15 years – 15 stories

When Tamara Dawit joined APostLab in 2019, she was transitioning from documentary filmmaking into fiction. What she found in the workshop was more than technical know-how; it was a shift in mindset. As a woman of colour producing African content, Tamara sought the tools to navigate post-production confidently and bridge the gap between creative vision and technical execution.

Her APostLab experience has since influenced how she structures every project, bringing post supervisors on early, planning with precision, and mentoring a new generation of producers through her training work with EAVE and regional programs in East Africa.

“APostLab filled a knowledge gap that no other lab was addressing. Other labs rarely touch the technical side.”

Read Tamara’s full interview here.

Zalee attended the EP2C workshop (now APostLab) in 2016, a turning point that redefined his career and helped shape the future of post-production in Malaysia.

At the time, he had just finished editing Redha, the first Malay film to represent Malaysia for the Oscars. During the workshop in Halle, Germany, Zalee realized that what he had been doing all along was, in fact, post supervision — and that the role could exist as a dedicated profession in its own right.

“After EP2C/ APostLab, I decided to officially take on post supervision full-time.”

Since then, Zalee has become one of Malaysia’s leading post supervisors, a lecturer across four universities, and the president of MyPost, the national association for post-production professionals. He has been instrumental in professionalizing the field, advocating for fair pay, structured workflows, and the recognition that every film should include a post supervisor.

“When you have a post supervisor, you (The Producer) can actually sleep at night, that’s our job.”

Read Zalee’s full interview here

Olha Matat joined APostLab’s Workshop 14 in Ljubljana with her project TEURA, a period story with complex post-production needs. During the workshop, guidance from tutors like Niko, Antoine, and Roshi encouraged us to go deeper in unveiling the personal path of Sofia Yablonska, which is very relevant and reflects the modern times feelings and challenges of Ukrainian women, who had to move out of Ukraine because of the Russian invasion.

“APostLab completely changed our project—it became brighter, more international, and more ambitious.”

Since then, Teura has grown into a major international co-production between Ukraine, France, Morocco, and potentially Germany. Beyond project development, Olha emphasizes learning the full post-production process, budgeting, and collaboration with post supervisors — knowledge she now applies across her producing work.

“Even if your project is still in early development, APostLab gives you the chance to look at it from a new angle.”

Click here to read Olha’s full interview

Since joining APostLab in 2019, Antoine Simkine has become one of its most dedicated group leaders, returning year after year to guide participants through the realities of post-production and producing. For him, the workshop is as much about teaching as it is about learning:

“Explaining why you do something forces you to understand your own practice.”

Across multiple editions, Antoine says what stays with him most are the people, the spontaneous moments of connection, the shared challenges, and the global friendships that form around the work.

As a Paris-based producer, he balances his teaching at La Fémis with an active slate of international projects, from festival-premiering features to documentaries in development. His advice to aspiring producers is delivered with humor but rooted in truth:

“Producing is like trying to cook on a surfboard. When it works, it’s wonderful, but you need to know what you’re getting into.”

For Antoine, APostLab stands out for one reason: it brings producers and post professionals together in a meaningful way.

“What you’re delivering is the film. When participants tell me the workshop changed how they work, that’s everything.”

Read Antoine’s full interview here

Viola Füegen was part of the second-ever edition of what would later become APostLab, the 2011 EP2C workshop in Warsaw. Fresh off a six-country co-production (The Congress by Ari Folman), Viola joined to better understand the post-production process from a producer’s perspective.

“The workshop completely changed how I approach projects, how I budget, plan, and execute.”

That early experience became a cornerstone of her producing philosophy. Since then, post-production has been central to how Viola structures every project. In 2013, she co-founded Match Factory Productions with Michael Weber, which was acquired by MUBI in 2022. Today, she continues producing acclaimed international films, including Rosebush Pruning by Karim Aïnouz and The Guests by Stefan Butzmühlen and Cristina Diz.

“See your post supervisor as equally important as your line producer.”

