FkN Newsletter
April 2009
FkN News
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Nordisk Panorama Event 2009
It's
time to mark your calender for Nordisk Panorama 5 Cities Film Festival,
this year taking place in Reykjavík, Iceland, 25-30 September, where
the festival will celebrate its 20th Anniversary.
Nordisk
Panorama - 5 Cities Film Festival is a joint arrangement between the
Icelandic Film Centre, City of Reykjavík and Filmkontakt Nord and the
annual meeting point for Nordic short and documentary film
professionals that every year attracts a high number of filmmakers,
producers, financiers and distributors alike. The festival's core
events are the three competition programs, Nordic Short Films, Nordic
Documentaries and New Nordic Voices, highlighting new talent from the
Nordic countries. Seminars and master classes are also of vital
importance to the festival, and every year new themes and perspectives
are explored.
In connection with the festival, Filmkontakt Nord
organizes Nordisk Panorama Market, Nordisk Panorama Outlook and Nordisk
Forum for Co-financing of Documentaries.
Iceland has been
prominent in the international media due to the bank and economy crisis
that has shaken all the world and Icelanders especially. The focus has
been shifted from capital flow to culture and creative thought.
Reykjavik city has a renewed energy, and the Icelandic festival team is
looking forward to host Nordisk Panorama in a "new Iceland" of dynamic,
artistic and fundamental thinking.
Reykjavik is the world's
northernmost capital with about 180.000 residents. It is small and
friendly, but its vital and colourful culture life rather suggests a
metropolis of millions. When it comes to discovering wild and wonderful
landscapes, Reykjavík with nature at its doorstep offers visitors the
possibility to find unspoiled wilderness within short distances where
the influence of man and civilization vanishes.
So there's every reason to come to Reykjavík in September!
And right now is the time to register your film for the festival. You can read the regulations here and register your film here.
Deadline for entries is 15 May 2009.
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Filmkontakt Nord (FkN) has since its establishment in 1991 by the independent Nordic short & documentary film community been dedicated to the advancement and promotion of Nordic short films and documentaries internationally.
The organization has four main objectives: information, marketing, networking and the acquisition and dissemination of knowledge and know-how. During FkN's 18 years of activity, it has established itself as a unique central source of information and expertise, catering to the needs of the Nordic independent short film and documentary community and meeting the demands of the international marketplace.
FkN's main function is to serve as a common Nordic platform for a stronger production and distribution network within the Nordic countries and a visible united exposure internationally, joining a strong cultural profile with a driven and future-oriented industrial perspective. FkN's activities and projects in 2008 were made possible thanks to the following financial sources: Nordic Council of Ministers (DKK 1.509.690), the Nordic national film institutions and ministries (DKK 1.344.600), Producers' fees (DKK 510.198), MEDIA Promotion (DKK 385.000) and Nordic Film & TV Fund (NOK 200.000).
In January 2008 Karin Johansson-Mex replaced Karolina Lidin as the director of the organization together with the staffers, Katrine Kiilgaard (International, Promotion and Marketing), Heidi Elise Christensen (Administration, Web and Nordisk Forum), Jing Haase (Information and Film Coordination), Laura Kiralfy (Nordisk Forum Coordination) and Olof Marnung (Technique).
In 2008, FkN launched the new market platform, Nordisk Panorama Market Online. The market was launched right after the Nordisk Panorama Event 2008 and is now available to the more than 800 international, professional buyers, festivals and sales agents registered at Filmkontakt Nord. Nordisk Panorama Market Online presented over 300 films. It is built to enhance the visibility of the Nordic films at the international market and will be promoted through out the coming years at international film & TV markets and festivals.
Nordisk Panorama Market Online is an integrated part of the FkN website Nordic Portal that integrates a wide range of FkN's services by offering key-information on the Nordic short film and documentary sector, a.o. films, professionals and industry events.
The Nordic Portal www.filmkontakt.com has more than 4200 active users, and the frequency of sessions reaches over 30.000 sessions per month. The expansion of the Nordic Portal to include the FkN Contact Database and Nordisk Panorama Market Online has further increased the use of Nordic Portal to the Nordic and international film community.
During 2008, 275 new films were registered in the FkN Video Library and FkN Online Film Catalogue, which thus comprised a total of over 4100 Nordic short films and documentaries produced since 1991. The Online Film Catalogue provides key-information on all titles in the FkN Video Library in Copenhagen where preview copies of all films are available to visiting professionals.
FkN continued its marketing activities at MIP-TV/MIPDOC, where a total of 13 documentaries and children's films were marketed through email advertising, a special edition catalogue and individual meetings with international TV-buyers, resulting in 238 screenings and several requests for screening copies. In addition, 26 producers/filmmakers joined the Nordic Producers' Stand at Sunny Side of the Doc, hosted by FkN, who gave the producers individual consultancy before and during the event. The special marketing initiative for children's films launched in 2004 was continued at the international children's film festival/market Cinekid (Amsterdam), resulting in 75 screenings of Nordic children's films.
