Posted by Larry Gleeson

AFM 2021 ONLINE LAUNCHES NOVEMBER 1 WITH ‘THE INDEPENDENT FILM ECOSPHERE’ SESSION FEATURING PARTICIPANT’S LIESL COPLAND, UPGRADE PRODUCTIONS’ JONATHAN KIER, THE EXCHANGE’S BRIAN O’SHEA & TELEPOOL’S JULIA WEBER  

Full Programming Lineup Unveiled Highlighting Such Topics as VOD, Production Insurance, Documentaries, and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Film

New Speakers Added from BRON, Campfire Studios, DogWoof, GLAAD, IFC Films, Lionsgate, Millennium Media, NAACP, NEON, Quiver, Warner Bros., and More

Market’s Soft Opening Kicked Off Today with the On Demand Theatre, Industry Offices, LocationEXPO,  and MyAFM Now Open 

Los Angeles, CA – October 27, 2021 – The American Film Market (AFM®) today announced new speakers and sessions along with its full programming lineup set for AFM 2021 Online, which will run for five days, November 1 to November 5.

AFM 2021 Online will commence with the opening session – The Independent Film Ecosphere – Present and Future, featuring Liesl Copland, EVP, Content and Platform Strategy, Participant, Jonathan Kier,

Co-President, Upgrade Productions, Brian O’Shea, CEO, The Exchange, Julia Weber, Head of International Sales & Acquisitions, Global Screen – A TELEPOOL Brand, and moderated by Stephen Galloway, Dean of Chapman University Dodge College of Film and Media Arts. The first Finance Conference of the market, Bridging the Production Insurance Gap, will follow with speakers Steve Hays, Founder and Managing Member, 120dB Films, Peter A. Marshall, Managing Principal, Media Insurance, Epic Insurance Brokers, Nick Spicer, Partner, XYZ Films, and moderator Jill Goldsmith, Co-Business Editor, Deadline.

While the AFM doesn’t officially start until Monday, November 1, four buildings on the AFM Campus – the On Demand Theatre, Industry Offices, LocationEXPO, and MyAFM – are now open for pre-market screenings, project previews and scheduling meetings.

AFM will feature over 150 speakers and again taking advantage of its online market to showcase voices from around the world that can’t always be present in Santa Monica. Additional sessions and speakers joining AFM’s two online stages and previously announced conferences, panels, workshops, podcasts and presentations, include:

• AFM’s Pitch Conference featuring Producer & Agent, Cassian Elwes (Mudbound, Dallas Buyers Club), Elevated Film Sales, Jeffrey Greenstein, President, Millennium Media, Monica Levinson, Independent Producer, (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Captain Fantastic, Brian Banks, Wander Darkly), and Lee Jessup, Screenwriting Career Consultant & Coach

• Black Filmmakers at the Crossroads to Success (presented in partnership with AAFCA) featuring Cassandra Butcher, CMO and Co-Creative Director, BRON Studios, Anikah McLaren, EVP, Narrative Film, Participant, Samantha Racanelli, SVP, Film Development & Production, Endeavor Content, and Gil L. Robertson IV, Co-Founder, African-American Film Critics Association (AAFCA)
• Changing the Narrative: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Film (presented in partnership with the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media Studies) with Iram Parveen Bilal, Filmmaker, Madeline Di Nonno, President & CEO, the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, Christopher Kahunahana, Producer, Writer, Director, and Alysia Reiner, Actor, Creator, Producer
• Demystifying the SPLATAM Market (presented in partnership with NALIP) featuring Liliana Espinoza, Projects Director, NALIP, Sonia Gambaro, Vice President of Television, 3Pas Studios, Georgina Gonzalez, Director of Development in the SPLATAM team, Gaumont Television, and Frida Torresblanco, Braven Films 

• Global Streaming & the Future of Entertainment in Asia with Rick Ambros, International Media and Entertainment Consultant & Producer, Rohit Jain, Managing Director South Asia & Networks – Emerging Markets Asia, Lionsgate, Sameer Nair, CEO, Applause Entertainment India, William Pfeiffer, Executive Chairman, Globalgate Entertainment

• How Streamers Approach Independent Content with Adam Koehler, Manager of Acquisitions, IFC Films, Brent Lang, Executive Editor Film & Media, New York Bureau Chief, Variety, Berry Meyerowitz, President, Quiver, Brian Stevenson, CEO and Founder, The Chromata Consulting Group, and Jennifer Vaux, Head of Content Acquisition, Roku

• How to Profit with Micro-Budget Features featuring Tim Molloy, Editor-in-Chief, MovieMaker Magazine, Matt Grady, Founder, Factory 25, Matt Miller, President, Vanishing Angle, and Deon Taylor, Founder, Hidden Empire Film Group

• In the Market for Authentic Transgender Films (presented in partnership with GLAAD) with Alex Schmider, Associate Director of Transgender Representation, GLAAD and Tre’vell Anderson, Journalist
• International Film Market: Consumption of Black Culture, Rejection of Black Stories (presented in partnership with the NAACP) featuring Mo Abudu, CEO, EbonyLife Group, Kyle Bowser, SVP Hollywood Bureau, NAACP, Dr. Darnell Hunt, Dean of the Division of Social Sciences and Professor of Sociology and African American Studies, UCLA, Johnny Jones, Executive Director of Worldwide Marketing Content, Warner Bros. Pictures, Gabriel Lerman, Board Member, Hollywood Foreign Press Association, and Tirrell Whittley, CEO, Liquid Soul
• Limited Budget Features with Huge Profit Potential featuring Brian Beckmann, CFO, Arclight Films, Luane Gauer, Head of Acquisitions, Protagonist Pictures, Michael Heimler, Head of Production and Finance, Black Bear Pictures, Jeremy Kay, Americas Editor, Screen Daily, and Kent Sanderson, Acquisitions and Ancillary Distribution, Bleecker Street
   
