"Chimera" and "Eva in Labor"
Russian movies, series, and animation producers summed up their participation in one of the largest Asian content markets—TIFFCOM Online 2022—which was held at the end of October as part of the 35th Tokyo International Film Festival. The Russian film industry took part for the first time in the Japanese market under the single brand Russian Content Worldwide (RCW). The film market, which brought together almost 2,000 participants from 58 countries, confirmed the interest of international buyers in Russian documentary content of various genres and costumed historical dramas.
The participation of the Russian industry in TIFFCOM 2022 was organized by Roskino, Russian film promotion body. Twenty-nine Russian companies presented more than 100 projects online. Roskino CEO Inna Shalyto: “At the last TIFFCOM, Russian companies noted interest in a wide variety of genres and final negotiations are underway on a number of projects—action dramas, historical series, family films—and documentaries of various genres—from environmental and scientific research to films about wildlife. This is the third content market this year in Asia, after Vietnam and South Korea, in which the Russian industry has participated under the RCW brand. By the end of the year, the Russian industry will have been represented at two more major content markets—in South Asia and the MENA region”.
Documentary producer Odin Media is currently negotiating the terms for a package of documentaries dedicated to environmental protection ("Invisible Hope", "Arctic. The Great Expedition", "Land of Bears" and the documentary series "Armageddon") to Taiwan; as well as negotiations on the sale of a number of films to South Korea ("Depth Hunters" and "Invisible Hope") have almost been completed. In addition, the Taiwanese TV channel Cai Chang expressed a desire to continue cooperation on the Combat Approved project: the purchase of new seasons is being discussed along with a package of military documentaries.
Sovtelexport, the official distributor of Russia Television and Radio is currently negotiating with VOD platforms from Japan and South Korea to sell the rights to the costume dramas "Elizaveta" and "Bloody Lady". The company also held meetings with representatives of the film industries from Spain, Brazil, India, China and other countries.
Russian World Vision conducted negotiations with representatives from Spain. One of the distributors was interested in the documentary "SOLO", a film-journey project into the world of a dance culture in Russia, whose characters are talented and ambitious performers of six different dance styles from ballet to hip-hop, whose only dream is to conquer the stage. Spanish distributors also showed interest in the sports comedy "Girls Got Game", the romantic comedy "Have Fun", "Vasya! Date in Bali", and the horror "Atakan. The Bloody Legend". Buyers from Malaysia, Singapore, and India were attracted by the sports drama" Eleven Silent Men", "Atakan. The Bloody Legend", and the animated film "Ginger’s Tale".
START online cinema noted that the comedy "Eva in Labor" attracted the most attention. Buyers from South Korea, the US, Brazil, and Indonesia appreciated the broad appeal of the story. The second season of the sensational drama about surrogacy "Container" and the sci-fi comedy "The No Man Zone", also attracted the attention of South Korean representatives and negotiations are currently underway.
All Media (a START company) is currently negotiating with buyers for the family fantasy "Red Riding Hood". All Media noted that buyers were most interested in family films, action films, and horror. As part of the market, meetings were held with buyers from China, India, Malaysia, and Japan.
Art Pictures Distribution noted increased interest in the comedy series "Ivanovs vs Ivanovs" as well as "The Kitchen. War for the hotel". In terms of feature films, content buyers were interested in the family adventure film "The Adventures of Chuck&Huck" and the sci-fi thriller "Reversible Reality". The company held meetings with representatives from China, Indonesia, Korea, and India.
Production Company Sreda noted the interest of companies from Japan, Korea, Malaysia, China, and Vietnam in their new hit crime thriller "Chimera", which shows three worlds colliding in a struggle for power in a black market that claims the lives of millions and brings in billions. International content buyers also appreciated the psychological drama "Trigger" about a psychologist who is an advocate for shock therapy.
Animated content producers also spoke about the traditionally high interest of Asian companies in their projects. SMF Animation studio held meetings with representatives from Singapore, Malaysia, mainland China, Hong Kong, and Indonesia. The animated series for the youngest—"Monsikids"—and the exciting children's detective story "The Secrets of Honey Hills" were especially popular.
CTB Film Company held a series of negotiations with buyers from mainland China, Singapore, Korea, Mongolia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, and Macau, presenting "The Barkers", "Moonzy", and other animated and feature films.