ACE Producers is pleased to announce the eighteen producers selected to participate in the 27th ACE Session (2017/2018).

Anneli Ahven – Estonia – Kopli Kinokompanii
“Beatrice” by Ain Mäeots

Anamaria Antoci – Romania – 4 Proof Film
“Max and the Virgin Mary” by Adrian Sitaru

Signe Byrge Sørensen – Denmark – Final Cut for Real
“The End” by Joshua Oppenheimer

Sylvain Corbeil – Canada – Metafilms
“La Dissociation” by Albéric Aurtenèche

Gary Cranner – Norway – Chezville
“The Ski Jumper who didn’t want to Land” by Hans Petter Moland

Colin Day – United Kingdom – Rickshaw Entertainment
“Middle-8” by Marielle Gautier

Galilé Marion-Gauvin – Canada – Productions l’Unité Centrale
“Listen Well, O Fence of Reed” by Dominique Chila & Samer Najari

Koji Nelissen – The Netherlands – Kepler Film
“Woods” by Diederick Koopal

Iris Otten – The Netherlands – Pupkin Film
“Dreamscape” by Anna van der Heide

Jussi Rantamäki – Finland – Aamu Film Company
“The Woodcutter Story” by Mikko Myllylahti

Arash T. Riahi – Austria – Golden Girls Filmproduktion
“Micromeo” by Virgil Widrich

Igor Savychenko – Ukraine – Directory Films
“Die Young” Dir. TBD

Laurette Schillings – The Netherlands – Topkapi Films
“Onedaymyprincewill.com” Dir. TBD

Pierpaolo Verga – Italy – O’ Groove
“The Vice of Hope” by Edoardo De Angelis

John Wallace – Ireland – Black Sheep Productions
“The Navigator” by Dathaí Keane

Jakob Weydemann – Germany – Weydemann Bros.
“Fresh” by Damian John Harper

Mariusz Wlodarski – Poland – Lava Films
“Sweat” by Magnus von Horn

Ondrej Zima – Czech Republic – Evolution Films
“Grand Prix” by Jan Prušinovský

Sixteen producers have been selected from fourteen different Creative Europe participating countries, and for the first time this year, thanks to a partnership with Téléfilm Canada, two producers from Canada will be attending the workshops alongside their European colleagues. All eighteen producers will attend the workshops with a project in development.

The sixteen EU producers come from all corners of Europe, with Scandinavia and Eastern Europe particularly well represented. ACE is also pleased to welcome a Ukrainian producer to the Network for the first time.

The selection committee was made up of members of the ACE board, ACE consultants, President Simon Perry and Director & Head of Studies Jacobine van der Vloed. The committee said: “The quality of the producers and projects who applied for this year’s session was very high, making the selection particularly difficult. We are very happy to have selected a wide variety of producers from different production backgrounds, and are pleased with the number of them who have impressive collaborative connections with their directors.”

Four events make up the core of the training. The first workshop, dedicated to Content Development will take place mid-October in Helsinki, thanks to the support of Aalto University. The Content Development Workshop includes plenary 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, takes place in Prague, with the support of the Czech Film Fund and the Czech Audiovisual Producers Association. This week-long workshop is 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 Prospects, providing them with models of sustainable company management and ways to build businesses that have real value. The sessions will offer them insight into keener application of marketing techniques, direct online distribution and diversified commercial activities. This workshop takes 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.

Alongside these workshops the producers will also have the chance to have personalised consultations with script, finance and marketing experts throughout the year.

ACE Producers is an exclusive network of experienced independent film producers from Europe and beyond, with around 200 members from more than 45 countries.

Established in Paris in 1993, the association moved to The Netherlands in 2017 and will be celebrating its 25^th anniversary next year.

ACE Producers is supported by Creative Europe, The Netherlands Film Fund, The Czech Film Fund, Aalto University, The Czech Audiovisual Producers’ Association, Procirep, Film i Väst, German Films, The Irish Film Board, Focal, Rai Cinema and Téléfilm Canada.

