The talk outside the suites of the Loews Hotel in Santa Monica — the main marketplace of the AFM — was focused on the destructive Hurricane Sandy that hit the northeast coast of the U.S., paralyzing all forms of transportation. Carlos Hertel of Germany’s Tele München International estimated that, because of Sandy, 20 percent of buyers arrived late. “In effect, the market started on Wednesday,” he said, instead of Tuesday, October 31, which was the official start date. Similarly, for Steve Arroyave of Canada’s Arrow Entertainment, “the market was slow the first day and a half.” Valerie Cabrera, EVP of Entertainment One TV International, reported that the storm “Delay[ed] a lot of people from attending, so instead of arriving on Wednesday or Thursday, buyers came in over the weekend.” Indeed, an exhibitor who did not want to be quoted because he was privy to confidential information said that by Thursday, one third of the buyers hadn’t picked up their badges yet. One company severely affected by Sandy was the New York-based Screen Media, which could only open its suite on Thursday morning. Jonathan Wolf, managing director of AFM, found that about 50 participants were delayed by airport shutdowns, but “most were sellers, not buyers,” he said. According to his analysis, only a dozen buyers were affected and, among them, very few Europeans. Asian and Latin participants were unaffected and Canadians who took direct flights or avoided connections in troubled areas were not affected either. In any case, the late arrivals made for a longer-than-usual market that otherwise would have slowed down considerably by Sunday, the sixth day of the eight-day market. Reported an executive responsible for the Asian market, “My last appointment ends on Sunday. By then, for me, the market is over.” Evan Crooke of Los Angeles-based Osiris decried the poor traffic on the second and third floors of the Loews Hotel, saying: “Those companies are new, so it’s difficult for them to get appointments. Plus, they’re in suites with little or no traffic. The AFM layout is not helpful to them.” Wolf responded by saying that exhibitors on the second floor receive a 30 percent discount; nevertheless, he promised to address the issue in the future by moving the Internet kiosk from the sixth floor to those lower floors. In terms of the market, Crooke maintained “AFM is important for us,” and said he’s met with buyers from Asia, the Middle East and parts of Europe, especially the Netherlands. However, he noted that there are “so many markets and not enough buyers to accommodate all these markets.” Similarly, John Alexander, the London-based SVP of New York-based Sonar Entertainment, commented, “AFM is good as [a] follow-up market following MIPCOM.” Several sales were initiated at MIPCOM and were closed at the AFM, he said. This year, AFM organizers added a new feature to the event — an International Pavilion with some seven stands at Le Merigot Hotel, which is adjacent to the Loews and also housed a few more exhibitors. Some old-time film executives reported an unusual number of new companies exhibiting at the AFM for the first time. This trend is said to be due to several factors: executives leaving their companies to set up their own distribution businesses; former content buyers who’ve transitioned to distribution; producers dissatisfied with their distributors who decide to venture out on their own; and entrepreneurs with money — and little past involvement in the industry — who are attracted to the film business. Double Dutch from Canada is one of the new companies, which, in the words of its president Ron Möring, up until recently was in the DVD acquisition business and has now ventured into film co-production, financing and distribution. However, for independents, the theatrical business is a different game all together, considering that, in the U.S., for example, only 250 screens are reportedly not abiding by traditional windows. When it comes to economics, one of the most interesting of the five-day conference series must have been the financial panel about surviving the “Dark Age” that began in 2008. That was when, according to panelist Nigel Sinclair of Los Angeles-based Exclusive Media, the bottom fell out and, for a period of two years, buyers weren’t buying, banks weren’t lending and investors were scarce. Today, the equity market is buoyant. Sinclair predicted that South America will be the next big source of capital. In the view of another panelist, Graham Taylor of Beverly Hills talent and literary agency WME, China is an important long-term partner, though finance is more corporate there; Russian investments are more individualistic, he said. Also new this year was the PR firm in charge of press accreditation and registration. Gone is the ancestral Lippin Group, replaced by Sunshine Sachs, the New York-based PR agency operating in Hollywood since 2008. In a letter inserted into participants’ registration kits, Santa Monica Mayor Richard Bloom welcomed everyone back, saying that he is “appreciative that the American Film Market will return to Santa Monica through 2017.” According to official figures, AFM ended its run on November 7 with a six percent increase in buyers (to 1,616 from 1,523 a year ago) and 35 more buying companies than in 2011. A total of 753 buying companies from more than 60 countries were present this year. The AFM Conferences, which launched in 2011, drew audiences of more than 700 each day. Exhibiting companies at AFM were on par with last year, coming in at 357. V I D E O • A G E DE C E M B E R 2 0 1 2 14 A F M R e v i ew Film Mart Rides Tropical and Economic Storms Sales agent Lars Bjorck and Arrow’s Steve Arroyave Breakthrough’s Nat Abraham, Marina Cordoni Sonar’s John Alexander Jennifer Garnick and Jonathan Wolf of AFM organizer IFTA The financial panel about surviving the “Dark Age” — now in the past A view of the Buyers’ Lounge on the fifth floor of the Loews
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