Press Releases
European Film Market & Co-Production Market

Under the new umbrella “EFM Horizon presented by Audi”, the European Film Market (EFM) will be offering a variety of initiatives in 2017 focusing on the film industry of the future, made possible with the support of Audi.

“EFM Horizon” provides opportunities for discovering the newest relevant technological developments and forward-looking trends and for taking advantage of networks in sectors bordering on those of the audio-visual industry.

“The Berlinale is an incubator for creativity and new trends. The openness and curiosity Audi has demonstrated in recognising our festival as a laboratory for thematic initiatives open up new possibilities for us,” commented Berlinale Director Dieter Kosslick. “We are very happy to be able to continue our close collaboration with Audi in the future. Our partnership has just been extended until 2019 and with the addition of the new platform ‘EFM Horizon’ this co-operation will be expanded.”

For its inaugural edition in 2017, “EFM Horizon” will begin by providing a platform for the events “Propellor Speednic”, “EFM Startups”, “VR NOW Con Business Mixer”, “Game <3 Cinema” and “The Next Level of Cinema”.

“As the market of one of the largest public festivals in the world, the EFM is once again expanding its portfolio. From now on, our motto ‘It all starts here’ will take on additional meaning,” according to EFM director Matthijs Wouter Knol. “The audio-visual sector is consistently characterised by radical transformations. New technologies change everything, focal points shift, traditional companies have to reconfigure their approaches.”

The initiative “EFM Horizon” addresses this reality by facilitating a dialogue between participants of the EFM and representatives of other industries, in order to develop new strategies for the film industry. At the same time, a platform like “EFM Horizon” is able to react to the rapid changes taking place in the industry and adapt and expand its programme for trade visitors accordingly.

“Sustainability in our commitment to culture has been an integral part of our entrepreneurial activities for more than 50 years now. Platforms such as the Berlin International Film Festival promote interdisciplinary dialogue in an impressive manner and make the area where art meets technology immediately accessible for all to experience,” commented Dietmar Voggenreiter, Board Member for Sales and Marketing at AUDI AG. “That is why Audi is proud to expand our collaboration with innovative formats.”

Together with the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR), the Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival (CPH:DOX) and the Berlin-based innovation studio Cinemathon, the EFM is set to launch the incubator programme “Propellor Film Tech Hub”. The programme’s mission is to enable innovation in the film industry by actively participating in shaping (and thus in the process also altering) the way that films are produced, distributed and experienced by viewers. In the framework of the EFM 2017, a first “Propellor” networking meeting, the “Propellor Speednic”, will take place.

The successful “EFM Startups” initiative will be continued under the umbrella of “EFM Horizon”. Selected European startups will present new technologies for production, distribution and marketing. The initiative is intended to pave the way for investments and connect potential partners.

In co-operation with the Virtual Reality e.V. Berlin-Brandenburg, the EFM will be presenting for the first time the “VR NOW Con Business Mixer”, where virtual reality pioneers and experts can come together to address the current impulses and trends shaping the sector. The “VR NOW Con Business Mixer” aims to bring EFM trade visitors together with movers and shakers from the international virtual reality scene.
Both initiatives are funded by the Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg.

The “Game <3 Cinema” format, produced by Booster Space and first introduced at the International Games Week Berlin, will also be making an appearance at the EFM in 2017. This event format reimagines the movie theatre as a venue for combining the experience of playing a computer game with that of coming together in front of the big screen to share a moment with others. In a step beyond the traditional movie experience, exhibitors and buyers can join an audience of gaming enthusiasts to share a first-hand experience of the latter’s world in the cinema setting.

In the framework of “The Next Level of Cinema”, companies can present new products and offers to a selected target group of buyers, sales people, producers, exhibitors and cinema operators, whether they be revolutionary new projection technologies, new sound systems, new camera equipment or other similar developments.

“EFM Horizon presented by Audi”:

“Game <3 Cinema”
In co-operation with International Games Week Berlin
Friday, February 10, 2017

“EFM Startups”
Funded by Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg
Monday, February 13, 2017

“VR NOW Con Business Mixer”
In co-operation with Virtual Reality e.V. Berlin-Brandenburg, funded by Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg
Monday, February 13, 2017

“The Next Level of Cinema”
Tuesday, February 14, 2017

“Propellor Speednic”
In co-operation with IFFR, CPH:DOX and Cinemathon
http://www.propellorfilmtech.com/
Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Press Office
December 8, 2016