This year’s autumn meeting of Best Practice Exchange (BPX), normally held in Toronto during the film festival, took place online.

Split across three sessions the leaders of 24 national, regional and cross-border film funding agencies got together to discuss the effects of the pandemic and the initiatives undertaken by film agencies to adjust to the new world. Attendance included members from five continents.

They talked about new priorities and policies being actively considered by their agencies for implementation from 2021 onwards, to enable the production process, the distribution sector and audience development activities to return to creative and economic health.

BPX was started by  Simon Perry and Katriel Schory 8 years ago to encourage exchange and collaboration between the funds.

Of the online sessions, Simon Perry said, “Besides providing insight into the many ways in which film funding agencies are responding to the impacts of the pandemic on film production across the world, the online forums made it clear that public funding will henceforward be more vitally needed than ever in order to sustain independent film distribution and the survival of independent cinemas.”

BPX would like to thank for their contributions:

Alex Traila – CNC, Romania
Arben Zharku – Kosovo Cinematography Center
Bero Beyer – Netherlands Film Fund
Claas Danielsen – Mitteldeutscher Medienföderung, Germany
Claudia Triana de Vargas – Proimagenes, Colombia
Chris Payne – New Zealand Film Commission
Christa Dickenson – Telefilm Canada
Daniel Saltzwedel – Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, Germany
Desirée Finnegan – Screen Ireland
Dita Rietuma – National Film Centre of Latvia
Graeme Mason – Screen Australia
Helge Albers – FF Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
Jeanne Brunfaut – CFWB, Belgium
Karen Thorne-Stone – Ontario Creates
Laufey Gudjonsdottir – Icelandic Film Centre
Liza Dino – Film Development Council of the Philippines
Luis Chaby Vaz – ICA / Portuguese Cinema & Audiovisual Institute
Matti Paunio – Finnish Film Foundation
Neil Peplow – British Film Institute
Roberto Olla – Eurimages
Rolandas Kvietkauskas – Lithuanian Film Centre
Sarah Duve-Schmid& Berenice Honold – FFA / German Federal Filmboard
Sehad Cekic – Film Centre of Montenegro
Zuzana Bielikova – Slovak Audiovisual Fund

ACE Producers is pleased to announce the call for applications for the second ACE Animation Special. The workshop, which will be held in Dingle* during the 2021 Animation Dingle festival, is organised in close collaboration with the festival, Screen Skills Ireland and with additional support from Screen Ireland, Animation Skillnet and Animation Ireland.

The workshop is aimed at experienced producers who want to diversify their activities to include, and/or deepen their knowledge of developing and producing long form/feature film animation production for an international audience (cinema, broadcast or streaming).

16 producers will be selected for the workshop, preferably with a long form/feature length animation project at concept stage. Focusing primarily on the creative and financial aspects of feature and longform animation production, the ACE Animation Special will offer sessions on anamatic story development, international production workflows, the creative dynamics of animation production, financing strategies and international distribution. The workshop will also include one or more sessions on physical line production as well as case studies on completed animation projects. Group sessions, plenary sessions and one to one meetings will together build a workshop where producers learn from each other’s experiences and those of key industry guests.

*ACE Producers and ACE Animation Special partners will be paying close attention to the ever-changing international situation and will make any adaptations to the workshop necessary to ensure the safety of participants and guests.

WORKSHOP DATES
21st – 26th of March 2021

LOCATION
Dingle, Ireland

ELIGIBILITY CONDITIONS

• To be an owner, partner or associate of an independent film/animation/TV production company;
• To be an ACE member or producer with a similar level of experience;
• To have a long form or feature length animation project at idea or concept stage; producers without a project are also welcome to apply but must demonstrate a clear motivation.

APPLICATION DEADLINE
1st December 2020
16-18 places available

HOW TO APPLY
Visit www.ace-producers.com/animation-special

FOR MORE INFORMATION
For more information please contact Head of Specials, Al Williams at
animation@ace-producers.com

Following the selection of eighteen experienced international producers for the ACE 30 programme, ACE Producers is gearing up to hold the session’s first workshop online from the 5th to the 10th October 2020.