• New Perspectives on Horror featuring Darren Lynn Bousman, Director, (Spiral, Death of Me, Saw II/III/IV), Patrick Ewald, CEO, Epic Pictures, Jordan Fields, Vice President of Acquisitions, Shout! Factory, Jasmine Johnson, SVP, Development, Crypt TV, and Annick Mahnert, Manager, Acquisitions, Raven Banner Entertainment

• Producing Movies for Networks and Platforms featuring Charles Cooper, President/Producer, Front Street Pictures, Gene George, President, Tesera Entertainment, Larry Grimaldi, SVP, Development and Production, MarVista Entertainment, Brad Krevoy, CEO, Motion Picture Corporation of America, and Chevonne O’Shaughnessy, President, American Cinema International
• Producing Standout Documentary Features featuring Kevin Iwashina, Head of Documentary, Endeavor Content, Anna Godas, CEO, DogWoof, Ross Dinerstein, Founder and CEO, Campfire Studios, Dan O’Meara, EVP of Nonfiction, NEON and Co-Head, Super LTD, and Helen Huang, Acquisitions Consultant

• The Casting Effect: How Talent Choices Impact Every Phase of Production featuring Milan Chakraborty, Head of Film, Marginal MediaWorks, Jennifer Kawaja, President, English Scripted, Sienna Films – a Sphere Media Company, Nat McCormick, EVP, Worldwide Distribution, The Exchange, Renee Tab, Founder and President, Sentient Entertainment, and Richard Botto, Founder and CEO, Stage 32
• The Export Success of Black Cast Films from Africa featuring Pascal Schmitz, Head of Development, AAA Entertainment, Tracey-Lee Rainers, Story Consultant, Stiletto Entertainment, Sunni Faba, Script Writer, Nnegest Likké, Writer/Director, Mayenzeke Baza, Head of Distribution, AAA Entertainment*The full lineup and schedule of sessions to date can be found at https://sessions.americanfilmmarket.com/.

  AFM is the annual fund-raiser for the Independent Film & Television Alliance. On August 26th, IFTA announced the AFM’s move to online for 2021 due to travel regulations, increased concerns about coronavirus variants around the world, and government restrictions on the ground.  The pivot to online would allow for all stakeholders around the world to participate in the market. 

  About the American Film Market^® (AFM^®)
  The AFM is the most efficient film acquisition, development and networking event in the world. More than US$1 billion in production and distribution deals are closed every year — on both completed films and those in every stage of development and production. Over five days in November, 7,000+ professionals from 70+ countries access the entire global catalog of available films and projects, attend world-class conferences, and connect with decision-makers. The AFM is produced by the Independent Film & Television Alliance®.

  About the Independent Film & Television Alliance^® (IFTA^®)
  IFTA is the global trade association for independent film and television production, finance, distribution, and sales companies. The organization represents the independent sector before governments and international bodies and provides significant entertainment industry services to independent companies from 22 countries. 

***Media Contact:
Jennifer Garnick | VP, Communications
       jgarnick@ifta-online.org | 1+310.446.1006

Posted by Larry Gleeson

Speakers To Include Executives From Arclight Films, Blackbear Pictures, Bleeker Street, Endeavor Content, Roku and XYZ Films

The American Film Market has announced initial details for AFM 2021 Online which will commence on November 1 and run for five days through November 5.  AFM 2021 Online will take place on the proprietary interactive campus AFM built in 2020 – presenting an engaging and effective environment for discovery, education, deal making, networking and reconnecting.

More than 300 production and sales companies, as well as international trade organizations from 25+ countries have already registered as exhibitors for the market, including Altitude Film Sales, Anton, Arclight Films, Blue Fox Entertainment, China Film Promotion International, Cinema Management Group, Cornerstone, Dogwoof, The Exchange, Fabrication Films, Fantawild Animation Inc., GAGA Corporation, Gaumont, GFM, HanWay, Global Screen – a TELEPOOL brand, Highland Film Group, Lakeshore Entertainment, Lionsgate, Millennium Media, Myriad Pictures, Pathé International, Picture Tree International, Protagonist Pictures, Radiant Films International, Sierra/Affinity, Taiwan Cinema Presented by TAICCA, TF1 Studio, Toei Company, Ltd., UniFrance, WestEnd Films, and XYZ Films.  The United States currently has the largest exhibitor presence participating followed by the United Kingdom, Germany, Thailand, France, and Japan.

AFM will also bring its distinguished Conferences and educational programming back online with two stages running simultaneously and featuring more than 50 live sessions exploring film topics from script to screen. The sessions will also be made available the same day on-demand for attendees to stream at their convenience.

Over 150 industry professionals and decision makers will participate in AFM 2021 Online’s programming lineup.  Confirmed speakers to date include such names as:

Brian Beckmann, Arclight Films; Daniel Bort, Fantawild Animation; Ryan Broussard, Media Services Payroll; JJ Caruth, The Avenue Entertainment; Milan Chakraborty, Marginal MediaWorks, Inc.; Cassian Elwes, Elevated Film Sales; Clay Epstein, Film Mode Entertainment; Patrick Ewald, Epic Pictures; Matt Grady, Factory 25; Michael Heimler, Black Bear Pictures; Kevin Iwashina, Endeavor Content; Brad Krevoy, Motion Picture Corporation of America; Edward Noeltner, Cinema Management Group; Tania Pinto Da Cunha, Pink Parrot Media; Gil Robertson, AAFCA; Kent Sanderson, Bleecker Street; James Emanuel Shapiro, XYZ Films; and Jennifer Vaux, Roku.

