UK director Mike Leigh to head Berlin film jury

British director and screenwriter Mike Leigh will head the jury at the next Berlin film festival, organisers said on Friday.

Leigh, known for his gritty social dramas, follows actress Isabella Rossellini as the president of the panel who will select the winner of the awards at the Feb. 9-19, 2012 event.

The 68-year-old director of acclaimed pictures including Secrets & Lies, Vera Drake and Another Year has enjoyed considerable success on the European film festival circuit.

Secrets & Lies won the Palme d'Or for best movie at the Cannes film festival in 1996 and Vera Drake scooped the Golden Lion prize in Venice in 2004. He has seven Oscar nominations to his name, but has never won.