16th Oct. 2024, 11:15 – 12:00 pm
Filmpalast
KEYNOTE #1
How to deliver diverse films to future audiences
After studying film studies at San Francisco State University, Kota Started working as an acquisition manager for a Japanese film distribution company in 2018. After joining TSUMIKI INC. in 2021, he launched the distribution label “SUNDAE” within the company in April 2023. He is distributing mainly works by up-and-coming directors such as „Falcon Lake,“ „Speak no evil,“ and „How to blow up a pipeline“,
TSUMIKI INC. is a company that launched and operates Filmarks, which is the biggest movie review app in Japan since 2012. It has 7 million users and currently has over 200 million reviews. Filmarks has movie search and rating functions like Letterboxd in the US, and also covers anime and TV series unique to Japan. Another feature is that more than 70% of users live in urban areas, and more than 90% are under 30 years old. Taking advantage of this strong database and platform, TSUMIKI launched the distribution label SUNDAE in 2023, and is taking on new initiatives in the film distribution business to deliver works from around the world to people in Japan. SUNDAE‘s mission is to lead indie films to success by cultivating fans through label branding.
Big dreams, indie spirit: building a new company to release incredible films
Jen Davies is the co-founder of Conic – a UK/Ireland film distributor which focuses on incredible films, visionary filmmakers, strong stories, and new voices. Prior to setting up Conic, Jen spent a decade as Creative Director at classic film company Park Circus with various side hustles in design, book scouting for film and movie marketing. Before that she worked for Glasgow Film as Head of Communications and Marketing and was also part of the team that set up SQIFF, the Scottish Queer International Film Festival. Jen loves films, stories, pictures, interesting ideas and making things happen.
Conic loves incredible cinema, releasing bold and visionary films across the UK and Ireland. Conic launched in October 2022 with Sundance Grand Jury-winner UTAMA, and has since released 13 films including European Film Award best documentary SMOKE SAUNA SISTERHOOD, SLOW, DISCO BOY, PAMFIR, IF ONLY I COULD HIBERNATE and PARADISE IS BURNING. Upcoming releases include buzzy British debut IN CAMERA, Mark Cousins’ latest documentary and Karlovy Vary top prize winner, A SUDDEN GLIMPSE TO DEEPER THINGS and Cannes Un Certain Regard Youth Award-winner, HOLY COW.
16th Oct. 2024, 12:00 – 12:45 pm
Filmpalast
KEYNOTE #2
16th Oct. 2024, 1:45 – 2:30 pm
Filmpalast
KEYNOTE #3
FILMIN: the journey of a streaming platform to boost cinephile audiences
Marketing & Comms Director at Filmin since January 2022, Pilar Toro‘s career has always been linked to Film and TV. Since her beginnings at Canal+, where she gave support to the launching of Canal+ Xtra, the independent film brand at Canal+, or participated in the first Marketing campaigns for Game of Thrones in Spain; through her times at NBC Universal, where she specialised in Social Media and Press, while she also lead Social for the movie La Llamada, by Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi; until her arrival on Netflix, where she established the Brand Tone of Voice for the brand in Spain and also led Marketing campaigns for key titles such as Elite, Cable Girls, Paquita Salas or Sky Rojo.
Filmin is the platform for film lovers in Spain and Portugal. It was born in 2007 as a platform specialised in independent and Spanish films, but it has evolved to become the main cinema-oriented streaming platform in the country, and the most valued-by-consumers platform according to OCU. Currently Filmin has in its catalogue over 10K films and 500+ series carefully selected by our Editorial team. Filmin has deals with essentially all the independent Spanish distributors, but also important accords with all the Hollywood majors. Its bet on Original content has crystallised so far in 3 original series (Doctor Portuondo, Series Mania winner Autodefensa & selftape) and 2 documentaries (Terenci: La fabulación infinita y Goya-nominee Oswald El Falsificador).