 

Session highlights new for 2021, include:

• A Story Analyst’s Approach to Screenwriting 
• Animation: A Growing Territory for Independents 
• Black Filmmakers at the Crossroads to Success (presented in partnership with AAFCA) 
• Bridging the Production Insurance Gap 
• The Casting Effect: How Talent Choices Impact Every Phase of Production 
• International Film Market: Consumption of Black Culture, Rejection of Black Stories (presented in partnership with NAACP) 
• New Perspective on Horror 

The lineup and schedule of sessions to date can be found at https://sessions.americanfilmmarket.com/.

In addition, AFM has announced its lineup of eight Premiere Sponsors.  The sponsors, each of which will present a dedicated location on the AFM 2021 Online campus, include Apojo Publications, Entertainment Partners, Filmhub, Honolulu Film Office, JAPAN/JETRO, Media Services Payroll, Polish Film Institute, and Whip Media.

AFM is the annual fund-raiser for the Independent Film & Television Alliance. On August 26th, IFTA announced the AFM’s move to online for 2021 due to travel regulations, increased concerns about coronavirus variants around the world, and government restrictions on the ground.  The pivot to online would allow for all stakeholders around the world to participate in the market.

About the American Film Market® (AFM®)
The AFM is the most efficient film acquisition, development and networking event in the world. More than US$1 billion in production and distribution deals are closed every year — on both completed films and those in every stage of development and production. Over five days in November, 7,000+ professionals from 70+ countries access the entire global catalogue of available films and projects, attend world class conferences, and connect with decision makers. The AFM is produced by the Independent Film & Television Alliance®.

About the Independent Film & Television Alliance® (IFTA®) 

IFTA is the global trade association for independent film and television production, finance, distribution, and sales companies. The organization represents the independent sector before governments and international bodies and provides significant entertainment industry services to independent companies from 22 countries.

 

 

 

Posted by Larry Gleeson

Exciting material with this morning’s AFM Finance Conference and yesterday’s interview with Borat writer Dan Mazer. Check out these highlights from the sessions, including Producing without a Completion Bond and Low Budget Films with Huge Profit Potential featuring  Brad Krevoy, Motion Picture Corporation of America, Brian O’Shea, The Exchange, and John Sloss, Cinetic Media as well as Jillian Apfelbaum of Village Roadshow, Pictures, Nick Spicer of XYZ Films and Zachary Tarica The Forest Road Co.

AFM Finance Conference 11/11/20 @ 9:30AM

Highlights from today’s 1^st AFM Finance Conference Panel: Producing Without a Completion Bond

 Panelists:
Brad Krevoy, CEO, Motion Picture Corporation of America
Brian O’Shea, CEO, The Exchange
John Sloss, Founder, Cinetic Media

Moderator:
Jill Goldsmith, Co-Business Editor, Deadline

The current state of Insurance and Production?

Brian O’Shea: “It’s really been a standstill ever since COVID happened…We were in the midst of one production we had to stop …we moved the production from Eastern Europe to the UK, and found that there was more of a likelihood of finding a bond given that there were more insurance-backed opportunities there. It was all private investment, so they had to find a new investor and it was required that he had to have a bond so they were forced to move out of the UK…I was in the midst of trying to figure that issue out during the COVID process, and so I was out there trying to find investors that do non-COVID investment, or backed investment by bond…and it’s really difficult to find.”

Brad Krevoy: “What we decided to do is go full steam ahead on the basis that very few people would be able to take the risk to make more productions, and our thinking was ‘Okay, we’re going to make these movies and everybody will want them.’ What we didn’t fully figure out was that ad revenue was going to be a little bit lower and that the studios were going to limit what they were going to release, but we still continued and still moved forward.”

“In that process, during that exploration, we discovered some very interesting things…We made seven movies and one TV series which we shot in three locations.  One was Canada and they have it together. The US policy, when it comes to protecting all of us….it’s messy, it’s very messy and confusing. But in Canada, they make you do a two-week quarantine, and I mean it’s a severe quarantine…they track you! We were able to get Covid-insurance, $50K for half a million worth of insurance…we bought a little bit of the insurance to reduce and hedge our risk a little bit. It does exist, they offer that product, but it’s very expensive”

“There were quite a few films made and still being made [during the pandemic] under previous policies still in effect that did not have a COVID exclusion. A company, particularly a broadcaster, will have a year-long insurance policy, so long as that policy is still in effect, it covers COVID.”

John Sloss: “It’s the films in the middle that are really challenged. The ones above $2M but below the studio, I think have largely ground to a halt. When we talk about PRIA, we’re talking about sovereign subsidies…In England, they’ve got $500M from the government to subsidize production” “What it does is give an additional ability to attract production to your physical location, so if you’re willing to basically be the insurance company as a government, you can have a leg up certainly on the US but on a lot of other locations.”

“If you look at all the states in this country that subsidize with their tax fees and all of the soft money that we’ve come to rely on, a state covering COVID insurance risk is not so different from a state giving tax rebates, it’s an actuarial calculation. I would call upon the commissioners out there to give some serious consideration [to this] if they want to take advantage of this situation to draw a lot of production to where they are.”

Brad Krevoy: “By the time the governments, at least in the US, get around to figuring this out, it will be too late because we’ll have a vaccine, hopefully.” “The level of development with scripts and writers is at an all-time high right now…I think that’s a common theme.”

What will the Post COVID reality look like?

Brad Krevoy: “It will be the roaring twenty-ones! Content is going to come back strong, and it is going to be happy times, it is going to be fantastic for all of us….There’s going to be tremendous demand…The biggest hope of all for independents, that’s transformational, is going to be advertising-supported VOD. That is going to give life to us for many years, AVOD will be the ship we all ride on for a while”

How companies are Forging Forward and International Support

Brian O’Shea: “The German government is backing insurance relief up to a certain amount, and that is enough given the budget of a [certain] film, which is $10M, that they’re basically putting up…no more than 15-20% of the film budget for COVID insurance, and that is enough for film financers to move forward with the bond.”

John Sloss: “There’s no absolute normal prescription…there is no rehearsal for this period. We’re kind of figuring this out as we go along.”

