117 films and 128 screenings, 250 TV episodes introduced (more than 50% of which were Italian) 97 international premieres (80 of them Italian), over 2500 participants (60% Italian, followed by operators from France), and 500 accreditations from the UK, USA and Germany: these were the numbers of the fifth edition of MIA - International Audiovisual Market.
It was a four-day, experience-rich event, that brought together the key players of the audiovisual sector from 50 countries. Curated by Francesca Palleschi along Alexia de Vito (Film), Gaia Tridente (Drama) and Marco Spagnoli (Doc) the different MIA 2019 sections introduced 200 cutting edge products for 2020-2022, for a total value of 700 million euros. This year’s numbers reveal the success of a transversal edition that sought to include and value female labor, while also leading in matters of social, economic and environmental sustainability.
“MIA continues to grow: this year the success has been even larger and more impactful than the preceding years, with 25% more participants,” said Francesco Rutelli, President of ANICA. Giancarlo Leone, President of APA, also revealed his great satisfaction: “The Associazione Produttori Audiovisivi is particularly happy with this year’s success for the Market, with visible growth in every area and a significant presence by the most important international market referents. This means that Italian products are not only a showcase for our own productive capacity but also a centerpiece of the international market for audiovisual content”.
“MIA’s exponential growth, both in terms of quality and quantity, confirms its position in the international scene and, most of all, our industries’ growing capacity to be a global market protagonist”, concluded Lucia Milazzotto, MIA Director.
This success was also shared and witnessed by many of the operators in the sector: “They are very motivated people, with a true passion for cinema”, highlighted Richard Lorber, President & CEO of Kino Lorber, Inc. “We are very happy with our participation in the event and exchanged experiences with a truly professional and interested audience, that represents the authors of the future”. “It is truly important for Channel 4 to be at MIA”, said Alex Mahon, CEO of Channel 4.
“It is my first time here and I found a very stimulating Market, with the presence of loads of international drama and series producers. For us, to be here means having the opportunity to learn and exchange opinions with other countries. MIA has always manifested a great interest in animation and has organized a series of particularly innovative encounters”, declared Luca Milano, Director of RAI Ragazzi, while according to Raffaella Di Giulio, Head of Sales and International Distribution of FANDANGO, “the market grows each year. There was the integral participation by the distributors at What’s Next Italy. The organization of spaces at Palazzo Barberini became more functional. There’s an optimal presence of TV and Cinema buyers and we managed to close very important agreements”.
“I’m having a blast these days at MIA, a beautiful event that I’m recommending to everyone”, added Kevin Beggs, Lionsgate Television Group Chairman, while Justine Nagan, Executive Producer of POV said: “I’m really happy to be part of MIA this year: I’ve had the possibility to find many Italian and European directors”.
“I’m proud of being in Rome. There are so many high-level guests. Here, anyone can learn and find interesting things”, declared Gale Anne Hurd, CEO of Valhalla Entertainment, while Erkko Lyytinen, commissioning editor of the Finnish National Broadcasting Company (Yle) said: “this year we had a truly magnificent experience, thanks to the beautiful location and the presence of very interesting projects and many talented directors. There are a great number of titles in development and it is simply fascinating to see such a varied agenda”.
MIA AWARD CEREMONY
On Sunday October 20th, two awards were presented during the closing ceremony by two of MIA’s main partners: Eurimages and National Geographic. Recognizing Rome’s as one of the most successful European co-production markets, Eurimages, the European Fund of the Council of Europe - entrusted the jury of 2019, composed of Fiorella Moretti, Ewa Puszczynska and Tobias Pausinger, with the task of selecting the winner of the Eurimages Co-Production Development Award: a cash prize of 20,000 euro for the development of the project that most specifically reflects the criteria of collaboration and co-production that inspire Eurimages. The award has been handed out by Susan Newman, Eurimages’ Project Manager, during MIA’s closing award ceremony that took place on Sunday, October 20th, at the Multiplex Quattro Fontane.
The Jury awarded the Eurimages Co-Production Development Award to TRIUMPH by Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov produced by Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov for Abraxas Film, with the following motivation: The Jury was impressed by this highly original story with real contemporary relevance. The events which will be related seem hardly credible, but are absolutely true. Absurd but tragic, the finished film will certainly have a lot to say about some of contemporary society’s most evident failures.
National Geographic returned to sponsor the Best Pitch Award, confirming MIA I DOC’s vocation to find projects that combine both artistic and production qualities with significant commercial opportunities. The winner of 2019 was The Secret Diaries of the Pope (The Vatican Secret Archives Of The WWII) docu-event by Simona Ercolani and Cosetta Lagani, produced by Stand by Me along with Vatican Media. The project of great international appeal is born from the historical decision by Pope Francis: on March 2020, the Vatican’s secret documents on WWII will be made public, revealing more than 16.000.000 files that were secret until now. On the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the end of WWII, these documents will reveal, for the first time, the true position of the Church and particularly Pio’s XII papacy regarding the Holocaust and Nazism, through evidence provided by these previously unrevealed documents, exclusive images, and testimonies.
The eighth edition of the Carlo Bixio Award was also handed out during the ceremony. The purpose of the initiative — hosted by MIA for the third time — is to commemorate the great and forward-thinking producer while also encouraging young TV series scriptwriters between 18 and 30 years of age. As is now tradition, Rai and Mediaset delivered the Award, while RTI awarded 5.000 euros for the best concept and 10,000 euros for the best script, along with the possibility of signing a contract for the production of the winning texts.
The SIAE “Idea D’Autore” award also granted a cash prize of 3,000 euros to the most original writing idea. Recognition goes out to SIAE -Società Italiana degli Autori ed Editori, sponsor of the Award, to APA, who has organized the event from its first edition, the promotion committee (Eleonora Andreatta/Director of RaiFiction, Francesco Nardella/Vice Director RaiFiction, Daniele Cesarano/ Director of Fiction Mediaset, Giancarlo Scheri/Director Canale5 and Chiara Sbarigia/ General Director of APA), the juries (Francesca Galiani for RTI, Leonardo Ferrara for RAI, Ivan Cotroneo, Graziano Diana, Francesco Vicario and Monica Rametta), that together with Gabriella Campennì Bixio, president of the Award, have selected the most deserving works.