'Shawshank Redemption' Director Frank Darabont Named Zurich Festival Jury President

COLOGNE, Germany - Frank Darabont, the Oscar-nominated director of The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile and executive producer of AMC's The Walking Dead, will be president of the international jury at this year's Zurich Film Festival.

our editor recommends

John Travolta to Receive Zurich Fest Lifetime Achievement Honor

Oliver Stone's 'Savages' to Open Zurich Film Festival

Joining Darabont on the international jury is Shawshank casting agent Deborah Aquila, whose credits also include My Week with Marilyn and Showtime series Dexter; Pulp Fiction executive producer Michael Shamberg and Swedish director Daniel Espinosa (Safe House). Rounding up the jury are Swiss actor Carlos Leal (Sennetuntschi) and Oscar-winning editor Pietro Scalia, whose credits include Black Hawk Down, JFK, Good Will Hunting and Gladiator.

Zurich also confirmed the final members of the German-language jury, which will be headed by German singer and actor Herbert Gronemeyer (Das Boot). Joining Gronemeyer to judge the German, Austrian and Swiss productions running in this year's festival are German actress Julia Jentsch (Sophie Scholl - The Final Days), Austrian director Florian Flicker (Suzie Washington), Swiss producer Marcel Hoehn (Mostly Martha) and Swiss director Peter Luisi (Der Sandmann).

Director Jessica Yu, whose credits include episodes of Grey's Anatomy and The West Wing, will head up Zurich's international documentary jury. She is joined by directors Mohammed Al-Daradji of Iraq, whose credits include Son of Babylon; and Denmark's Janus Metz (Armadillo) as well as French director/producer Phillippe Diaz (The Empire in Africa).

Austrian producer Gabriele Kranzelbinder (Taxidermia) will head the German-language documentary jury with Swiss directors Stefan Haupt (Utopia Blues) and Mirjam von Arx (Seed Warriors) and German producer Martin Hagemann (The Turin Horse).

All four jury will vote on the winners of Zurich's Golden Eye honors. The 2012 Zurich International Film Festival runs Sept. 20-30.