Special Presentations

“A Fantastic Woman” by Sebastián Leilo
Co-produced by Fernanda de Nido (ACE ES), Janine Jackowski (ACE DE)
and Jonas Dornbach (ACE DE)

“Catch with Wind” by Gaël Morel
Produced by Anthony Doncque (ACE FR) and Miléna Poylo (ACE FR)
Project developed during the ACE 23 workshops

“Disobedience” by Sebastián Leilo
Produced by Ed Guiney (ACE IE)

“Foxtrot” by Samuel Maoz
produced by Cédomir Kolar (ACE FR)

“The Killing of a Sacred Deer” by Yorgos Lanthimos
produced by Ed Guiney (ACE IE)

“The Motive” by Manuel Martín Cuenca
Co-produced by Manuel Martín Cuenca (ACE ES)

“The Price of Success” by Teddy Lussi-Modeste
Produced by Jean-Christophe Reymond (ACE FR)

“The Square” by Ruben Östlund
Produced by Erik Hemmendorff (ACE SE)
Co-produced by Katja Adomeit (ACE DK)

“Thelma” by Joachim Trier
Co-produced by Eva Jakobsen (ACE DK)

“Racer and the Jailbird” by Michaël R. Roskam
produced by Bart van Langendonck (ACE BE)

“You Dissapear” by Peter Schønau Fog
Co-produced by Madeleine Eckman (ACE SE)

Masters

“The Other Side of Hope” by Aki Kaurismäki
Co-produced by Misha Jaari (ACE FI)

“Zama” by Lucrecia Martel
co-produced by Claire Gadea (ACE FR)

Contemporary World Cinema

“A Ciambra” by Jonas Carpignano
Co-produced by Carol Scotta (ACE FR)

“A Sort of Family” by Diego Lerman
Co-produced by Oliver Damian (ACE DE) and Eva Jakobsen (ACE DK)

“Beyond Words” by Urszula Antoniak
Produced by Floor Onrust (ACE NL)

“Good Favour” by Rebecca Daly
Produced by Conor Barry (ACE IE)
Co-produced Marleen Slot (ACE NL)

“Hannah” by Andrea Pallaoro
Co-produced by John Engel (ACE BE)

“Looking for Oum Kulthum” by Shirin Neshat
Produced by Roman Paul (ACE DE)

“Under the Tree” by Hasteinn Gunnar Sigurðsson
Co-produced by Jamila Wenske (ACE DE)

“Wajib” by Annemarie Jacir
Co-produced by Cristina Gallego (ACE CO), Eva Jakobsen (ACE DK)
and Titus Kreyenberg (ACE DE)

“Western” by Valeska Grisebach
produced by Jonas Dornbach (ACE DE), Janine Jackowski (ACE DE)
co-produced by Borislav Chouchkov (ACE BU)

Discovery

“A Worthy Companion” by Carlos Sanchez
Produced by Luc Déry (ACE CA)

“Gutland” by Govinda Van Maele
Produced by Gilles Chanial (ACE LU)
Co-produced by Felix Blum (ACE DE) and Olivier Dubois (ACE BE)
Project developed during the ACE 23 workshops

“I Am Not A Witch” by Rungano Nyoni
produced by Juliette Grandmont (ACE FR)
co-produced by Titus Kreyenberg (ACE DE)

“Oblivion Verses” by Alireza Khatami
Produced by Fred Bellaïche
Co-produced by Leontine Petit (ACE NL), Joost de Vries (ACE NL)
and Fabian Massah (ACE DE)

“Soldiers. Story from Ferentari” by Ivana Mladenovic
Produced by Ada Solomon (ACE RO)
Co-produced by Jelena Mitrovic (ACE SB) and Jean-Yves Roubin (ACE BE)

“Valley of Shadows” by Jonas Matzow Gulbrandsen
Produced by Alan R. Milligan (ACE NO)

In Competition

“Foxtrot” by Samuel Maoz
produced by Cédomir Kolar (ACE FR)

“Hannah” by Andrea Pallaoro
Produced by John Engel (ACE BE)

Orizzonti

“Brutti e Cattivi” by Cosimo Gomez
produced by Fabrizio Mosca (ACE IT),
Co-produced by Farès Ladjimi (ACE FR)
Project developed in the ACE 23 Workshops

“Ha Edut” (The Testament) by Amichai Greenberg
co-produced by Oliver Neumann (ACE AT)

“Undir Trénu” (Under the Tree) by Haffsteinn Gunnar Sigurdsson
co-produced by Jamila Wenske (ACE DE)

“Los Versos del Olvido” by Alireza Khatami
co-produced by Fabian Massah (ACE DE), Leontine Petit (ACE NL) and Joost de Vries (ACE NL)

