Jury 2025
The jury members of the Grand Prix Graz competition and the category prizes are known for their expertise in areas such as film art and photography, alpinism, journalism and film history. Due to their professional qualifications, the members of the Mountainfilm Graz selection committee also have a great understanding of a wide range of cultures around the world.
Dieter Pochlatko (Austria)
The cameraman, producer, and director of Epo-Film has influenced the Austrian film scene like few others, including through his work at the Audiovisual Center Styria, V.A.M., and the Austrian Film Commission. He headed the film department at HTBLA Ortwein for 10 years, gave guest lectures at the La Fémis film school in Paris, and was a jury member at many film festivals, including Mountainfilm Graz. His cultural center, Rechbauerkino, delights audiences with extraordinary international productions. Pochlatko’s extensive filmography includes work for Universum History, but above all for feature films such as “Der Bockerer,” the drama “Klimt,” and “Atmen,” Karl Markovics’ directorial debut. Dieter Pochlatko has received numerous awards, including the Romy and the Austrian Film Award.
Horst Jobstraibitzer (Austria)
Horst Jobstraibitzer is a climber, author, and mechanical engineer who lives with his family in Pernegg a.d. Mur. At the age of 14, he began climbing with friends on the walls around Mixnitz. It was the beginning of a passion that has stayed with him until now. In many European climbing areas, he has succeeded in climbing alpine classics such as in Gesäuse and the Dolomites, as well as sport climbing routes up to difficulty level 9. A few years ago, he discovered his love for writing and has since published stories in alpine and climbing magazines and books. As a chief editor of CLIMBING.PLUS, Climax Magazine, and RunOut Magazine, he has his finger on the pulse of alpine events and brings this knowledge in as a juror at this year’s festival.
Erhard Seidl (Austria)
As a cameraman, Erhard Seidl helped many renowned film productions become top quality and received awards such as the Austrian film and television prize Romy. Working as a freelance cameraman in Graz in the 1980s, he was soon recruited by the ORF regional studio in Styria. Both there and with his own film production company, Seidl-Film, he produced high-quality documentaries with renowned directors. In the Austrian music scene, he was responsible for numerous documentaries about bands such as Opus and EAV. A cameraman is always a traveler, and thus Erhard Seidl produced numerous city portraits with literature prize winners, as well as films about cultures and human rights in the countries of Asia, Africa, and South America.