Though one of APostLab’s earliest alumni, Viola still feels part of the community. “Even years later,” she says, “every update from APostLab still makes me feel connected.”

Read Viola’s full interview here

Gabi Basalici first joined the APostLab annual workshop in Luxembourg to deepen his understanding of post-production after transitioning from editing to post supervision. Encouraged by a colleague who had attended a previous edition, he later continued with the APostLab Mentorship Program, an experience he describes as the perfect complement to the workshop.

“The mentorship was directly applied to my project, what I learned there changed how I work with producers and co-producers.”

Through the mentorship, Gabi worked on Dinți de lapte (Milk Teeth), a project that went on to premiere at the Venice Film Festival and screen at Toronto, with APostLab proudly credited. Balancing his dual career as both editor and post supervisor, Gabi now brings together technical precision and creative collaboration across his projects.

“As a film editor, you’re quite isolated. Post supervising opened up a whole new world of networking and communication for me.”

Read Gabi’s full interview here

When Ada Solomon first joined EP2C/ APostLab in 2014 in Vienna, she came not as an expert looking to lecture but as a mentor eager to keep learning. With a background in engineering and more than 30 years of experience in film, Ada had mastered physical production but wanted to deepen her understanding of post-production. EP2C/ APostLab offered exactly that: a space for exchange, discovery, and hands-on insight.

At the workshop she found a rare kind of collaboration. She describes it as a two-way flow of knowledge, where directors, producers, artists, and technicians all inform one another.

“No one knows better alone. Filmmaking only works when we learn from each other.”

Today Ada continues to produce internationally acclaimed films and is working on the first feature directed by a Roma woman. She remains an advocate for early planning in post-production and for building teams where experience, curiosity, and mutual respect lead the process.

For Ada, APostLab represents a strong community. Even years later, she follows the work of the participants she met.

“When someone’s film succeeds, it feels a bit like yours. You shared something along the way.”

Read Ada’s full interview here

As a producer, educator, and mentor, Katriel Schory has shaped and supported filmmakers across Europe and beyond. Having trained on many international platforms, he calls APostLab “one of the most beneficial workshops” he’s ever been part of, and has returned almost every year since its early editions.

“It’s a workshop that saves people a lot of time and money later on. But more importantly, it offers a whole new way of thinking about post-production.”

Katriel has witnessed the evolution of post-production firsthand, from analog to digital, and credits APostLab for keeping him inspired and up to date. He describes it as a place that not only teaches the craft but also cultivates reflection, community, and care.

Today, Katriel continues to teach and consults for festivals around the world. His advice to emerging producers and post supervisors is simple but profound:

“If you want to be a producer, you need two things: a cool head and a warm heart.”

For him, APostLab is more than a workshop, it’s a space where filmmakers pause, reflect, and reconnect with why they do what they do.

Read Katriel’s full interview here

Scherin Rajakumaran, VFX Producer at LAVAlabs, joined APostLab for the first time years ago as an observer and returned this year as an official trainer. Although public speaking has always been a challenge for her, the trust and support from Niko, Neeltje, and the other trainers helped her overcome her fear and deliver her first presentation.

What stood out to her most was the honesty, transparency, and realism of the workshop: the way it bridges misunderstandings between departments, the clarity around decision-making, and the emphasis on trust as the foundation of collaboration.

“Working with participants was deeply rewarding—especially witnessing their curiosity, appreciation, and genuine support”.

APostLab also reinforced her belief that partnership and respect, between producers, streamers, vendors, and crews—are more valuable than any tool or software.

She’s just wrapped VFX work on Mother Mary (A24 & augenschein Film) and is excited about a documentary in development about the first nation predicted to disappear due to climate change. Her advice for anyone entering VFX or VFX producing: skill can be taught, character and passion cannot.

Read Scherin’s full interview here

Finnish producer Mika Ritalahti joined APostLab in 2018 with Hatching, a horror feature that was still in development at the time. Coming from an engineering and project management background, During APostLab, complex VFX questions around creature design, budgeting, and workflow were broken down shot by shot, helping him understand post-production as a concrete, planable process rather than a mystery. That clarity proved essential: Hatching later premiered at Sundance and went on to a successful international release.

