14 European films get promotional support for Mexican Market

The marketing of 14 European films from eight different countries is supported via European Film Promotion’s Film Sales Support (FSS) at the 13th Guadalajara Film Market (6-14 March) in Mexico. FSS is backed by the Creative Europe - MEDIA Programme of the European Union and facilitates sales of European films to Mexico and other countries in South America.

To optimise the sales companies’ attendance, FSS supports additional meetings with buyers in their offices in Mexico City after the market. A total of €34,700 is being reserved for the sales companies’ campaigns and networking purposes with local and South American distributors and buyers.

“For me, Guadalajara is an important market to attend”, says Klaus Rasmussen from Global Screen, who has been coming to the market since 2011. “Meetings are very personal and efficient here. I catch up with distributors from across Latin America who don’t necessarily go to the big European markets. From my point of view, Mexico is the most important film market in Latin America with regards to population and screens.”

The Market is part of the 30th Festival Internacional de Cine en Guadalajara (FICG, March, 6 - 15) spotlighting Italy as guest country this year. Next to EFP’s annual European umbrella booth with nine participating European companies selling films from Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Ireland, France, Spain and Switzerland, Italy operates its own stand as well as Switzerland which is going to be guest of honour in 2016. As a special service, the Market offers match-making opportunities with buyers for the attending sales agents. German sales company Picture Tree International will be attending the Market for the first time.

Italian sales outfit, Slingshot Films, in Guadalajara for the second year, is promoting Dancing with Maria (Ivan Gergolet), an Italian-Argentinian coproduction, screening in the festival’s Ibero American Documentary Competition and available at the market. Manuela Buono, General Manager of the company, confirms that “thanks to the EFP support I was able to experience the potential and weaknesses of the Latin American market”.

FSS funding was confirmed by EFP’s member organisations Austrian Film Commission, Danish Film Institute, Finnish Film Foundation, German Films, Instituto de la Cinematografa y de las Artes Audiovisuales / ICAA (Spain), the Irish Film Board, Istituto Luce Cinecittà (Italy) and UniFrance films.

Thanks to SWISS FILMS, one of EFP’s member organisations, two Swiss films will additionally benefit from marketing support in Guadalajara.

FSS Supported Companies and Films through Creative Europe - MEDIA