Special focus was given to animation and short film initiatives in 2008, resulting in the FkN Nordic Producers' Stand at MIFA animation market and the continuation of the successful initiative of Nordisk Short Film Circle, a one-day seminar for Nordic short film professionals during Nordisk Panorama Event focusing on films for the mobile phone.
Malmö City hosted the 19th edition of Nordisk Panorama Event, the traveling triptych event, comprising Festival, Market and Co-financing Forum. Nordisk Panorama Event is the main platform for short films and documentaries in the Nordic region, offering an annual business venue and showcase, spanning all professional focus areas from development and financing to distribution and exhibition. Nordisk Panorama 2008 attracted 771 professionals from 24 countries.
Nordisk Panorama - 5 Cities Film Festival presented 153 films, 74 of which were competing in the three competition programs for the Nordic Awards for Best Short Film, Best Documentary and New Nordic Voices. The film screenings and the substantial seminar program highlighted a.o. the Cross Media development as well as Kim Longinotto. Other special programs presented the British animator Phil Mulloy and took the temperature on the Nordic Art Film.
Nordisk Panorama Market offered a comprehensive overview of the year's production of short films and documentaries from the Nordic countries, all 275 displayed on a new digital platform fully appreciated by the attending 33 professionals - including TV-buyers, distributors and festival programmers who made effective use of the screening facilities with more than 900 screenings. New for this year was also the International Market Talks where 13 international commissioning editors, sales agents or distributors presented themselves and gave insights to the short and documentary community.
During the 15th Nordisk Forum for Co-financing of Documentaries, 24 projects were pitched to the 43 participating financiers. Nordisk Forum Online was offering a sneak preview of all projects with short trailers before the event. The special pitching category for newcomers, New Talent Pitch, was continued and again very well received. Nordisk Forum welcomed a total of 215 professionals from 18 countries. Based on the results of earlier years' Forums, there is reason to expect a turnover between financiers and producers of up to €850.000 with some 80% of the projects either finished or in production within the following year.
Focus areas for 2009 include the international marketing of FkN's new digital platform Nordisk Panorama Market Online. In 2009 over 700 of the latest Nordic films will be accessible globally at any time to the over 800 professional market representatives listed in the FkN database.
Finally, FkN continues the efforts to establish environmentally sustainable practices in the film industry, again this year undertaking a comprehensive analysis of CO2 emissions, formulating a plan for short- & long-term reduction, and offsetting unavoidable emissions.
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In the beginning of May, Filmkontakt Nord's Promotion and Marketing Manager, Katrine Kiilgaard, will be attending the Canadian International Documentary Festival HotDocs and the Toronto Documentary Forum to promote Nordisk Panorama Market Online as well as to maintain and expand the ever important international network.
Nordisk Panorama Market Online is FkN's online streaming service aimed at international tv-buyers, sales agents, distributors and festival programmers. At NPM Online these professionals can easily keep abreast with the latest and greatest short films and documentaries from the Nordic countries and stream films in full length around the clock and at their own convenience - not to mention free of charge.
To set up a meeting with Katrine Kiilgaard, send an email or call the FkN office at +45 3311 5152.
Focus: New Nordic and International Initiatives
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Filmpool Nord, Sweden's second largest regional film production centre, has launched a three year project, Filmpool Nord Development. The aim of Filmpool Nord Development is to raise the quality of the projects developed in the Norrbotten region, to meet the market demands on a regional, national and international level. It will support audiovisual works with script development, research, translations, packaging, test shoots, and international contacts during the three years existence of the project.
The project is the first of its kind in Sweden and is funded by the EU and Filmpool Nord. Read more about Filmpool Nord and the project here.
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To make Iceland more competitive with other locations for filming, the Icelandic government has approved an increase of the tax credit on foreign shoots from 14% to 20%, which will hopefully result in a major boost for the local film industry and economy.
Producers
of film and TV programmes can now apply for reimbursements from the
State Tresury of 20% of their production spent in Iceland. When more
than 80% of the total production costs of a film or TV programme are
incurred in Iceland, the reimbursement is calculated on the basis of
the total production cost incurred within the European Economic Area.
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Coproduction Office and Katapult Film Sales, two sales companies with strong Nordic ties, have merged their sales operations. The announcement was made during MIP TV in Cannes, where both companies operated together for the first time. Both companies will keep their own brands, catalogues and acquisitions separate. However both companies will share the same office in Paris, sales office at world markets and website.
Coproduction office is a regular co-financier, co-producer and sales representative for Nordic films. Philippe Bober and Vanja Kalurjercic will remain in charge of acquisitions for Coproduction Office after the merge.
Katapult Film Sales specialises in independent US films and non-US films in English language and is backed by Icelandic/US mogul Joni Sighvatsson. At Katapult Anna Kvorning remains in charge of acquisitions.
