The European Film Market is one of the three most important meetings for the international audiovisual industry and in 2023 it will celebrate its 35th edition from 16 to 22 February at various locations in the city of Berlin, coinciding with the 73rd edition of the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival.
Spain's presence at EFM, organised by Audiovisual from Spain of ICEX Exportación e Inversiones, will be attended by numerous professionals from the sector both in its section dedicated to professionals working on international co-productions, Berlinale Co-production Market, coordinated jointly with the Ministry of Culture and Sport, through the ICAA (Instituto de la Cinematografía y de las Artes Audiovisuales), and in the section dedicated to world and international premières of serial content, Berlinale Series Market, organised by Iberseries & Platino Industria. The Spanish Pavilion at EFM, located at stand C1 in the Gropius Bau building, offers sales agents, producers, film commissions and other professionals and companies from the sector a meeting place.
Spain at Berlinale Co-Production Market
Ten Spanish production companies will participate in this year's Visitors Programme of the Berlinale Co-production Market, which will take place from 18 to 22 February: Mariano Baratech of El Gatoverde Producciones, Iker Ganuza of Lamia Producciones Audiovisuales, Monika Goyanes of Cinema Resistance, Sergio Grobas of Mayo Films, Alejandra Mora of Quatre Films, Inés Nofuentes of Curuxa Cinema, Javier Polo of Los Hermanos Polo Films, Ana Puentes of Verbena Films, Montse Pujol of Boogaloo Films and Claudia Salcedo of Señor y Señora. Visitors Programme is the programme that includes sessions, presentations and networking events for producers from all over the world who are starting their international network in order to enrich their knowledge and skills in the international market and to inform them about funding opportunities.
For its part, ICEX-Invest in Spain will participate in the Co-Production Market, in the Country Sessions at the Casino, together with the ICAA, on Saturday 18 February, and in the one-on-one meetings held at the Public Fund Meetings.
ICEX-Invest in Spain will also have a consultation point at the ICEX stand to provide information about the 'Spain Audiovisual Bureau', a one-stop service for answering queries from professionals in the sector, who will be able to make requests for information on the spot.
Finally, together with the Spanish Economic and Commercial Office in Berlin, a meeting has been organised with German producers, at which the government plan 'Spain, Audiovisual Hub of Europe' will be presented, the new system of tax incentives for filming and foreign co-production will be explained and the services provided by the 'Spain Audiovisual Bureau' will be explained. In addition to the ICEX-Invest in Spain team, experts Helena Suarez, from the law firm Écija Abogados; Silvia Aráez, from Fresco Films, and Pablo Nogueroles, from Beta Fiction España, will participate in the event, and Teresa Azcona, Director General of the Spain Film Commission (SFC), will accompany us.
A total of 33 Spanish films will be screened at the festival by 8 sales agents who, together with the 9 film commissions, will make up EFM's Cinema from Spain stand. The complete list of companies and projects can be found here.
Three Spanish projects in the official section of the Co-Pro Market
Two Spanish films have been selected for the official section of the Berlinale Co-production Market. Specifically, the feature films 'Ivan & Hadoum', by Avalon PC directed by Ian de la Rosa, and 'Cheaper than Stealing', a co-production of Sideral Cinema (Elamedia Studios), Spain and Mizar Films, France, directed by Pedro Collantes. In addition, the series 'The Chauffeur's Son' by Zeta Studios, created by Isaki Lacuesta, Isabel Campo and Cristóbal Garrido and directed by Isaki Lacuesta has been selected to participate in Co-Pro Series.
Spain at Berlinale Series Market
For the first time, Spanish content and serialised talent will be present at the Berlinale Series Market. Berlinale Series Market is held in cooperation with Berlinale Series, a section that offers a first look at the latest series productions from around the world, with a wide variety of formats and revealing, contemporary narratives.
Within this framework, ICEX España Exportación e Inversiones, through its umbrella brand Audiovisual from Spain, has reached an agreement with Iberseries & Platino Industria whereby several screening activities will be developed with exclusive first image viewings of fiction series and a panel showcase at Berlinale Series.
The panel, moderated by Elisa Carbonell, Director General of Business Internationalisation at ICEX, will address new launches and financial opportunities for Spanish-language fiction content, with the participation of renowned experts in the sector in Spain.
For its part, the screenings programme includes the exclusive screening of promo-reels and first images of four Spanish series on 20, 21 and 22 February. After each screening there will be a meeting with the creative talents and executives involved in the productions to allow time for conversation among the participants and a question and answer session open to the audience.
Audiovisual from Spain, created by ICEX, is the umbrella brand that brings together Spanish companies in the film, television, animation, video game and extended reality sectors for their international promotion at the world's leading trade fairs. Specifically, Cinema from Spain brings together Spanish production companies, sales agents and distributors for the film market. For its part, Shooting in Spain works to attract foreign filming, encourage co-productions and promote the installation of foreign audiovisual companies in Spain through the ICEX-Invest in Spain executive division.
The Instituto de la Cinematografía y de las Artes Audiovisuales (ICAA) is an autonomous body attached to the Ministry of Culture and Sport that plans policies to support the film sector and audiovisual production. Its functions include the advancement, promotion and organisation of Spanish cinematographic and audiovisual activities in their three aspects of production, distribution and exhibition, with the objectives of developing creation, increasing production and favouring the distribution of Spanish productions.
Iberseries & Platino Industria aims to give visibility to feature films and series in Spanish and Portuguese, promote the talent of creators, encourage international co-production and the commercialisation of content as a key formula for consolidating projects and new synergies. This major industrial event for the Ibero-American audiovisual industry will hold its third edition from 3 to 6 October 2023 at Matadero Madrid, promoted by EGEDA and Fundación Secuoya, in collaboration with FIPCA, and with the support of Madrid City Council, the Community of Madrid and ICEX España Exportación e Inversiones, among other entities. In its second edition, it brought together more than 2,000 professionals from 35 countries, with a programme of 300 activities, 130 accredited journalists, 164 projects presented, 36 screenings, 50 buyers and 37 exhibitor stands.
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