Editor

The Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism has reached an agreement to work together with the San Sebastián Film Festival to promote the audiovisual and digital content industry, through the Europe-Latin America Co-production Forum, which will be held for the second time at the film festival on the 23rd, 24th and 25th of September.

The State Secretariat for Telecommunications and the Information Society (SETSI) and the International Forum on Digital Content (FICOD), that manages the public business organisation, Red.es, and is taking part in the event for the first time, are involved on the Ministry of Industrys side.

Both organisations, together with the San Sebastián Film Festival and representatives of the Audiovisual Arts and Film Institute (ICAA), one of the Festivals partner institutions, have already held a meeting with the main representatives of the audiovisual industry established in Spain (national television channels, electronic communications operators and major American studio producers), who have promised to attend the Forum to learn about the selected projects from their creators and look into the possibility of helping to finance them.

The meeting was attended by the director of the ICAA, Susana de la Sierra, the assistant director-general for Information Society Contents for the SETSI, Carlos Romero, and the director of the San Sebastián Festival, José Luis Rebordinos, among others. Carlos Romero stressed the importance of providing institutional support for holding a forum that encourages the existence of audiovisual markets, where both Spanish audiovisual products and buyers from the national, European and Latin American industry turn up. Romero also stressed the degree of interest that Spanish audiovisual operators have shown in this initiative.

For his part the director-general of Red.es, Borja Adsuara, pointed out that the Co-production Forum shares the same aims that we promote through FICOD: establishing meeting points for the digital content industry and ensuring that Spanish companies find new business channels.

For his part, José  Luis Rebordinos pointed out the definitive commitment that the Festival had made to supporting the Spanish audiovisual industry by promoting activities that like the Co-production Forum represent an opportunity to make new production projects viable and open up new markets for our film industry. He also thanked the Ministry of Industry for the significant help it had provided in this activity.

The II Europe-Latin-America Co-production Forum will be held over 3 days 23rd, 24th and 25th of September, during the 61st San Sebastián Film Festival. The call to take part in this years Festival is now open and anyone interested in promoting projects can register up to the 15th of June.

This initiative by the San Sebastián Festival has established itself as a benchmark platform and a hub between the film industries of both continents. Candidates who would like to take part in the Forum need to have projects at the development stage, with a minimum duration of 60 minutes and 20 % guaranteed funding. 

Out of all the proposed projects a maximum of 20 finalists will be selected. The chosen candidates will have the chance to meet international partners who will help them to complete the funding of their project and to distribute it.

Regarding FICOD

The International Forum on Digital Content (FICOD), of the public organisation, Red.es, develops and promotes the national digital content industry, especially as far as Spanish language markets are concerned. Over the five years it has been held, FICOD has become the benchmark meeting point for professionals from television, cinema, music, digital interactive leisure and other sectors connected with the production of digital contents. At the present time, FICOD also plays an active role in promoting and supporting other initiatives that encourage the development and growth of this industry in our country, a policy that this activity is in keeping with.