeply expressive.
Through teaching, performances and the events developed within Atelier Mae, he contributes to creating spaces for both artistic and human exploration.
Laurianne / « Cyrinx » – shibari switch, artist & composer
Artist, composer, rigger and shibari model, Laurianne co-founded Atelier Mae alongside her partner in 2023.
She is also the initiator of the first edition of the International Shibari Film Festival.
Through rope, Laurianne develops a sensitive approach shaped by her artistic and musical background. Her work explores the connections between rhythm, emotions, movement, listening and relational dynamics, seeking to bring a form of musicality of the body and presence into shibari.