[1][2] Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the awards went ahead without an in person audience, taking the form of a hybrid event,[1] including pre-produced and live online.
The members of the jury were Camilla Hjelm, Matt Kasmir, Jelena Maksimovic, Ursula Patzak, Célia Sayaphoum, Francis "Kiko" Soeder, Başar Ünder and Leendert van Nimwegen.
[9] Peter Brötzmann Gustaf Berger Fredrik Nord Source:[10] The award is presented to the director of a feature-length European comedy intended for theatrical release.
The 2021 nominations were determined by a committee consisting of European Film Academy Board Members Anita Juka (Croatia) and Joanna Szymańska (Poland), producer/screenwriter Paula Alvarez Vaccaro (UK, Italy), producer Vladimer Katcharava (Georgia) as well as film critics Marta Bałaga (Finland, Poland), Janet Baris (Turkey), Andrei Plakhov (Russia), Frédéric Ponsard (France) and Britt Sørensen (Norway) as representatives of FIPRESCI, the International Federation of Film Critics.
[11] The award is presented to the director of a European documentary film intended for theatrical release.