Emilie Bujès is to leave her role as Visions du Reel artistic director, to take over as director of Geneva International Film Festival (GIFF).
Bujès will depart Visions du Reel in July, having led the upcoming 2026 edition which runs from April 17-26.
Geneva-based Bujès will remain in Switzerland, taking over as GIFF director from August 1, 2026.
Current GIFF director Anaïs Emery will be leaving the festival, having led it since 2020. The 2026 edition of GIFF runs October 30-November 8.
Visions du Reel will advertise for the role of Bujes’ successor shortly.
French-Swiss executive Bujès has worked at Switzerland’s Visions du Reel since 2012, first as a selection committee member, then taking over as artistic director and head of programming and industry for the 2018 edition.
“My years with the Visions du Réel team… have been filled with challenges, encounters, cinematic discoveries, and joys—artistic, professional and personal,” said Bujès. “I am infinitely grateful for the freedom and trust with which I have been able to work, alongside a supportive board of trustees and teams who are extremely motivated and committed. This will remain a key milestone in my professional career, and I am delighted to hand over the festival in excellent shape to my successor.”
“We are extremely grateful for everything Emilie has brought to the Festival,” said Philippe Bischof, who started as festival president last year. “We very much look forward to celebrating this upcoming edition of the Festival with her, which promises to be particularly compelling, and to bringing this significant chapter in the history of Visions du Réel to a close together.
“Her visionary, committed and bold work has laid a sound and solid foundation on which we can build to continue developing the Festival and further enhance its reputation in the years to come. I would like to thank her for her unfailing dedication and wish her every success and happiness in her future projects.”
”We are very pleased to welcome Emilie Bujès to GIFF,” said GIFF president Rebecca Irvin. ”Her vision, experience, and expertise will build on the development led since 2020 by Anaïs Emery, who has firmly positioned the festival as a major platform. We extend our warmest thanks to Anaïs for her invaluable contribution.”
During Bujès’ tenure, Visions du Reel has welcomed renowned international guests including Lucrecia Martel, Claire Denis, Werner Herzog, Jia Zhang-ke, Alice Rohrwacher, Kleber Mendonça Filho and Kelly Reichardt.
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