A series of Think Tanks on the Future of European Film Markets
Together with the Thessaloniki International Film Festival, THE CATALYSTS curates a series of Think Tanks on the future of film markets with the aim to discuss and seek solutions, proposals and changes to support the film community.
THE THink tank Launch
The launch of the event took place at the MOMus-Thessaloniki Museum of Photography in November 2022, while the results will be announced by TIFF at
the Cannes Film Festival, in May 2023.
With guests including Pascal Diot (Venice Film Bridge), Martina Bleis (Berlinale Co-Production Market), Hugo Rosak (Karlovy Vary Eastern Promises), Marcello Paolillo (Locarno Pro), Saoia Riba (San Sebastián Industry) and Inke Van Loocke (IFFR Pro), the think tanks come with the goal to stimulate a wider debate and exchange views on the shared challenges and future of the European film markets.
In a fast changing landscape, especially after the pandemic, the industry is seeking answers to find a new balance:
should film markets continue to operate the same way? What actions should be taken to pave the way for important changes?
From technological changes to sustainability challenges, the think tank series offers to the ecosystem’s actors a space to jointly set new business standards.
Read more about the launch here.
Shaping the Film Markets
of Tomorrow
European Film Market:
WEAVING THE MARKET FABRIC
They were asked to adopt the perspective of different players in the ecosystem (content creators, producers, distributors, market organisers, representatives of training initiatives etc.), considering the stakes for each of these groups in the market ecosystem, and the most relevant questions and directions toward which the markets should evolve. Participants then divided into breakouts to brainstorm solutions and strategies around four key questions.
Read the outcomes reported in the EFM Think Tank Report 2023 starting at page 7.
The series kicked off at the EFM, with a focus on the substance and contents offered by markets:
Which topics need to be addressed and offered by film markets to actively involve professionals and support them in their next steps? Which themes, subjects, and discussions are the most useful to nurture and guide the entire ecosystem? What should be kept?
What needs to be changed?
In a fishbowl conversation format, representatives from the industry and different types of markets - large to small, regional vs. international, content-specific markets, etc. - came together.
Documentary Film Festival
of Thessaloniki:
MODELING THE MARKET SHAPE
After the initial Think Tank held at the EFM, a group of participants representing different stakeholders of the industry met again at the Documentary Film Festival of Thessaloniki to focus on MODELING THE MARKET SHAPE.
The event was hybrid, with participants both present in the room, as well as online, and over 50 industry representatives - from markets, through distributors to producers, and more - took part in the discussions.
In an initial fireside chat conversation, representatives of the industry discussed the changes the industry is experiencing, with the goal to identify what is and what is not working well - both for markets and attendees, taking into consideration the size of markets, and hybridity.
The participants stressed the importance of giving better access to markets for future generations, as well as places of networking, information and intelligence exchange. One of the main topics of the conversation was markets as a place of nurturing and exchange, and participants stressed the importance of finding ways to give space and access for different stakeholders - specifically for the younger generation.
take a look
The final session, named "Financing the Market", took place on May 18th 2023 during Festival de Cannes and was a great success. We presented the results of the Think Tank sessions to industry professionals at the Marché du Film, as planned. Our efforts were well-received and we are pleased to have contributed to shaping the film markets of tomorrow.