Brian O’Shea: “We have done a number of films non-bonded with strategic investors in the film. They need to move money…there’s a lot of money out there that is not being worked…there are some investment groups out there that are willing to take a risk and that have been successful, so there are specific investor groups that are taking opportunities on non-bonded films…but…they have to feel comfortable with the package in general.”

John Sloss: “You don’t always need a completion bond, but if you’re working through conventional finance channels where you’re not at the high-risk edges of these arbitrageurs and if you’re working with commercial banks or you’re taking contracts from territorial buyers who have committed to pay on delivery of a completed film — if you’re taking those to a bank to borrow against it and fund your production, you really do need a bond.”

Brad Krevoy: “Sometimes in COVID, the riskiest thing is not making to the post-production process. So what you might be able to do is get a bond for a post at a normal price and you’re just hoping that every day of production goes the way you want it to so that you can still convert some of your contracts into cash.”

What positive outcome of the pandemic could there be for the independent product when COVID clears?  

Brad Krevoy:  “There’s a huge demand. You have all the new streaming services coming online. You have the AVOD coming online. All the mechanisms are aligned.”

John Sloss: “There’s only so much you can do at this moment but the consumption hours for content have exploded because everybody’s quarantined in their house, watching. It happens to coincide with the launch of all SVOD services that are going to be chasing Netflix. The real bottleneck here is in production, and when the pandemic passess…the bottleneck is going to open up….sowhat a smart person does is create the best possible source material they can right now…when the production opens up again, people are going to be working 24 hours a day.”

What Content is Wanted?

John Sloss: “I think documentaries are going to fare well.  They have not been as impacted. We’re all moving towards episodics…they’re doing that for scripted, doing that for docs, and I think that is a very fertile area to focus on at this moment.”

Brian O’Shea: “It’s about content, and people needing content…I’m meeting with a lot of broadcasters too, major broadcasters in Europe, and they are looking for content as well.”

Brad Krevoy: “Movies will reflect the culture, and that culture will have more uplifting, fun properties as opposed to dramatic projects. I think you’ll see a little bit of a shift with people wanting stories that make you laugh, that make you cry, or make you think.  I don’t know how horror will fare as it’s not in my wheelhouse.”

John Sloss: “The most reliable genre is the New…something that has not been seen before.  When we had Napoleon Dynamite, we saw about 500 scripts after that that were take-offs on Napoleon Dynamite or tried to capture that vibe.  It’s not necessarily within the realm of everyone to create something new and yes emotion is important and passion is important but if you have a chance at creating something no one has seen before that has the greatest chance.”

AFM Finance Conference 11/11/20 @ 11AM

Highlights from today’s 2^nd AFM Finance Conference Panel: Low Budget Films with Huge Profit Potential

Panelists
Jillian Apfelbaum, EVP, Content, Village Roadshow Pictures
Nick Spicer, Partner, XYZ Films
Zachary Tarica, CEO & Director, The Forest Road Co.

Moderator
John Rhodes, Co-Founder, Screencraft

How do you Decide on Budget?

Zachary Tarica: “It’s what you can afford, it’s what you can put together. The thing we press on as a film finance company is making the budget make sense for the project.”

Nick Spicer: “Most scripts have a minimum budget that it’s going to take to actually make what’s on the page. And there are certain production elements that are immutable in a project, but that doesn’t mean that the movie is worth that amount of money, or worth that amount of money in one iteration versus another. So, what we do is that we always value the project with realistic assumptions for cast, realistic assumptions for what we think we would be able to get in terms of production value, and we figure out what we think the movie is worth to the market.”

What do you look at to decide value?

Nick Spicer: “It’s one part science and one part instinct. I wish that I could tell you exactly how to value a movie and you could go do it and it was easy math. But a lot goes into it, because it’s a creative industry and because you’re trying to gauge audience taste, which is a very hard thing to do. The best thing to do is look at comps…the breakout successes of the past five years — those are usually not realistic comps for a low budget movie.”

Zachary Tarica: “The first thing I do when I look at even the top line of a budget is try to figure out what type of coverage that film can have.  We see hundreds, even thousands of projects, [where] we’re having a real, honest conversation with the production company looking at it and saying, ‘There’s a really good chance here that you lose $6-7M….“It’s important to go into it with that open mind looking at your budget with an accurate…or realistic outcome.”

How has Success Evolved?

Jillian Apfelbaum: “What determines a film’s success in this new environment is directly related to the reason why the film is being made…it is not often that a high risk, the low budget movie can have huge financial returns. That doesn’t mean it’s not a success, especially if you’re trying to prove a filmmaker, build relationships, build your own production company, try it for awards…While financial success is definitely one of the areas in which a movie can be successful, there are other areas in which there are achievements that have value in the long-term growth of a producer or company.”

Zachary Tarica: “There’s so much more to it that can ultimately get you to where the profitability needs to be…The lower the budget, the more important the distribution plan is, the correlation’s 100.” “We’ve had some really interesting case studies, where films sub $500k…have done incredibly well.”

Nick Spicer: “Huge profit potential does not mean $100M at the box office. If you have a movie for $25k-$50k and you sell it for $150k…that’s a really good return…don’t expect that it’s going to become the next Paranormal Activity.”

Can a film Have Success without Name Talent?

Zachary Tarica: “It’s having a pinpoint audience…you have to have an audience that’s interested in what you think you’re creating and really hone in on that audience so that this is something that is sellable.  We had low budget filmmakers that drove cross-country selling packages to churches and made a profit.”

Jillian Apfelbaum: “I think Nick’s company [XYZ] is also doing something really interesting when it comes to the audience in that they’re doing a lot of local language productions.  I’m also fascinated by the faith-based audience and think that there’s a total market there.” “I think there’s a market for local language, for the Spanish language, especially in the US and South America. There is an opportunity to find value in your film outside of the US.”