“Post-production stopped feeling like a mystery. Once you break it down into hours and processes, it becomes manageable.”

Today, Mika continues to explore genre filmmaking and is preparing a new feminist horror feature “The Mire”. For him, APostLab reinforced two key lessons: preparation creates confidence, and strong post-production planning must begin long before shooting starts.

Read Mika’s full interview here

Çiçek Kahraman is a film editor whose career bridges storytelling, post-production, and international collaboration. With an academic background in sociology and film, she brings a deeply human approach to editing: one rooted in communication, empathy, and structure.

Born and raised in Istanbul, Çiçek studied film in the United States before returning to Turkey during a booming period for independent cinema. Over 15 years, she edited around 30 feature films before moving to Berlin in 2017 to expand her international work. Shortly after, she joined Netflix as a creative editorial consultant.

She first joined APostLab in 2013 (then EP2C: European Post Production Connection) as a participant and later returned as a trainer—an experience that underscored the long-term impact of the program and the strength of its community. For Çiçek, APostLab stood out for its honest, inclusive approach to post-production, addressing both low-budget realities and large-scale productions.

She believes that communication lies at the heart of editing, and that strong post-production work begins long before the edit, through trust, realistic planning, and meaningful collaboration.

“What makes APostLab special is not just the experience of the trainers, but their ability to communicate it, and their passion.”

Read Çiçek’s full interview here

Mandy Marahimin, an Indonesian producer, joined the 12th annual APostLab workshop in Athens to tackle a creative challenge: her film required complex visual effects that exceeded its budget.

“We always have to match what we want creatively with what we can actually afford, and the only way to do that is by running tests.”

Through the workshop, Mandy learned how to balance creative ambition with practical constraints—skills that helped her reshape her film’s workflow and communicate more effectively with her director and post team.

She describes post supervisors as “technical partners” who should be brought in early to help define how a film is shot and finished. In Indonesia, she says, that mindset is still growing, but vital to the future of the industry.

“Post supervisors are also producers, they should be hired early as the technical springboard for the creative vision.”

Today, Mandy continues to advocate for better post-production practices and hopes to see a program like APostLab developed for Southeast Asia, where the region’s unique production challenges could be addressed through training and collaboration.

Read Mandy’s full interview here

Roshanak has been part of eight APostLab editions, from Halle to Budapest, Luxembourg, and beyond. What keeps her coming back is simple: the mix of mentoring, learning, and community.

As a producer and trainer, she sees post-production not as a final step, but as a crucial part of development: “If you know what’s possible and what it will cost, you can refine your idea and make it doable.”

Her advice to newcomers is clear: don’t worry if you didn’t start young or come from a purely technical background. “Storytelling is at the core. Behind every finance plan, there’s a story. You don’t need to be a wizard,  just curious enough to ask the right questions.”

For Roshi, the most rewarding part of APostLab is watching participants grow in confidence and knowledge, while also building friendships and collaborations that last well beyond the workshop.

Read Roshi’s full interview here.

Jevgeni Supin is an Estonian producer working across film and television, with a background that spans non-scripted television and scripted series. He joined APostLab after realizing that post-production was an area he often had to oversee himself on low-budget projects, without fully understanding its complexity.

“The workshop opened a completely new world for me. It changed how I see the entire production process.”

What he encountered at APostLab went far beyond his expectations. The workshop reshaped how he approaches production entirely, especially the realization that post-production does not begin after shooting, but already in pre-production. This shift in mindset has since influenced both the series he brought to the workshop and his current projects in development.

For Jevgeni, APostLab was not just about workflows and planning, but about people. He strongly believes that good filmmaking depends on communication, trust, and care within the team. Creating a positive working environment, he says, allows artists to tackle even the most difficult stories with honesty and strength.

“I don’t believe that tension creates good art. I believe the opposite.”

Read Jevgeni’s full interview here