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Among the European films represented by visiting companies are those nominated for the Oscars and the Berlin awards. FilMart who are making use of the Promotion of European cinema Umbrella stand inside the annual Hong Kong market.
In total, 29 European film sales companies will travel, including more than a dozen French companies under the Unifrance brand. Notable rights brokers include Charades, Goodfellas, Fandango and Filmax.
“EFP has strengthened the European brand in Hong Kong for many years by creating an important umbrella. The goal was always to highlight our mission as a one-stop shop for European film and industry,” said EFP Executive Susanne Davis. “And we are pleasantly surprised that many of them are taking advantage.
The 29 companies collectively represent more than 140 new European titles. Among them, an Oscar candidate”Anatomy of a fall” is represented by MK2 Films, while “Four Daughters” is handled by The Party Film Sales.
Three of the participating distribution companies bring titles that won last month in Berlin. The film that won the Jury’s Silver Bear, “The Empire”, by Bruno Dumont, is managed by Memento International. The triple-award winning Norwegian Panorama film “Sex” by Dag Johan Haugerud (CICAE Art Cinema Award, Label Europe Cinemas, Ecumenical Jury Prize) is represented by m-appeal. And the first German feature film “Ivo” by Eva Loco Films sells Trobisch de Encounters (Heiner Carow Award).
FilMart appears to play an important role for the European rights sellers and the Asian distributors who are the licensees. This is both a function of the timing of the market (between Berlin and Cannes) and its geographic location.
“Although negotiations and sales to mainland China, Hong Kong’s main attraction, have become unpredictable, the feeling among sales agents seems to be not to miss this spring market and test whether FilMart can open. doors to other Asian territories, such as Southeast Asia. And, having said that, there actually seems to be a slight return in terms of acquisitions from China,” said EFP executive Susanne Davis.
“In addition, we have seen that some Asian buyers, especially from Japan and South Korea, are saving trips to large international markets, while (European) sales agents hope to meet in Hong Kong.”
Little is left to chance. The EFP now provides funding to help key European stocks achieve their goals in international markets. This year ten films receive the Film Sales Support subsidy.
The French company Kinology uses it for the marketing of two titles in post-production, the French-German co-production “Disappearance”, by Kirill Serebrennikov, and “Our Wildest Days”, by Vassilis Kekatos (France, Greece). Picture Tree International, based in Germany, will use it to present the Danish film “Unsinkable” by Christian Andersen and “Grand Finale” by Icelandic director Sigurjón Kjartansson. WTFilms campaigns for “Schlitter” by Pierre Mouchet (France). Denmark’s TrustNordisk is raising funds for five films, including Norwegian director Henrik M. Dahlsbakken’s “The Artic Convoy.”
