This year the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival inaugurates its own award, which will celebrate individuals who have made significant contributions to the world of film. The recipients of the awards are chosen at the discretion of the festival's board of directors.

The awards are named the Voltas after Ireland's first dedicated cinema, the Volta Picture Theatre on Mary Street in Dublin, which opened on December 20, 1909. The idea for the cinema came from no less an artistic figure than James Joyce. He was living in Trieste at the time and he persuaded a group of Italian entrepreneurs to establish a cinema in Dublin along the lines of their Volta Picture Palace in Bucharest. The first four Voltas will be presented at events during the 2007 festival.

The Voltas - The Designer

The festival commissioned Bettina Seitz to design its new award, the Volta. Now based in Ireland, she was born in Germany and studied sculpture there and in Italy. Drawing on nature and emotions as a source for exploring shapes, her sculptures revolve around the human form, especially the female form. Through the stylisation of the figure into flowing curves and full volumes, they often possess a meditative quality.

Working mainly in bronze and reconstituted stone, Bettina Seitz is especially known for her larger scale sculptures for private garden and public spaces. She has exhibited her work regularly in various European countries and has worked on many private and public commissions, including portrait commissions.