Nick Spicer: “Local language is booming…Netflix is capped out on subscribers in the US so their growth is entirely international, so there’s a pretty great appetite for local language content.”

Jillian Apfelbaum: “Calling casting directors and asking them who is in the next wave of movie stars or TV stars that you can access before they hit it, that’s really helpful too…Making a movie takes time, so if you cast someone ahead of their break…we made a movie called ‘Hot Summer Nights’ with Timothee Chalamet in it before Timothee Chalamet got big. Our movie didn’t come out until after Timothee had done several major movies, and it ended up really bolstering the success of the film.”

The Impact of COVID

Zachary Tarica: “[In one instance] a false positive COVID test can cost the production company about $200k, so think about that when you have a…$1M to $5M budget film…the issues of quarantine, a bubble, travel, the contingency, the insurance, the things that go into it [planning for COVID] are things that we’re not always thinking about as filmmakers that really come into play here.”

Maximizing Profit Potential?

Jillian Apfelbaum: “Genre is critical in the development stage…if it’s horror or thriller, it is going to have a stronger chance at breakout success and a larger audience than if it’s a drama. Otherwise, finding ways to maximize production value without increasing cost is always really effective, and that has to do often with visual effects, and when you’re going practical versus going visual…but I think the biggest determining factor has to be genre.”

AFM Podcast Session 11/10/20 @ 11AM

Highlights from yesterday’s Filmmakers Podcast ft. Dan Mazer: How to Make Movies, From Indies to Studio Features & Working On Set

Hosts
Giles Alderson, Creator & Host, The Filmmakers Podcast
Ian Sharp, Founder, Sharp House

Guest
Dan Mazer, Writer & Director, LBI Entertainment

On Home Alone reboot:

“We were making a movie in March…and they read on Deadline that we were about to be shut down!”

“We made the announcement, we shut down, without knowing when, if, how we would come down having a five million dollar set still standing in Montreal for all that time…and more pertinently, having a young, 11-year-old boy as our lead with the clock ticking on whether he was going to hit puberty”

On Borat 2:

“With Borat, obviously there you’re in the real world; film sets are sort of hermetically sealed, we’re tested five times a day [he def meant week]…but with Borat, that’s a very different scenario”

“I remember on the first day of shooting, we were waiting for the COVID test for the makeup person to come through, we couldn’t start until that came through and sat in a car park waiting for a negative result for nine hours…and then we lost the light and had basically a half hour’s worth of filming”

Dan on getting financing during covid:

“People started to look more towards…comedy, I think the need for people to just have the stress and strain taken away and to be able to just laugh at stuff has come to the fore”

Dan on success:

“One thing that I’ve learned…the things that have been the most successful that I’ve done have tried to break the mold in some way, and anything that feels familiar or like you’ve seen it before or like a facsimile of something…however good it is, it’s much less likely to breakthrough”

“Daring to be different is really the answer to making an impact”

“As with most things with filmmakers, it’s about ego. As a director, it’s very easy to get high on your own supply and just think you’re a god because everyone’s so nice to you, and you don’t have to listen to anyone…but my attitude to filmmaking generally is surrounding yourself with brilliant people and let them be brilliant and that will steer the ship”

Dan: “[On when Home Alone is coming out] It’ll be next Christmas!”

(Source: Press release provided by Jennifer Garnick, AFM Press)

 

 

Posted by Larry Gleeson

JOSH HUTCHERSON AND MORE JOIN LIEV SCHREIBER’S ACROSS THE RIVER AND INTO THE TREES

Venice, Italy/ Los Angeles, CA, November 9, 2020: Tribune Pictures and The Exchange announced today that feature movie adaptation of Ernest Hemingway’s final novel and NY Times bestseller ACROSS THE RIVER AND INTO THE TREES just added award-winning actor Josh Hutcherson and award-winning Italian actress Sabrina Impacciatore.

Propelled to stardom by the HUNGER GAMES franchise and the critically acclaimed independent film, THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT, Hutcherson currently stars in the Hulu TV series Future Man. Impacciatore wrote and starred recently in Italian box office success THERE IS NO PLACE LIKE HOME.

n pre-production in Venice, Italy, Hutcherson and Impacciatore are joining six-time Golden Globe nominee actor Liev Schreiber (Ray Donovan, Spotlight, X-Men Origins: Wolverine), award-winning Italian breakthrough actress Matilda De Angelis (Susan Bier’s The Undoing), award-winning Italian Laura Morante (CHERRY ON THE CAKE, THE BALL) and Academy Award-nominated Italian actor Giancarlo Giannini (QUANTUM OF SOLACE).

Produced by Robert MacLean of Tribune Pictures, the adapted screenplay by BAFTA-award-winning screenwriter Peter Flannery is directed by award-winning Spanish director Paula Ortiz (THE BRIDE) with award-winning director of photography Javier Aguirresarobe (BLUE JASMINE, VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA, THOR RAGNAROK, THE ROAD).

The film is being produced in association with Jianmin LV and Spring Era Films. John Smallcombe and Ken Gord are also producing, William J. Immerman and Justin Raikes are Executive Producers. Andrea Biscaro is Italian Line Producer. Filomena Cusano is production counsel.

ACROSS THE RIVER AND INTO THE TREES is the story of Colonel Richard Cantwell, played by Schreiber, a semi-autobiographical character partially-based-on Hemingway’s friend Colonel Charles T. Lanham. Hemingway had his own relationship with Italian aristocrat, Adriana Ivancich. Cantwell is a complex and conflicted character, wounded and damaged both physically and mentally by the war, seeking inner peace, and trying to come to terms with his own mortality.

“Adding Josh to this internationally renowned cast is very exciting. His popularity and talent will help make this film even more valuable to our buyers,” said Brian O’Shea, The Exchange C.E.O.

