The London Film Festival is a possible partner in a new plan to formalise next year's pre-Mifed screenings in London. The screenings, held for international film buyers in the week prior to last month's annual trade fair in Milan, were bigger than ever, but had no central organising body. Michael Ryan, co-chairman of J&M Entertainment, confirmed his intention to set up a new body, which might, he said, involve the soon-to-be restructured LFF. Such a move, however, might necessitate changing the LFF's traditional November slot.
Ryan, who first set up the pre-Mifed event about a decade ago, expressed concern that the original purpose of the London screenings had changed. 'It was set up to screen brand new product, not to show films that you would show anyway in Milan. What we've now got is a situation where hundreds of companies descend on London to show crap. [Together with Milan] the whole thing is two weeks now, which is too long.'
Given his role in the launch of the event, Ryan said that it was natural for him to be involved in formalising the London screenings: 'What we need is an event organiser to do it properly. I have a few people in mind for this.'
Ryan also said he saw no need for the American Film Marketing Association (AFMA), organiser of the American Film Market (AFM), to become involved in the organisation: 'It should be a UK-led event, primarily for UK-based sales companies and some of the key foreign players. I've already talked to companies like Summit and Spelling who all seem to love the idea.'
Possible partners in the event are a daily newspaper, the West End cinemas, as well as the London Film Festival which, said Ryan, could further improve its international appeal through its involvement in the pre-Mifed screenings: 'It could mean that the festival will bring its dates forward for this.' With next year's Mifed being scheduled between 19-24 October, and given that the pre-Mifed screenings usually start one week prior to Milan, the LFF could move one month forward on the festivals calendar. Henry Womersley
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