Previously planned to be held in Mallorca thanks to the Mallorca Film Commission, the workshop will now be held in an online environment, due to the continued international situation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The eighteen producers, based in fifteen different territories, will participate in their first workshop, concentrating on content development, specifically of the project that they each bring to the programme.

The decision was made to not postpone the workshop allowing the producers to already start benefitting from their shared knowledge. Of the decision, director Jacobine van der Vloed said, “The true importance of training and networking has become very apparent over these past months, with producers offering each other advice and support in these difficult times. We felt that we were well placed to adapt to the situation and allow the ACE 30 producers to meet each other as soon as possible and start their training.”

The workshop will offer carefully tailored sessions, which will aim to stimulate and engage the producers online, with group sessions and individual meetings, analysing the concepts, dramaturgy, and target audiences of the producers’ projects.

ACE Producers has previous experience of online events from holding regular
Networking and Support sessions for members of its Network and setting up an online version of the ACE Animation Special in mid-March, one of the earliest examples of adapting to an online environment seen in the audiovisual industry.

ACE Producers is based in Amsterdam and is supported by Creative Europe
MEDIA, The Netherlands Film Fund, Procirep, Téléfilm Canada, German Films, Screen Ireland and Focal.

“Another Round” by Thomas Vinterberg
Co-produced by Laurette Schillings (ACE NL) and Frans van Gestel (ACE NL)

“Atlantis” by Valentyn Vasyanovich
Produced by Vladimir Yatsenko (ACE UA)

“Berlin Alexanderplatz” by Burhan Qurbani
Produced by Fabian Maubach (ACE DE)
Co-produced by Erik Glijnis (ACE NL) and Leontine Petit (ACE NL)

“Collective” by Alexander Nanau
Produced by Bernard Michaux (ACE LU)

“Corpus Christi” by Jan Komasa
Co-produced by Patrice Nezan (ACE FR)

“DAU. Natasha” by Ilya Khrzhanovskiy and Jekaterina Oertel
Co-produced by Erik Hemmendorff (ACE SE)

“Falling” by Viggo Mortensen
Produced by Daniel Bekerman (ACE CA) and Chris Curling (ACE UK)

“Father” by Srdan Golubović
Produced by Amra Baksic Camo (ACE BH), Cédomir Kolar (ACE FR)
and Jelena Mitrovic (ACE RS)

“Let There Be Light” by Marko Skop
Produced by Marko Skop (SK) and Pavel Strnad (ACE CZ)

“Martin Eden” by Pietro Marcello
Produced by Viola Fügen (ACE DE)

“Persian Lessons” by Vadim Perelman
Co-produced by Jamila Wenske (ACE DE)

“Servants” by Ivan Ostrochovský
Co-produced by Pavel Strnad (ACE CZ)

“The Painted Bird” by Václav Marhoul
Co-produced by Igor Savychenko (ACE UA)

“Uppercase Print” by Radu Jude
Produced by Ada Solomon (ACE RO)

“Wildland” by Jeanette Nordahl
Produced by Eva Jakobsen (ACE DK)

“Willow (Vrba)” by Milcho Manchevski
Co-produced by Ildiko Kemeny (ACE HU)

Muayad Alayan – Palcine Productions – Palestine
“O Little Town of Bethlehem” directed by Muayad Alayan

Jacqui Davies – Primitive Film – United Kingdom
“After London” directed by Ben Rivers

Stefan Eichenberger – Contrast Film – Switzerland
“Good Boy” directed by Matthias von Gunten

Brian J. Falconer – Out of Orbit – United Kingdom
“Harvesting” directed by Michael Lennox

Jessie Fisk – Feline Films – Ireland
“So, Perfect” directed by Nathalie Biancheri

Erik Glijnis – Lemming Film – The Netherlands
“Sweet Dreams” directed by Ena Sendijarevic

Lauren Grant – Clique Pictures – Canada
“Mush Hole” directed by Lisa Jackson

Anna-Maria Kantarius – Garage Film International – Sweden
“The Land of the Fern” directed by Ester Martin Bergsmark

