Toom said: "It came as a big surprise to me, of course, I couldn't expect it. Any recognition is nice, but I imagined that a person of the year could become a scientist, surgeon or firefighter or someone who does more real things or more beneficial to society. "

Hendrik Alla, a film editor at Postimees, said Toom has made a fantastic achievement because he was able to create a film that touched the hearts of hundreds of thousands of viewers on the basis of a book that every Estonian has a vision of. "As a film editor, I am particularly pleased this is the fourth time in the history of the Postimees Person of the Year award that a person involved in film has been recognized," he added.

After graduating from Tallinn University with a degree in Film, Toom went on to study for a Master's degree in feature film at the National Film & Television School in England. 

In 2008, his short film "The Second Coming" was selected for the Venice Film Festival. In 2010, he won the Oscar for Student Film in the Foreign Film category with his short film "Tightness," and in 2011 he was nominated for the Best Short Film Oscar.

In 2019, Toomi's first feature film "Truth and Justice" was released as part of the EV100 film program, breaking the record for cinema visits in Estonia and reaching the Oscar shortlist for a foreign language film. Tanel Toom's second full-length feature film "Gateway 6" is currently underway, starring actors Leo Suter and Olga Kurylenko.

The Postimees Man of the Year Award was awarded for the 23rd time.

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