Hutcherson is represented by The Beddingfield Company, The Gersh Agency and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller, Hoberman, Newman, Warren, Richman, Rush, Kaller & Gellman, Impacciatore by Gianni Chiffi and Volver Consulenze Artistiche.

The Exchange’s Virtual AFM’20 line-up includes Liev Schreiber’s ACROSS THE RIVER AND INTO THE TREES, Noomi Rapace’s THE THICKET, Kumail Nanjiani’s THE INDEPENDENT, Trace Lysette’s MONICA, Zoe Saldana’s KEYHOLE GARDEN, Anna Faris’ SUMMER MADNESS, Sundance’20 SPREE, Tribeca’20 Drew Barrymore’s THE STAND-IN, completed movie GRINGA, Sundance’20 and Berlinale’20 documentary WELCOME TO CHECHNYA, documentaries WELCOME TO DALE and STREET GANG,

(Jazo PR press release provided by Laurent Boye)

Posted by Larry Gleeson

ETHAN HAWKE BOARDS ABEL FERRARA’S NEW POSTMODERN, WAR-TIME THRILLER

“ZEROS AND ONES”

CAPSTONE GROUP’S BLUE BOX INTERNATIONAL TO LAUNCH SALES AT AFM THIS WEEK

LOS ANGELES, CA (November 9, 2020) Four-time Academy Award-nominated actor and filmmaker Ethan Hawke (First Reformed, Boyhood), Cristina Chiriac (Siberia, Tommaso) and Phil Neilson (Siberia, Ben-Hur) have joined seminal filmmaker Abel Ferrara’s (Bad Lieutenant, The Funeral, Kings Of New York) upcoming thriller Zeros and Ones.

Both written and directed by Ferrara, filming begins in Italy later this month.

JJ (Ethan Hawke) is an American soldier stationed in a Rome under siege, locked down, and at war.  The Vatican being blown into the night sky is only the beginning of our hero’s journey to uncover and defend against an unknown enemy but threatening the lives of the entire world.

Christian Mercuri’s Capstone Group will launch sales at AFM this week under its Blue Box International label and will co-rep domestic with CAA Media Finance.

Zeros and Ones is produced by Diana Phillips (Bad Lieutenant, Siberia, Alfie) of Rimsky Productions, and Philipp Kreuzer (Guns Akimbo, The Happy Prince, Run & Jump) from Maze Pictures.  Award winning cinematographer Sean Price Williams who most recently lensed Cannes Film Festival Official Selection Good Time directed by Benny and Josh Safdie and starring Robert Pattinson, anchors the production below the line team.

Danny Chan of Almost Never Films will serve as Executive Producer alongside Brent Guttman and Don Young.

“Zeros and Ones is a film of lockdown and war, danger and espionage, American soldiers, Chinese middlemen,  Mid Easternholy men, provocateurs, diplomats, rogue elements of the CIA and KGB.  I cannot wait to roll the cameras next week in a way that is safe because this film was written during and with anunderstanding of the pandemic,” declared Ferrara  

“Buyers are hungry for compelling and original storylines in the hands of master filmmakers and Zeros and Ones ticks all the right boxes,” Mercuri stated. “Coupled with worldclassproduction values and locations that includes the eerie backdrop of present-day Rome which has a feeling of Paris at the end of WW2, this film is a package not to be missed.”

In a career that spans over three decades, Ethan Hawke’s prolific filmography includes screen performances in Dead Poets Society; Reality Bites; Gattaca; Training Day; Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead; Boyhood; Born to Be Blue; Maudie; Richard Linklater’s trilogy Before Sunrise, Before Sunset and Before Midnight; and First Reformed, among countless others.  He is also a noted filmmaker, author, and currently makes his television debut as star, co-writer, and executive producer of Showtime’s critically acclaimed limited series, The Good Lord Bird.   

Long-time independent filmmaker Abel Ferrara has built a cult audience following with his stylish, neo-noir imagery, gritty urban settings, and provocative award winning films. A Film Festival favorite, his credits include Siberia, The Addiction, The Funeral, Blackout, Pasolini, Tommaso, Mary, Bad Lieutenantand the crime-thriller King of New York starring Christopher Walken.

ABOUT CAPSTONE GROUP

Capstone Group is an independent film financing and international sales company focusing on high quality commercial films with worldwide box office appeal.  Established in 2017, Capstone is headed by renowned international sales and distribution veteran Christian Mercuri who has sold, financed and produced over 150 feature films with distribution contracts exceeding $1.7 billion USD and a worldwide box office exceeding $3 billion USD.  In its first years, the company has financed and/or licensed films with 

International stars such as Angelina Jolie, Mila Kunis, Chris Pratt, Jackie Chan, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis. Prior to forming Capstone Group, Mercuri helped finance and distribute projects such as The Wolf of Wall Street, The Expendables, Dumb and Dumber To, and Out of the Furnace.

(Source: press release provided by MLPR)

Posted by Larry Gleeson

Announces Speakers from CAA, Cinedigm, Dogwoof, EFO Films, Elevated Film Sales, Endeavor Content, FandangoNow, IndieFlix, Magnolia Pictures, NAACP, Participant, ScriptBook, UCLA, Universal, Verve, and Winston Baker 

Networking to Take Center Stage with Opportunities to Connect via Video by Genres, Location, and Specialty Topics 

Los Angeles, CA – November 3, 2020 – Ahead of its kick-off next week, the American Film Market (AFM®) today announced new topics and speakers added to the expansive AFM 2020 Online programming lineup that will bring 70+ sessions and 200 speakers over five days, November 9-13, alongside the AFM’s marketplace and screenings at AFM2020.online.

Plans for AFM’s Networking Pavilion have also been revealed. This truly unique online experience gives attendees the opportunity to explore and join over 100 video discussions / “tables” every hour with small groups focused on various genres and specialty topics ranging from Documentary to Horror to Socially Responsible Storytelling.  Additional “tables” will offer hourly meet-ups for dozens of countries and U.S. cities, providing the “face-to-face” connections that happen organically in Santa Monica.