Little KMBO: innovative campaigns for
children and family films/the youngest audiences
KMBO is a cinema theatrical distribution company based in France and created in 2007. We release 12 to 15 films each year, with a diversified and large editorial policy. From French films authors to SciFi movies, with a specific strong focus on animation features for the young and family audiences.
Beyond the usual standards of distribution, we have an important added value in a contemporary approach to promote films. KMBO is a modern distributor that masters the use of digital tools, including audience targeting and content creation, data processing and sponsorship content.
Our eleven people team is experimented to work on different kind of audiences and to accompany each film at every stage of its theatrical
release: programming, sharp digital marketing and promotional campaigns, work on data and audience sponsoring on social network, national promotional tours with talents, massive event prescreenings, in-depth monitoring of programming, research into non-media partnerships and speakers, creation of educational material and activities for school screenings.
KMBO won the Best Distributor of the Year award at Cartoon movie 2023.
KMBO is a distributor in constant growth since its creation. KMBO is ranked 16th on the general Top distributors 2023, and 5th among independent distributors. KMBO reached 2,4 millions admissions in 2023.
16th Oct. 2024, 2:30 – 3:15 pm
Filmpalast
KEYNOTE #4
16th Oct. 2024, 3:15 – 3:45 pm
Filmpalast
KEYNOTE #5
Strategies for managing Piracy, in Africa and Beyond
For 25 years, Mike Strano has continually explored the creative business of Africa. Since moving to Eastern Africa, from Australia in 1998, Mike and his team have built one of best- known entertainment companies in Africa – PHAT! Music & Entertainment Limited, with interests in media, event production, licensing and industry building.
During 2016, The Business Daily and KPMG listed PHAT! at No.36 of the Top 100 Mid-Sized Businesses in Kenya – the first-ever company in the creative industry to be recognised with this prestigious Award. In October 2014, Mike also co-founded what is now YAKWETU Online Limited. Meaning both „Of Us“ and „For Us“ in Kiswahili (the most popular African language), YAKWETU is an online home entertainment & edutainment system – of Africa, for Africa. Using their proprietory Kenyan-made ppplications, YAKWETU is an online distributor and retailer of digital content, from Africa, to Africa and for Africa – through a range of thoughtfully curated branded services, that supply consumers with securely encrypted original Titles, that fairly pays the creators – unlike pirated alternatives.
Mike is also the Founding Chair of Partners Against Piracy Association of Kenya – a multi- sectoral coalition, of local and international Associations, Societies and Companies, representing the interests of thousands of creatives in Kenya and the world, in terms of the protection of their intellectual property against piracy.
The Letterboxd Generation
Profile of young movie superfans
David has a BA in Film/Drama from Syracuse University and worked in the film and video industry, in every role from production manager to producer in New York and Hollywood. Memorable films include Hollywood Hot Tubs, Island of the Alive and Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dwellers, better known as CHUD.
David Larkin was Founder of The Tradeshow News Network, which was sold to Tarsus Group PLC, bought back by David Larkin and sold back to Tarsus. David was Executive Chairman of Nanotronics Imaging, an Industrial AI company that deploys advanced optical solutions to optimize manufacturing procedures. He was CEO and Founder of GoWatchIt.com which was acquired by JustWatch.com. He is currently Head of Business at Letterboxd.com. David is a Director of the East End Observatory, an astronomical observatory open to the public in East Hampton, NY. David is the Managing Trustee of Alan B. Larkin Symposium on the American Presidency.
Letterboxd is a worldwide community of over 15-million-plus film lovers who rate, review and share their movie-watching activities. They include every day film fans, award-winning directors (Martin Scorsee, Michael Mann) actors (Kyle Maclachlan, Alex Winter) cinemas, studios and festivals. Letterboxd’s mission is to help its community discover films that they will love and the now seminal Letterboxd Four Favourites (Four Favourites example, Four Favourites media coverage) is one example of this. Follow Letterboxd on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, TikTok, YouTubeand Facebook. Letterboxd’s media arm includes Journal, The Letterboxd Showpodcast.
