The sixth edition of Conecta Fiction & Entertainment (CF&E) is beginning to take shape and offer the first details of a program that will be both highly international, due to the presence of the world's most important production and distribution companies, as well as local, being Spain the focus country. The venue for the event will be the Palace of Congress of Toledo El Greco, (Castilla-La Mancha, Spain) from June 21 to 24, 2022.
"All the people and sections are important at Conecta, but this year we are seeing that the professionals want to actively participate, they want to be heard and to go up on stage and express their opinions, share and show their latest news. We are receiving proposals and requests on a daily basis and we are really very happy with the level that our program is going to have in this edition, which also includes entertainment," commented Géraldine Gonard, Director at Conecta Fiction & Entertainment.
In the star panel dedicated to the showrunners, British writer and producer Ben Harris will share the stage with Spaniard Cabezas in what will undoubtedly be a session of great professional impact given both their international careers. Harris has written and executive produced "The Young Wallander" (Yellowbird, Netflix), and his career includes titles such as "Devils" (Lux Vide, Sky Italia), "Big Light Ransom" (CBS and TF1), and the ITV series "Marcella" and "Dark Heart", as well as having written the BBC programs "The Musketeers", "Hunted" and "The Paradise". Paco Cabezas is currently in charge of the adaptation as a crime series of “The Gypsy Bride”, the homonymous best-selling novel by Carmen Mola. Cabezas, an internationally recognized screenwriter, director and producer, has worked on both film and television projects including "Adiós", "Carne de Neón", "Rage", "Mr.Right", "Penny Dreadful", "Fear the Walking Dead", "The Alienist" and "American Gods".
Beta Spain, Viacom International Studios, Banijay Group and The Walt Disney Company Latin America stand out among the important presence of international entertainment groups.
All these companies will be featured in panels and activities in a program that will highlight new developments, strategies, and space for their new projects, but above all, it will give all participants the opportunity to get close to key players in the international industry. Beta has confirmed the presence of its general directors of Beta Fiction and Entertainment in Spain, Mercedes Gamero, Pablo Nogueroles, Christian Gockel, and Javier Pérez de Silva. Laura Abril, Director of VIS for EMEA and SVP (Spain) and Federico Cuervo, Senior Vice President, responsible for VIS Americas are two of the representatives confirmed as panelists from Viacom while The Walt Disney Company Latin America will be present with Leonardo Aranguibel, Head of Operations and Production Strategy and Mariana Pérez, General Manager of Entertainment Production. Lars Blomgren, Head of Scripted, and the British James Townley, Global Director of Content Development of Banijay will also be part of a panel.
Among the many international and Spanish companies that have confirmed the presence of their executives in Toledo are the following: Fremantle, Maze Pictures, Paramount, NBCUniversal International, Pegasus, Dynamo, Quokas Originals, Beta Film, Macondo Productions, The Walt Disney Company Latin America, Trio Orange, Movistar +, Rakuten TV, A&E Networks, Discovery, Phileas Productions, Banijay, HBO Max, Atenea Media, Gaumont, Mediacrest, Vértice 360, DeAplaneta, SP-i, Tornasol, Rai, Secuoya Studios, Mediawan Rights, Federation Spain, Fábula, El Terrat, Dopamine, Ecuavisa Studios, BBC Studios, Asacha Media Group, Boomerang TV, Newen Studios, ZDF Studios, All3Media, Atresmedia, RTVE, VIS, Izen, Buendía Estudios and Plano a Plano.
Special Programme Spain Country Focus 2022
Designed to connect, as never before, international professionals and press with the Spanish industry, talent, and institutions. This set of activities aims to show the essential role that the Spanish audiovisual sector plays today in the country's economy, something that has been seen in recent years thanks to a growing share of production, investment, and export of content worldwide. For all these reasons, a large part of this year's program of activities will focus on Spain and the plan designed by the Spanish government to boost the audiovisual sector (Spain Audiovisual Hub) as one of the main themes of the event.
"Spanish Overview" will open the conference program, which will be completed with panels dedicated to Spain, Europe's Audiovisual Hub, the protection of intellectual property, the presentation of ICEX Invest in Spain "Spain Bureau", and sessions with television channels and OTT operators focusing on scripted and unscripted content.
“In Conversations with" completes the tour of the Spanish industry. An innovative Conecta format in which, through a pleasant and professional chat, the main Spanish business partners take the stage and talk about their collaborative work. A different and dynamic format to understand who is who and what is happening in the Spanish business landscape.
General Programme of CF&E 2022
Among other topics this year, new formats and trends will be discussed, including the metaverse and podcasts, the talent that travels from film to series, and the role of the showrunner, which will be one of the key panels at this year's edition.
21 June – Conecta Think Tank: Activity with limited access and seating capacity to encourage both professional networking and ideas exchange during a special day while touring unique places of special significance in the Toledo area. The activity includes a visit to the Barrancas de Burujón, whose spectacular western landscape has been the setting for the filming of "Águila Roja", "Cuéntame" and "Red Sky". The visit also includes a tour of the Finca Quinta Mirabel, shooting location for "The Skin I live In " (Pedro Almodóvar), "White Lines" (Álex Pina/Netflix), "Acacias 38" (Susana López Rubio; Aurora Guerra; Miquel Peidró; Josep Cister/RTVE) and "Someone Has to Die " (Manolo Caro, Netflix), among others. It will be in this magnificent space where the participating executives will share their opinions on relevant issues that will help shape a vision for the future of the industry. As usual, the conclusions of the think tank will be shown to the rest of the participants of Conecta Fiction & Entertainment.
To participate in this activity it is necessary to register in advance as places are limited.
22nd to 24th June - Event at the Palace of Congress El Greco, Toledo. Every day from 10h00 to 19h00 the doors of the professional forum will be open. In addition, every evening there will be special content for all participants.
22 June - World premiere of an international series
23 June - Awards Gala for the projects selected in the CF&E 2022 pitching sessions.
24 June - Programming from 10h00 to 16h00. Closing of the 6th edition of Conecta Fiction & Entertainment.
The full program of the event is available on the website and will be updated on a daily basis.
For the first time, the ConectaMeet Agenda will be offered, a personalized agenda service that will guarantee half-hour meetings with potential partners selected based on the preferences and needs of the applicants. This service, open on June 22 and/or 23, must be contracted independently.
The 6th edition of Conecta Fiction & Entertainment has the support of the Government of Castilla-La Mancha, and the collaboration of Castilla-La Mancha Film Commission. Inside Content is in charge of designing and producing the event.