Marta Lewandowska – Friends with Benefits Studio – Poland
“Symetry of the Island” directed by Anna Kazejak

Patrice Nezan – Les Contes Modernes – France
“War with the Salamanders” directed by Catherine Maximoff

Sébastien Onomo – Special Touch Studios – France
“Mami Wata” directed by Askia Traoré

Evelin Penttilä – Stellar Film – Estonia
“Beatrice” directed by Ain Mäeots

Giovanni Pompili – Kino Produzioni – Italy
“The Beautiful Summer” directed by Laura Luchetti

Radim Prochazka – Kuli Film – Czech Republic
“In a Storm and Winds” directed by Lukáš Masner

Marija Razgutė – M-FILMS – Lithuania
“Fake News” directed by Karolis Kaupinis

Milan Stojanovic – Sense Production – Serbia
“When the Kids Sing the Hits” directed by Mina Djukic

Joanna Szymańska – Shipsboy – Poland
“Politics of Love” director TBD

Vladimir Yatsenko – Limelite/Forefilms – Ukraine
“U are the Universe” directed by Pavlo Ostrikov

ACE Producers is pleased to announce the eighteen producers selected to participate in the 30th ACE Session (2020/2021) who will go on to join the ACE Network.

The selection committee was made up of members of the ACE board, ACE consultants, president Antoine Simkine and director Jacobine van der Vloed. Of the selection, Jacobine van der Vloed said, “We were overwhelmed by the number of applications this year. Faced with a year of unprecedented disruption and change, it’s heartening to see that producers are determined to forge forward, concentrating on training and development. We’re confident that the selected producers will learn a lot from each other and will be excellent additions to the ACE Network”.

The selected producers will attend three workshops with a project in development. Fifteen different territories are represented in the selection: Canada, Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Palestine, Poland, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom.

Four events make up the core of the training. The first workshop, dedicated to content development, will take place online in early October with carefully tailored sessions which will aim to stimulate and engage the producers in an online environment. The Content Development Workshop will include group sessions and individual meetings, analysing the concepts, dramaturgy, and target audiences of producers’ projects.

In November, the second workshop, which offers the producers advice on possible financing strategies for their projects, will take place in Belgrade, Serbia, with the support of Film Center Serbia. The week-long workshop will be made up of interactive sessions exploring international financing opportunities and strategies through detailed analysis of the producers’ finance plans, with input provided by high-grade professionals from across the industry. The sessions offer a uniquely open exchange of experience and ideas which sheds light on the evolution of co-production practices, of public and private funding schemes, and of the global marketplace in the digital age.

The third workshop will look at the producers’ business strategies, providing them with models of sustainable company management and ways to build businesses that have real value. The workshop will integrate new elements specifically for this year, to help producers adapt their business models to face the challenges brought forward by the global pandemic. The Business Prospects Workshop will take place in Amsterdam with the kind support of the Netherlands Film Fund and is immediately followed by the ACE Annual Reunion, were the new producers will be officially welcomed into the ACE Network.

The Annual Reunion 2021 will be held in Edinburgh, with the support of Screen Scotland, after the postponement of the 2020 edition which was due to be held there.

ACE Producers is supported by Creative Europe MEDIA, The Netherlands Film Fund, Procirep, Téléfilm Canada, German Films, Screen Ireland and Focal.

ACE Producers is pleased to announce the 19 producers and projects selected for the ACE Series Special 2.

Anamaria Antoci – Romania – Tangaj Production
“Hooked” written by Adrian Sitaru

Daniel Bekerman – Canada – Scythia Films  
“Lisa Howard” writers TBD

Pavel Bercik – Czech Republic – Evolution Films 
“Astronomer” written by Zdeněk Jecelín and Jan Hanzlík

Pandora da Cunha Telles – Portugal – Ukbar Filmes 
“Number 61” written by Kalaf Epalanga

Trish Dolman – Canada – Screen Siren Pictures 
“Bones of Crows” written by Marie Clements

Jean-Marc Fröhle – Switzerland – Point Prod 
“Winter Palace” written by Lindsay Shapero and Stéphane Mitchell