16th Oct. 2024, 4:30 – 5:15 pm
Filmpalast
KEYNOTE #6
16th Oct. 2024, 5:15 – 6:00 pm
Filmpalast
KEYNOTE #7
Audiences: A Love Affair: Why the Future of Film Marketing is Relationships
Oliver Fegan is usheru’s CEO and Co-Founder. Since founding the company in 2015 he has overseen its growth to serve 70+ partners in over 20 countries, getting audiences closer to the films and experiences they love.
Alex Stolz is usheru’s Head of Film. Connecting films with audiences has been at the heart of Alex‘s career in film which began as a programmer at UK exhibitor Picturehouse followed by senior roles at the UK Film Council and the BFI, the latter as Head of Distribution. His role as Head of Film at usheru continues this trajectory and passion, focusing on innovating the movie marketing process through the use of data analytics.
Usheru is an innovation-driven company in the film and entertainment industry, delivering technological solutions for marketing & analytics and tools to enhance direct to consumer relationships for our partners. We work with over 70 partners in the film, TV and live entertainment industries, in more than 20 countries around the globe using a data-driven approach to create value, drive sales and maximise reach for each of our partners.
From Acquisition to Royalty Reporting:
MovieChainer for distributors
Mehdi Mimouni is a seasoned sales professional in the movie and TV industry. Since 2021 he’s serving as the Commercial Director at MovieChainer.
Launched commercially in 2015 by BACKUP SYSTEMS, the MovieChainer web service provides entertainment professionals with a comprehensive suite of business-oriented tools to manage their IP rights and build up their businesses. While rights management and administration are often seen as complex and time-consuming, IP-rights are entertainers’ only asset: their treasure and insurance policy, studios, independents and talents rely on them.
MovieChainer helps entertainment professionals centralize projects and data, carry out their projects and business, report and capitalize on transparent and reliable information. In other words, it’s everything entertainment professionals need to optimize their time and revenues, while generating relevant insights on their business performance.
16th Oct. 2024, 6:00 – 6:45 pm
Filmpalast
KEYNOTE #8
17th Oct. 2024, 10:00 – 10:45 am
Filmpalast
MASTERCLASS
Tradition, diversity and innovation to develop great connections between films and audiences
Gabriele D’Andrea is graduated in Philosophy of science with a master’s degree in marketing in Malaysia. After an internship at UIP Malaysia, he joined the home video marketing of 01 Distribution/ Rai Cinema in 2007. In 2009 he moved to Theatrical Marketing as a digital and media manager. In 2012 he joined Lucky Red as marketing manager, in 2016 he became Chief of Distribution and Marketing. He worked on the start-up and development of the MioCinema platform. In 2023 he became also CEO of Circuito Cinema.
With cinema at its heart, LUCKY RED and is one of the most appreciated Italian cinema companies, -bringing the best of international independent cinema to Italy and introducing Italian audiences to great directors from all over the world such as Alejandro Amenabar, Lars Von Trier, Wong Kar Way, Park Chan Wook, Michael Haneke, Jean Pierre and Luc Dardenne, Robert Altman, Hayao Miyazaki. To date Lucky Red has more than 550 titles in its catalog.
Over time, it has expanded its vision and today LUCKY RED is a high-quality, integrated and flexible international cinema company with a multi-platform offer and a reach that covers all areas of the audiovisual chain. With ‘Circuito Cinema’, a cinema chain founded in 1996 that now comprises 40 cinemas and 126 screens, including several theatres in Rome, Florence and Bologna. ‘True Colors’ was created in 2015 by LUCKY RED and Indigo Film as a global distributor for Italian films. The digital arthouse cinema platform ‘MioCinema’ was launched in 2020 during the Covid period to offer high-quality films and interact with filmmakers. The ‘LUCKY RED School Office’ was created with a
future-oriented view towards the next generation of cinema fans and has been recommending films to teachers and pupils since 2005.
