From its inception in 2021, The Film Verdict (TFV) has reviewed and written about more than 1,700 films, and, in the landmark year of 2024, it delivered 3 million impactful newsletters to the industry’s most distinguished international festivals and film companies.
Our core mission is to provide authoritative film reviews written by the world’s leading film critics, a mission that grew last year under editor-in-chief Deborah Young. On the commercial side, the business team led managing director Kelly Jones introduced a number of innovations, including six new film festival partners and an expansion of our unique International Oscar Contenders series, which for the first time trained the spotlight on documentaries and short films, providing real industry exposure for all international films in the Oscar race!
A sincere thank you to the film festivals who, recognizing the value of TFV, supported us in 2024: Rotterdam, Berlin, Visions du Réel, Stockfish, Cannes, Karlovy Vary, Mediterrane, Locarno, Sarajevo, Venice, Oldenburg, San Sebastian, Busan, Dok Leipzig, Cairo, IDFA , Singapore. TFV looks forward to continued growth and innovation together.
I would like to extend a special thank you to the European Film Promotion (EFP) for their support at Sundance and Toronto, as well as to German Films for their consistent support.
A short list of the individuals who stood out and supported our mission in 2024 has to include Hamzah Jamjoom, Roberto Stabile, Jo Mühlberger, Chris Morgan, Mohammed Obaidullah, Max Rothman, Sarah Vianney and TFV critics Stephen Dalton and Lucy Virgen, all of whom went above and beyond.
2024 was the year that TFV launched and expanded its podcast division, TFV Network. It is led by Matt Micucci, who produced 120 podcasts featuring interviews with festival directors, filmmakers and business leaders. TFV Network racked up over 3,600 total plays in just a few months and can be found on all the major platforms. It also offers the industry’s first 1-minute audio film reviews, On Point, which is hosted by Sarah Vianney and provides listeners with three 1-minute reviews per podcast.
Recognizing the growth of cinema production and attendance in the Middle East and North Africa, TFV launched AL-Takdir, a website aimed at regional and international acquisition executives worldwide with official COMSCORE box office data. Al-Takdir is poised for growth in 2025.
So indeed, “What a year!” But what really make our last three years extraordinary has been the dedication of everyone involved in The Film Verdict, who have given the film industy its last bastion of hope for the international film review. Stay with us for even greater innovations in 2025!
Eric Mika
Publisher, The Film Verdict
