Once again the European Film Market (EFM) proved itself to be the key winter market for the movie industry, with or without the worldwide economic downturn. As part of the Berlinale festival, now in its 59th year, and which took place in Berlin, Germany, February 5-15, the EFM started out a bit low key but picked up the pace over the weekend. The weather was also good, except for a few snowflakes during the latter part of the event. Under the direction of industry veteran Beki Probst, the market has been thriving, especially after the Santa Monica, California-based American Film Market (AFM) unwisely switched its dates to the fall. As a matter of fact, it was Probst’s idea to rename the event EFM (it was previously called Film Fair), in order to equate itself with the U.S. film market at a time when the two trade shows were in direct competition. The name “Berlinale,” on the other hand, was inspired by an art show in Venice, Italy, called Biennale. For the past four years, the EFM has been headquartered in the MartinGropius-Bau (MGB) building, a museum a couple of blocks south of Potsdamer Platz, the popular center of the German capital. However, the impressive MGB building has proven that it is not large enough to accommodate the increasing number of exhibitors. This is the reason for a second official location, which is traditionally added to the main EFM venue. This year the spillover of exhibitors that could not find space in the MGB found a new home at the Marriott Hotel, just a block away from the Berlinale Palast (also called Filmpalast), Berlinale’s main screenings and ceremony site. Three floors of the Marriott were dedicated to EFM suites, with a lot of business activity spilling down to the ground floor lobby area and bar — the venue of choice for those who opted for an informal presence. Shuttles moved attendees quickly from the Marriott hotel to the MGB whenever they needed a lift. As usual though, it was the MartinGropius-Bau venue that continued to generate the heavy traffic, with three major territory-based umbrella organizations: the Italian, German and Canadian pavilions. Several exhibitors managed to expand their stands by taking advantage of the space vacated by distributors who opted not to exhibit this year, such as Los Angeles-based Lakeshore Entertainment, which opted to attend without a stand. One of the companies that expanded its presence was Canada’s CinemaVault, whose Ruby Rondina expressed great satisfaction for the more central, larger stand she and her colleagues occupied this year. Bavaria Film, also in full force at EFM, reported brisk biz with the sales, among others, of Krabat and Let The Right One Into Japan and double Golden Bear awards to drama Everyone Else. Even small companies, such as Culver City, California-based OddLot, managed to boast healthy sales for its movies. Most exhibitors renting offices at the Marriott were pleased with the hotel suite setting, among them New Yorkbased distributor Screen Media Ventures and Italy’s RAI Trade, whose CEO, Carlo Nardello, announced sales for features Ex, Il Papá di Giovanna and L’ultimo Pulcinella, to Spain and Latin America. A total of 407 companies from 55 countries exhibited. Of these, 315 were at the MGB and 92 were at the Marriott. More than 1,400 buyers from 59 countries were registered. Last year’s event saw 430 exhibitors, but had fewer buyers (1,073). The economic crisis obviously took its toll on business, especially as far as sales to the U.S. were concerned, and mid-budget projects with no major stars attached found increasing difficulties with raising financing. On the Festival front, the 59th Berlin International Film Festival came to a close with the Awards Ceremony held in the Berlinale Palast and attended by some 1,600 guests. The main prize, the Golden Bear, was awarded to Peruvian movie La Teta Asustada, directed by Claudia Llosa. Movies that get top prizes at the Berlinale tend to be favorites among movie critics, but they are often ignored by the trade press and, more importantly, by moviegoers at large. This trend has spilled over to such commercial awards as the Oscars, where the combined U.S. box office of the five nominated best movies was less than what The Dark Knight grossed on its own. In total, 383 films were shown in Berlin at 1,238 screenings held at different movie theaters throughout town, including two new venues, the Friedrichstadtpalast and the Cinema Palast in the Institut Français. A new challenge next year could be presented by the conflicting dates of the Rotterdam Film Fest (IFFR), which is scheduled January 27-February 7. These dates could overlap with Berlinale if the festival opens its doors during its traditional first week of February. V I D E O • A G E MA R C H/ AP R I L 2 0 0 9 24 T h e B e r l i n S t o r y AFM-Inspired EFM Proves February a Resilient Month Eagle Films’ Jamal Sannan, l., with Screen Media Ventures’ Almira Malyshev and Michael Dwyer Mondo TV’s Roberto Farina Imagination’s Pierre David CinemaVault’s Ruby Rondina Streets in Berlin brighten up for Berlinale
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