From big hits to auteur cinema
Strategies for a long life to the films
Eduardo Escudero is Founding Partner and Business Director of
A Contracorriente Films, a leading independent film company in Spain, created in 2009, specializing in European and independent films with the potential to reach a wide audience. It is currently the leading distributor of Spanish capital in the theatrical market, accumulating more than 20 million viewers and a catalog of more than 2,500 titles, including blockbuster films and series, as well as exhibition spaces that include the Cines Verdi brand (in Madrid and Barcelona), and a production and co-production team for film and television.
Since its inception, the group has demonstrated extensive expertise in the identification, production, acquisition and distribution of a wide variety of celebrated films, such as the Woody Allen films „A Rainy Day in New York“ and „Wonder Wheel”, outstanding French films such as „Intouchables“ or the trilogy of „Serial (Bad) Weddings“, family films such as „Mia and the White Lion“, Spanish comedies. Also, the Goya winner for Best Film „As bestas“, or the Oscar nominees „The Father“, „Minari“ and „Perfect Days“ and also series, such as the phenomenon „The Chosen“.
A Contracorriente Films manages its own SVOD OTT service acontra+ and has two FAST Channels with a wide distribution in Spain’s market under the label CINES VERDI. On June 2024, A Contracorriente Films has integrated another well established distribution company, SELECTA VISION. This distribution company is focussed on ANIME (the leading distribution company for this content) and genre films. This also allows ACF to reach a different audience. In addition SELECTA VISION is growing since two years ago in the distribution but also publishing videogames..
Founding Partner & Business Director,
A CONTRACORRIENTE FILMS, Spain
17th Oct. 2024, 10:45 – 11:30 am
Filmpalast
KEYNOTE #9
FILMCHAIN, UK
19th Oct. 2023, 12:15 – 01:00 pm
Filmpalast
KEYNOTE #10
Data, transparency, and partnerships: The new paradigm of film distribution
Maria Tanjala is a former producer, now co-founder of FilmChain.
FilmChain is transforming how film and TV producers, sales agents, and financiers get paid. FilmChain offers collection agent (CAM) services for independent productions and a royalties management solution for content distributors, modernising payments with real-time disbursements. FilmChain’s innovative technology accelerates cash-flow and reporting. Set up in 2018, FilmChain operates globally, and its founders often mentor at Inside Pictures, ACE Network, Erich Pommer Institut, Cannes Marche, EFM, and AFM.
The Comeback of Crowdfunding? Exploring Community-Driven Financing in Film
Paul Rieth is a Berlin-based audience strategist, marketing consultant and speaker. He specializes in film and media communication and works closely with the film industry to develop innovative marketing strategies. In 2015 he released his first book “DOK & CROWD” about financing and distributing documentaries in Germany. He has given over 100 workshops and lectures on film marketing, audience building and innovation for different universities, institutions and companies in Europe and beyond. For Torino FilmL ab and Documentary Campus Masterschool he is a tutor and consultant in the field of Audience Design and Marketing. From 2021 to 2024 he has been working at the Film University Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF where he worked in the field of innovation entrepreneurship and film industry. He is co-founder of GET YOUR CROWD where he works as senior consultant and producer.
GET YOUR CROWD is a Berlin-based agency specializing in audience engagement for the film industry. They offer tailored strategies in audience building, social media marketing, and crowdfunding, while also producing creative content for documentaries, feature films, and social media. With extensive experience in crowdfunding, they have successfully managed multiple campaigns. Since 2019, the agency has focused on Audience Design and engagement, providing strategic consultations and workshops. Additionally, they produce a range of web video formats for clients.
17th Oct. 2024, 01:00 – 1:45 pm
Filmpalast
KEYNOTE #11