Viola Fügen – Germany – Match Factory Productions 
“The Report” written by Ben Bräunlich

Danielle Guirguis – The Netherlands – Smarthouse Films 
“Philips” written by Bart Oudshoorn and Bart Koene

Alexandra Hoesdorff – Luxembourg – Deal Productions 
“Hologrammatica” writers TBD

David Keitsch – Germany – Komplizen Serien 
“La Huaka” written by Ruì Díaz, J.I.M. Wels, Juan Ortiz and Elena Manzo

Ivan Madeo – Switzerland – Contrast Film Zurich 
“Davos” written by Adrian Illien, Julia Penner, Thomas Hess
and Michael Sauter

Sarah Marks – Belgium – MARKS 
“29” written by Charlotte De Bruyne, Sophie Kurpershoek and Anemone Valcke

Leontine Petit – The Netherlands – Lemming Film
“Augustus” written by Marco van Geffen & Philip Delmaar

Elli Toivoniemi – Finland – Tuffi Films 
“Copper Country” written by Ulla Heikkilä and Jenni Toivoniemi

Joris van Wijk – The Netherlands – Le Boxeur 
“The Man Who Stole the Bomb” written by Nadeem Rajwani

Pierpaolo Verga – Italy – o’Groove 
“Traitors for All” written by Edoardo De Angelis, Barbara Petronio and Michele Pellegrini

Jakob Weydemann – Germany – Weydemann Bros 
“Champions” written by Paul Salisbury and Friederike Jehn

Marijke Wouters – Belgium – De Mensen 
“Capturing Big Mouth” written by Hans Van Nuffel, Ahsan Naeem

Cristina Zumarraga – Spain – Tandem Films 
“Pleasure Spot” written by Alicia Luna

The selected producers will begin the programme with an online workshop on script development late October followed by a residential workshop in Brussels in March. The aim of the programme is to equip producers who have a strong track record in feature film production with the tools to transfer their skills into the world of series production.

The Series Special is supported by the VAF (the Flanders Audiovisual Fund) and CFAP.

With a record number of applications, the selection committee selected projects which had strong co-production possibilities, a unique pitch with potential to gather an international audience and producers who would be able to bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the group. Of the selection, Head of Specials Al Williams said, “We were overwhelmed by the quality of the applications this year and we feel that the final selection represents the high level of series development coming out of Europe and Canada at the moment.”

Previously scheduled to be held at the VAF in Brussels in October, the residential element of the workshop has been postponed due to the continuing Covid-19 crisis. The participants will now participate in October in an online portion of the programme, with group sessions and a development workshop by development expert Emmanuel Oberg. This will help them fine-tune their bibles and pitches before the main element of the programme which will be held from the 1st to the 6th of March in Brussels, gathering experts in series productions, financing, distribution and sales.

ACE held its first Series Special workshop in October 2020, emerging from the needs of the industry and the clear trend for producers diversifying their activities and moving towards series production. On setting up the progamme ACE director Jacobine van der Vloed reflected “It really is amazing the number of established feature film producers we are currently seeing, turning their sights towards series. With the ever-growing call for more content this doesn’t seem to be a trend that is diminishing, so we’re happy to be able to provide a space to guide these knowledgeable producers in the right direction”.

The 19 selected producers come from 12 different countries with female producers outnumbering their male counterparts. 13 of the producers are ACE Network members.

Competition Programme Feature Film

“All the Pretty Little Horses” by Michalis Konstantatos
Produced by Yorgos Tsourgiannis (ACE GR)
Co-produced by Fabian Massah (ACE DE ) and  Dries Phlypo (ACE BE)

“Exile” by Visar Morina
Produced by Jonas Dornbach (ACE DE) and Janine Jackowski (ACE DE)
Co-produced by Jean-Yves Roubin (ACE BE)

Competition Programme Documentary

“House of Dolls” by Tudor Platon
Produced by Ada Solomon (ACE RO)

“Wood” by Monica Lăzurean-Gorgan, Michaela Kirst, Ebba Sinzinger
Produced by Ebba Sinzinger (ACE AT)

Kinoscope

“Wildland” by Jeanette Nordahl
Produced by Eva Jakobsen (ACE DK)

