One of the most relevant film festivals in Brazil and in the world, Festival do Rio reaches its 15th edition, starting 09/26, with a vast offering of almost 400 films spread over more than 10 sidebars. Alongside the screenings and gatherings of its main programme, there is RioMarket, the festival s business arm, which takes place at Armaz m da Utopia, 09/27 to 10/09. It encompasses 13 days of workshops, seminars, business rounds and marketing opportunities for film projects.The massive presence of audiovisual industry professionals and executives from all over the world create a business and market environment, turning Rio de Janeiro into a business platform for the sector in Latin America , says Ilda Santiago, the festival s executive director along with Walk ria Barbosa. This year there ll be more than 40 discussion panels, 12 workshops and 600 business meetings, with more than 100 guests coming from all over the world. Festival do Rio aims not only at entertaining but also at helping the various segments of the industry to grow and develop, through RioMarket s debates and discussions , adds Walk ria.
As part of its ongoing effort towards boosting the domestic audiovisual industry, RioMarket takes an important step this year with the first RioMarket Jovem, organized for young filmmakers. Basically, it s an incubator that will add to the training of directors, sound technicians, wardrobe professionals, production designers, cinematographers, screenwriters and other audiovisual professionals. There will be a three-year incubating period, starting during the festival, for 30 youngsters from needy communities, aged from 15 to 21. They ll be prepared to become great audiovisual talents in Brazil, where there is still not a tradition of training programs , says Walk ria. Inspired by similar experiences from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) s Media Lab, currently the world s most advanced arts and technology center, the project was created in partnership with Museu de Arte do Rio, Escola de Cinema Darcy Ribeiro and Armaz m da Utopia.
This year s RioSeminars are divided into four sections: International Co-production Forum; TV Channels Opportunities, Brazilian Market and Future Zone. The latter is a new addition and will showcase the latest audiovisual technologies. Gary Sharp, a technology specialist at RealID, reinvented modern 3D and will make a presentation about the future of exhibition, from a technology standpoint , explains Walk ria, who also mentions the participation of two other MIT Meadia Lab s specialists in the section, Tod Machover and Alex McDowell. They ll show technologies used in what is called world creation such as the ones used in Avatar, as well as modern cameras that can film through walls. Superman s X-ray vision is no longer science-fiction , says the executive director. FutureZone s programme also includes a presentation of Dolby s new platform for cinema sound , Atmos, released in 2012 and due in Brazilian theaters next year.
Another look into the new possibilities of audiovisual will be offered by Ted Sarandons, Netflix s content director. Today he is the most important man in the world as far as video-on-demand platforms. He is a visionary who introduced the production of original series at Netflix and will be in Rio to talk about it , says Walk ria. Other top guests include Judy Smith, the outstanding American crisis manager for the Bush administration whose trajectory was the inspiration behind the Scandal TV series. Smith will talk about the series transition to the big screen. As far as workshops, Grey s Anatomy screenwriter William Harper and El Abrazo Partido and El Misterio de La Felicidad director Daniel Burman will discuss scripts.
Given the offer and demand we are seeing, the business volume this year will be absurd , says the executive director. Our expectation is that, mainly through the International Co-production Forum, many productions will get their start at the festival, one way or another . There s a possibility that many will involve the United States, as CEOs of several American audiovisual companies will be in attendance. Plus, SICAV-RJ, the Interstate Audiovisual Industry the Producers Guild of America (PGA) will sign an agreement at the festival.
A Film Town
For the fifth consecutive year, Rio s City Hall, through RioFIlme a partner of Filme Rio-Rio Film Commission is Festival do Rio s biggest sponsor. Our understanding is that the festival is key to the city , says Adrian Muselet, RioFilme s commercial director. While it is an event that attracts more than 300 thousand people which means it relates to all city inhabitants in a very open way it is also a business opportunity that fits into City Hall s policy of making Rio the continent s top audiovisual hub .
The Premiere Brazil competitive section focuses on new Brazilian releases and will include 11 films supported by RioFilme: nine features and two shorts. Among these, 3D feature Amazonia-Planeta Verde will open the festival on 09/26. This Brazil/France co-production , shot with a budget of over eight million euros, hits the commercial circuit next year and has already been sold to 20 countries. We ll open the festival with a Brazilian film that has an extremely relevant international potential, that shows the city in a different way to a young audience. That means we already score big for the city s image around the world , says Muselet.
The Festival will also serve as springboard for the Rio, Uma Cidade de Cinema (Rio, A Film Town) campaign, made up of three 40 to 50 second-spots. The first one shows the impact on the city of RioFilme s investments. In the last five years, the audiovisual sector generated 12 thousand jobs in Rio de Janeiro, adding over 800 million reais to the country s GNP. The second spot focuses on Rio s tourism potential as