While the AFM doesn’t officially start until Monday, November 9, three buildings on the AFM Campus – the Industry Offices, LocationEXPO, and the On Demand Theatre will go live on November 4 for pre-market screenings and project previews.

Additional topics and speakers joining AFM’s two online stages and previously announced conferences, panels, conversations, workshops, podcasts and presentations, include:

• AFM’s Pitch Conference featuring Producer & Agent, Cassian Elwes (Mudbound, Dallas Buyers Club), Elevated Film Sales, Elizabeth Haggard, VP Narrative Film, Participant Media, and Lee Jessup, Screenwriting Career Consultant & Coach.
• How to Secure the Right Cast for a Greenlight featuring Randall Emmett (The Irishman, Power), Co-Chair & Producer, EFO Films, Caroline Couret-Delegue, Managing Director, Film Seekers, Jenny Jue, Owner & Casting Director, Downtown Casting, Laura Rister, Producer, Untitled Entertainment.
• Who Did I Offend Now? Cultural Competency in Storytelling presented in partnership with the NAACP with Kyle Bowser, NAACP, Darnell Hunt, Dean of the Division of Social Sciences and Professor of Sociology and African American Studies, UCLA, and Brittany A. Little, Vice President, Drama Development, Universal Television.
• Distributing & Monetizing Feature Documentaries with Anna Godas, CEO,DogWoof, Gregg Goldstein, Author, Variety, Kevin Iwashina, Agent, Endeavor Content, John Von Thaden, Head of Acquisitions, Magnolia Pictures, Krista Wegener, EVP, Sales and Distribution, Participant Media.
• Using Artificial Intelligence to Inform Success featuring Nadira Azermai, Founder, ScriptBook, Tobias Queisser, Co-Founder & CEO, Cinelytic, and Debajyoti “Deb” Ray, CEO,
• Discover New Voices presented in partnership with WINSTON | BAKER with Adhrucia Apana, Founder & Producer, Curiosity Entertainment, Janaé Désiré, Media Finance Executive, Creative Artists Agency, Gina Reyes, Television Lit Agent, Verve Talent & Literary Agency, Sophia Yen, Partner, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, and Viviana Zarragoitia, Vice President, Three Point Capital.
• Standing Out in the Streaming Game – What Platforms and Audiences Want featuring Scilla Andreen, Co-Founder & CEO, IndieFlix, Cameron Douglas, VP of Home Entertainment, FandangoNOW, and Erick Opeka, President, Cinedigm Digital Networks.
• Blockchain Streaming Platforms presented in partnership with the Blockchain Global Entertainment Alliance with Jake Craven, VP, Content Partnerships,Breaker, Adrian J. Garelik, CEO, Flixxo, Trinabh Gupta, Professor at University California Santa Barbara, Rouslan Ovtcharoff, Founder, Blockchain Global Entertainment Alliance, Patrice Poujol, Founder & CEO, Lumiere, and Serban Simu, President & Co-Founder, Eluvio.

As previously announced, AFM’s programming will kick off on November 9 with two marquee one-on-one conversations: Mark Gill, President and CEO of Solstice Studios, will take the online stage to discuss his views and predictions of how independent film, the marketplace, and audience consumption will change in the near future with Deadline’s Anthony D’Alessandro. The morning will continue with a dialogue with Elissa Federoff, President of Distribution for NEON, who will share her insights with Variety’s Brent Lang on the future of feature film distribution and exhibition.

View the schedule of sessions and speakers for AFM 2020 Online. For more information and registration, please visit americanfilmmarket.com.

About the American Film Market® (AFM®)
The AFM is the most efficient film acquisition, development and networking event in the world. More than US$1 billion in production and distribution deals are closed every year — on both completed films and those in every stage of development and production. Over five days in November, 7,000+ professionals from 70+ countries access the entire global catalogue of available films and projects, attend world class conferences, and connect with decision makers. The AFM is produced by the Independent Film & Television Alliance®.

(Source: Press release provided by Jennifer Garrick, VP, Communications, Independent Film & Television Alliance)

 

Posted by Larry Gleeson

Conversations with Solstice Studios’ Mark Gill and NEON’s Elissa Federoff to Kick Off Market on November 9

80 Sessions to Feature Executives and Producers from BFI, Cinetic Media, Cornerstone Films, Facebook, Film4, Highland Film Group, IMAX, MadRiver International, Millennium Media, Symbolic Exchange, The Exchange, Troma Entertainment, XYZ Films, YouTube and More

Prominent Film Podcasts to Take the AFM Stage for the First Time

 

 

Los Angeles, CA – October 21, 2020 – The American Film Market (AFM®) today announced its initial speakers, topics, and programming calendar for AFM 2020 Online. Its 70+ sessions will take place over five days, November 9-13 alongside the AFM’s marketplace and screenings at AFM2020.online.

 

The AFM’s opening Conference – The Future of Film – will launch with two marquee one-on-one conversations: Mark Gill, President and CEO of Solstice Studios, will take the online stage to discuss his views and predictions of how independent film, the marketplace, and audience consumption will change in the near future.  The morning will continue with a dialogue with Elissa Federoff, President of Distribution for NEON, who will share her insights on the future of feature film distribution and exhibition.

 

Gill just realized his goal of having the first new film in theatres since the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown with Unhinged, the first film his company also financed. Federoff recently made history for her company with four Academy Award® wins for Parasite, which became the third highest grossing foreign language film ever released in the US.

 

This year’s lineup will take place wholly online and will bring 200 speakers to two stages for conferences, panels, conversations, workshops, podcasts and presentations. Covering timely topics and issues most relevant to global filmmakers and the independent industry at large, several sessions will center on how to move production and the business forward in the wake of the pandemic.

