Cypriot actress Marina Makris was awarded as one of ten European Shooting Stars 2025 at the 75th Berlinale International Film Festival in Berlin on Monday night.

Makris is well-known for her performances in Cyprus-led films including Jiu Jitsu, where she acted alongside Nicholas Cage and Africa Star by Adonis Florides, for which she was honoured as Best Actress at Cyprus Film Days 2024.

Berlin’s international jury said they were attracted by her “Mediterranean magnetism” and honoured Makris as a “brilliant, intelligent actress” with an “intense, profound look” saying that she carried a “womanly strength, as though she can carry the world on her shoulders”.

The jury comprises of Romanian director and screenwriter Radu Muntean, Swedish casting director Pauline Hansson, Swiss producer Amel Soudani, French actress Ludivine Sagnier and Montenegrin journalist and curator Vuk Perović.

The ten winners (Photo Harald Fuhr for European Film Production)

Shooting Stars is a programme by the European network of film professionals (EFP) that annually selects the ten best emerging actors of Europe, recognising their potential and boosting their career.

As part of the award, the actors took part in a four-day programme where they met international media, audiences and film industry professionals, allowing them to network during the festival.

They received their awards on Monday night and are a grouping that includes Cyprus and Montenegro for the first time.

The 75th Berlinale continues until Sunday and is one of the five most prestigious film festivals in the world. In Cyprus, Goethe Institute Cyprus annually organises free screenings of movies of previous Berlinale editions in Nicosia in Limassol.