Out of Competition

“Zama” by Lucrecia Martel
co-produced by Claire Gadea (ACE FR)

“Le Fidèle”” by Michaël R. Roskam
produced by Bart van Langendonck (ACE BE)

Venice Days

“Candelaria” by Jhonny Hendrix Hinestroza
produced by Roman Paul (ACE DE)

“Looking for Oum Kulthum” by Shirin Neshat
produced by Roman Paul (ACE DE)

“Western” by Valeska Grisebach
produced by Jonas Dornbach (ACE DE), Janine Jackowski (ACE DE)
co-produced by Borislav Chouchkov (ACE BU)

Critics’ Week

“Team Hurricane” by Annika Berg
produced by Katja Adomeit (ACE DK)

“Körfez” (The Gulf) by Emre Yeksan
co-produced by Maria Drandaki (ACE GR)

The European Film Academy and EFA Productions have announce the titles of the 51 films on this year’s EFA Feature Film Selection, the list of feature fiction films recommended for a nomination for the European Film Awards 2017. 14 films are produced or co-produced by members of the ACE Network.

In the coming weeks, the over 3,000 members of the European Film Academy will vote for the nominations in the categories European Film, Director, Actor, Actress and Screenwriter. The nominations will then be announced on 4 November at the Seville European Film Festival in Spain. A seven-member jury will decide on the awards recipients in the categories European Cinematographer, Editor, Production Designer, Costume Designer, Hair & Make-up Artist, Composer and Sound Designer.

The 30th European Film Awards with the presentation of the winners will take place on 9 December in Berlin.

ACE PRODUCERS FEATURE FILMS SELECTED FOR THE EFAS 2017

“A Date for Mad Mary” by  Darren Thornton
Produced by Ed Guiney (ACE IE)

“Godless” by Ralitza Petrova
Produced by Eva Jakobsen (ACE DK)

“Ice Mother” by Bohdan Sláma
Produced by Pavel Strnad (ACE CZ)
Co-produced by Marko Skop(ACE SK)

“Istanbul Red” by Ferzan Ozpetek
Produced by Tilde Corsi (ACE IT)

“Jupiter’s Moon” by Kornél Mundruczó
Produced by Viktória Petrányi (ACE HU)

“Return to Montauk” by Volker Schlöndorff
Produced by Conor Barry (ACE IE)

“Son of Sofia” by Elina Psykou
Produced by Giorgos Karnavas (ACE GR)
Co-produced by Borislav Chouchkov (ACE BU)

“The Killing Of A Sacred Deer” by Yorgos Lanthimos
Produced by Ed Guiney (ACE IE)

“The King’s Choice” by Erik Poppe
Produced by Finn Gjerdrum (ACE NO)

“The Other Side of Hope” by Aki Kaurismäki
Co-produced by Misha Jaari (ACE FI)

“The Square” by Ruben Östlund
Produced by Erik Hemmendorff (ACE SE)
Co-produced by Katja Adomeit (ACE DK)

“Tom Of Finland” by Dome Karukoski
Produced by  Aleksi Bardy (ACE FI)

“Western” by Valeska Grisebach
Produced by Jonas Dornbach (ACE DE), Janine Jackowski (ACE DE)
Co-produced by Borislav Chouchkov (ACE BU)

“You Disappear” by Peter Schønau Fog
Co-produced by Madeleine Eckman (ACE SE)

Competition Programme – Feature Films

“Grain” by Semih Kaplanoğlu
Produced by Nadir Operli (ACE TR)

“Son of Sofia” by Elina Psykou
Produced by Giorgos Karnavas (ACE GR)
Co-produced by Borislav Chouchkov (ACE BU)

Competition Programme – Documentary Films

“Mr. Gay Syria” by Ayse Toprak
Produced by Antoine Simkine (ACE FR)
Co-produced by Christine Kiauk (ACE DE)

Competition Programme – Shorts

“Copa-Loca” by Christos Massalas
Co-produced by Giorgos Karnavas (ACE GR)

“Unbuilt Light” by Efthimis Kosemund Sanidis
Produced by Yorgos Tsougiannis (ACE GR)

Shorts

“After Dawn” by Nicolas Graux
Produced by Valérie Bournonville (ACE BE)

“Game” by Senad Alihodžić
Produced by Amra Bakšić Čamo (BA)