 

Highlights include:

 

• Producing Without a Completion Bond featuring Jill Goldsmith, Co-Business Editor, Deadline, Brad Krevoy, CEO, Motion Picture Corporation of America, Brian O’Shea, CEO, The Exchange, and John Sloss, Founder, Cinetic Media.

 

• Pandemic Production Challenges & Solutions featuring Richard Botto, Founder & CEO, Stage 32, Chris Moore, Producer, Manchester by the Sea and Promised Land, Celine Rattray, Partner & Producer, Maven Pictures, and Jennifer Westin, SVP, Production, MarVista Entertainment.

 

• Keep Calm and Carry On Filming presented in partnership with the British Film Institute (BFI) featuring Adrian Wootton, OBE, Chief Executive, Film London and the British Film Commission, Anna Mansi, Head of Certification, British Film Institute, Julia Oh, Senior Commissioning Executive, Film4, and Alison Thompson, Co-President, Cornerstone Films.

 

• Navigating Hollywood During COVID-19 : How To Find Success For Your Project During A Global Pandemic in partnership with the African-American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) and featuring Jen Barrett, Head of Entertainment, Creative Shop Facebook, Megan Colligan, President, IMAX Entertainmentand EVP, IMAX Corp, Malik Ducard, VP of Content Partnerships, YouTube
  Mike Jackson, Co-Founder & Managing Partner, Lifted Film Co., and Gil L. Robertson IV, Co-Founder, African-American Film Critics Association (AAFCA).
• What’s Working in the Pre-Sales Marketplace featuring Kimberly Fox, Partner & Head of International Sales, MadRiver International, Jeffrey Greenstein, President, Millennium Media, Inc., Jeremy Kay, Americas Editor, Screen International, and Nat McCormick, EVP, Worldwide Distribution, The Exchange.

 

• Low Budget Films with Huge Profit Potential featuring John Rhodes, Co-Founder, Screencraft, Nick Spicer, Partner, XYZ Films, and Zachary Tarica, CEO & Director, The Forest Road Co.

 

• Working with Sales Agents featuring Tamara Birkemoe, President, Foresight Unlimited, Clay Epstein, President, Film Mode Entertainment, and Jordan Yale Levine, Producer, Yale Productions.

 

• Global Sales and VOD presented in partnership with The Film Collaborative and featuring Wendy Bernfeld, Founder/CEO, Rights Stuff, Todd Olsson, President of International, Highland Film Group, Orly Ravid, Founder & Co-Executive Director, The Film Collaborative and Attorney,Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLP, and Gabrielle Rozing, General Manager, Fortissimo Films.

 

• Deciphering Streaming Models & the Path to VOD Distribution featuring Audrey Delaney, SVP, Distribution & Worldwide Marketing, Blue Fox Entertainment, Bruce Eisen, President, Digital Advisors, Linda Nelson, CEO, Indie Rights, Lise Romanoff, CEO & Managing Director, Vision Films, and, James Schamus, CEO, Symbolic Exchange.

 

• Navigating and Negotiating Intimacy on Set presented in partnership withSAG-AFTRA and featuring Amanda Blumenthal, Founder, Intimacy Professionals Association, Gabrielle Carteris, SAG-AFTRA President, Jim Kleverweis, Executive Producer, Euphoria, Insecure and Silicon Valley, Alicia Rodis, Executive Team, Intimacy Directors and Coordinators, and David White, SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director.

 

• Casting Global Talent: Who do Latinx Audiences Want to See? presented in partnership with the National Association of Latino Independent Producers (NALIP) and featuring Aaron Ashford, Director of Development and Production, Pantelion Films, Liliana Espinoza, Projects Director, NALIP, and Carla Hool, Casting Director.

 

• A Conversation with Lloyd Kaufman: Make Your Own Damn Movie in 60 Minutes or Less!

 

• Facts Matter: Health & Science Accuracy Onscreen presented in partnership with USC Annenberg Hollywood, Health & Society and featuring its Program Director Kate Langrall Folb.

 

• The Black List Can Change Everything About How You Find Future Projects with The Black List’s Franklin Leonard, Founder & CEO and Terry Huang, Director of Product and Data.

 

• The Director / Producer Relationship featuring Shaked Berenson, CEO, Entertainment Squad, Gigi Saul Guerrero, Director / Actor, Culture Shock, The Purge (TV Series), Travis Stevens, Founder & CEO, Snowfort Pictures, and Lisa Whalen, Producer, Mandy, Color Out of Space.

 

For the first time, AFM will also spotlight five leading film industry podcasts with special episodes to take place on the AFM stages:

 

• The Producer’s Guide: Founder of Broken Road Productions, Producer and host Todd Garner and WWE wrestler turned actor John Cenawill discuss Producing Comedy in Today’s Hollywood, A Serious Business.
• Show Don’t Tell: Director and host Noam Kroll and screenwriter Bryan Hill to talk Screenwriting on a Micro-Budget.
• The Filmmakers Podcast: Host Giles Alderson and producer/financier Ian Sharp on Making the Leap from Indie Films to Studio Features.
• Indie Film Hustle: Host Alex Ferrari and producer Franco Sama on Raising Money in a COVID World & The Future of Film Distribution.
• Film Riot: Host Ryan Connolly and writer/director Colin Levy to talk Directing a Blockbuster Film on an Indie Budget.

 

View the schedule of sessions and speakers for AFM 2020 Online. For more information and registration, please visit americanfilmmarket.com.

About the American Film Market® (AFM®)
The AFM is the most efficient film acquisition, development and networking event in the world. More than US$1 billion in production and distribution deals are closed every year — on both completed films and those in every stage of development and production. Over five days in November, 7,000+ professionals from 70+ countries access the entire global catalogue of available films and projects, attend world class conferences, and connect with decision makers. The AFM is produced by the Independent Film & Television Alliance®.

(Source: AFM Press Release)