On March 13-16 in Hong Kong FILMART, an annual film and TV content market, took place.
FILM.UA Group was represented at the market by Igor Storchak, distribution director, and Yevgeny Drachov, international sales manager.
FILM.UA Group had its stand # 1C-B15 located in the IFTA pavilion. There we presented our feature projects The Stronghold (2017), The Stolen Princess (2018), Mavka. The Forest Song (2019), animation series Eskimo Girl (2013-2016) and Mom Hurries Home(2018) as well as other projects from the catalogue.
At the market, all rights to demonstration of a fantasy feature The Stronghold, including theatrical runs, were pre-sold to Bombaram Film for the territory of South Korea.
On March 15, the first Asian screening of scenes from an animation feature The Stolen Princess was held, starting a range of new sales negotiations.
“Asia is a special region; the mentality here is different from both Europe and America. Every time we participate in FILMART we discover something new, like approaches towards choosing content and efficient positioning for this market,” says Igor Storchak. “A year ago, we showed one five-minute work-in-progress scene from The Stolen Princess; this year we organized a whole 30-minute screening and presented the project’s official teaser for the first time in the region. The screening was very successful – the plot and animation quality readily attracted new Asian companies, gave start to a range of negotiations and brought initial arrangements to a new stage. Systemic approach is most important when dealing with this territory. There are no ‘potential partners’ at FILMART – we call each other friends.”
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Just a reminder: the screenings of scenes from The Stolen Princess were previously held at the American Film Market and the European Film Market spurring significant interest among buyers: the project has been pre-sold to over 20 territories, including China, France, Germany, Poland, Iran, South Africa, South Korea, and Turkey. We hope that the list will soon be complemented by other Asian territories as well.
“I would like to separately note the interest towards our Mavka. The Forest Song project,” says Igor Storchak. “Here it is not just about sales but also possible cooperation in the project’s production with our Chinese counterparts.”
Another reminder: in early March, the producer group of Mavka. The Forest Song presented Ukraine for the first time at Cartoon Movie, the biggest animation pitching event. The project became a highlight of the forum and received a huge impetus for development: after pitching, negotiations on the film’s co-production have started, with the release planned for 2019.
In two weeks, FILM.UA Group will participate in MIPTV in Cannes (April 3-6), and in May the working materials of feature projects will be presented there at Marche du Film (May 17-26).