“Limbo” by Konstantina Kotzamani
Produced by Maria Drandaki (ACE GR)

Open Air

“The Other Side of Hope” by Aki Kaurismäki
Co-produced by Misha Jaari (ACE FI)

In Focus

“Jupiter’s Moon” by Kornél Mundruczó
Produced by Viktória Petrányi (ACE HU)

“Quit Staring at My Plate” by Hana Jušić
Produced by Ankica Jurić Tilić (ACE HR)

SFF Partners Presents

“Until the Birds Return” by Karim Moussaoui
Produced by David Thion (ACE FR) and Philippe Martin (ACE FR)

Kinoscope

“Raw” by Julia Ducournau
Produced by Jean de Fôret (ACE FR)
Co-produced by Jean-Yves Roubin (ACE BE)

“The Square” by Ruben Östlund
Produced by Erik Hemmendorff (ACE SE)
Co-produced by Katja Adomeit (ACE DK)

“Western” by Valeska Grisebach
produced by Jonas Dornbach (ACE DE), Janine Jackowski (ACE DE)
co-produced by Borislav Chouchkov (ACE BU)

In Competition

“Madame Hyde” by Serge Bozon
Produced by David Thion (ACE FR)
Co-produced by Jean-Yves Roubin (ACE BE)

“Wajib” by Annemarie Jacir
Co-produced by Cristina Gallego (ACE CO), Eva Jakobsen (SE) and Titus Kreyenberg (ACE DE)

“Freedom” by Jan Speckenbach
Produced by Jamila Wenske (ACE DE)

“Goliath” by Dominik Locher
Produced by Rajko Jazbec (ACE CH)

Piazza Grande

“Lola Pater” by Nadir Moknèche
Produced by Bertrand Gore (ACE FR)

“Iceman” by Feliz Radau
Produced by Jan Krüger (ACE DE)

“The Song of Scorpions” by Anup Singh
Produced by Saskia Vischer (ACE CH)

Out of Competition

“A Manifesto for the Un-communal” by Syllas Tzoumerkas (short)
Produced by Jamila Wenske (ACE DE)

“Anatomia del Miracolo” by Alessandra Celesia
Co-produced by Alessandro Borrelli (ACE IT)

“Nothingwood” by Sonia Kronlund
Produced by Laurent Lavolé (ACE FR)

Virtual Reality

“Iceman VR” by Jan Krüger & Eric Benz
Produced by Jan Krüger (ACE DE)

New Irish Cinema

“Penance: Aithrí” by Tom Collins
Produced by Edwina Forkin

“Pilgrimage” by Brendan Muldowney
Produced by Conor Barry
Project developed during the ACE 21 workshops

World Cinema

“Nocturne” by Konstantinos Frangopoulos
Produced by Margery Bone

“Life Thereafter” by Konstantin Bojanov
Produced by John Engel

Fleadh Forum – Thursday 13th July

14:00–14.45:  ‘Pilgrimage’ – A Film Finance Case Study

A case study of the film finance structure of Brendan Muldowney’s epic—Pilgrimage, developed by its producer Conor Barry during the ACE 21 workshops. Handled by XYZ Films, this Irish Belgian co-production, which shot on location in Ireland, featured a strong line-up of Irish creative talent and was financed by the IFB, BAI, Wallimage and XYZ Films.

Panelists: Conor Barry & John Keville (Savage Productions), Benoit Roland (Wrongmen Films), Todd Brown (XYZ Films) and will be chaired by Lesley McKimm (IFB). In association with EAVE and Screen Leaders.

16:40-17.25: Breaking Windows – What Digital is Doing to Producers’ Rights

The disruption of orderly sequences of film distribution is one of the most significant phenomena of the digital age. Day-and-date releasing theatrically and online, video-on-demand going head-to-head with pay-TV, pre-releasing online for free – what does all the experimentation add up to? The new majors are online platform giants, yet for the majority of films the value of digital rights is far from compensating for the decline in revenues from traditional home entertainment. What practical steps can producers take to understand and manage the new rights in their work, and derive value from them?

Eamonn Bowles (Magnolia Pictures, US), Andy Mayson (Altitude, UK), Karen O’Malley (Element Pictures, IE); chaired by Simon Perry (ACE Producers, NL)

The forum is supported by the Galway Film Fleadh, Screen Training Ireland and Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board (IFB).