“Gagarine” by Fanny Liatard & Jérémy Trouilh
Produced by Carole Scotta (ACE FR)

In Focus

“Full Moon” by Nermin Hamzagić
Produced by Amra Baksic Camo (ACE BH)

“Malmkrog” by Cristi Puiu
Produced by Anamaria Antoci (ACE RO)

“Uppercase Print” by Radu Jude
Produced by Ada Solomon (ACE RO)

“Willow” by Milčo Mančevski
Co-produced by Ildiko Kemeny (ACE HU)

Open Air

“Father” by Srdan Golubović
Produced by Jelena Mitrovic (ACE RS)
Co-produced by Amra Baksic Camo (ACE BH) and Cedomir Kolar (ACE FR)

Special presentations

“Another Round” by Thomas Vinterberg
Co-produced by  Frans van Gestel (ACE NL) and Laurette Schillings (ACE NL)

“Falling” by Viggo Mortensen
Produced by Chris Curling (ACE UK) and Daniel Bekerman (ACE CA)

“The Father” by Florian Zeller
Produced by Philippe Carcassonne (ACE FR)

Discovery

“Limbo” by Ben Sharrock
Produced by Angus Lamont (ACE UK)

“Spring Blossom” by Suzanne Lindon
Produced by Caroline Bonmarchand (ACE FR)

“Wildfire” by Cathy Brady
Produced by Carlo Cresto-Dina (ACE IT)

Contemporary world cinema

“La nuit des Rois” by Philippe Lacote
Produced by Yanick Letourneau (ACE CA)

“Quo Vadis, Aida?” by Jasmila Zbanic
Co-Produced by Roman Paul (ACE DE), Eric Vogel (ACE NO)

Gala presentations

“Pieces of a Woman” by Kornel Mandruczo
Executive producer Viktória Petrányi (ACE HU)

Primetime

“Trickster” by Michelle Latimer
Executive producer Julia Sereny (ACE CA)

Competition

“And Tomorrow the Entire World” by Julia Von Heinz
Produced by Fabian Gasmia (ACE DE)

“Never Gonna Snow Again” by Malgorzata Szumowska, Michal Englert
Produced by Mariusz Wlodarski (ACE PL), Viola Fügen (ACE DE)

“Miss Marx” by Susanna Nicchiarelli
Co-produced by Valérie Bournonville (ACE BE)

“Pieces of a Woman” by Kornel Mandruczo
Executive producer Viktória Petrányi (ACE HU)

“Lovers” by Nicole Garcia
Produced by David Thion (ACE FR), Philippe Martin (ACE FR)

“Quo Vadis, Aida?” by Jasmila Zbanic
Co-Produced by Roman Paul (ACE DE), Eric Vogel (ACE NO)

Horizons

“Apples” by Christos Nikou
Produced by Angelos Venetis (ACE GR), Mariusz Wlodarski (ACE PL) and Associate producer Antoine Simkine (ACE FR)

“The Man Who Sold His Skin” by Kaouther Ben Hania
Produced by Thanassis Karathanos (ACE DE)

“La nuit des Rois” by Philippe Lacote
Produced by Yanick Letourneau (ACE CA)

Venice Days

In Competition

“The Stonebreaker” by Gianluca and Massimiliano De Serio
Produced by Alessandro Borrelli (ACE IT)

“Oasis” by Ivan Ikic
Co-produced by Amra Baksic Camo (ACE BA) , Antoine Simkine (ACE FR), Koji Nelissen (ACE NL) and Miha Cernec (ACE SI).

Out of Competition

“Saint-Narcisse” by Bruce LaBruce
Produced by Paul Scherzer (ACE CA)

Venetian Nights

“Nilde Iotti, il tempo delle donne” by Peter Marcias
Produced by Mario Mazzarotto (ACE IT)

Venice Critics’ Week

In Competition

“Non odiare” by Mauro Mancini
Produced by Mario Mazzarotto (ACE IT)

“Shorta” by Anders Ølholm and Frederik Louis Hviid
Produced by Signe Leick Jensen (ACE DK)