The tenth edition of MIA | Mercato Internazionale Audiovisivo, promoted by ANICA (National Association of Cinematographic, Audiovisual and Digital Industries) chaired by Francesco Rutelli and APA (Audiovisual Producers Association) chaired by Chiara Sbarigia and directed for the 3rd year by Gaia Tridente, ended yesterday with MIA Awards Ceremony. Attendance at the event increased by 10% compared to the 2023 edition, with over 2,800 participants from 60 countries around the world. Over 6,00 projects received this year for the Co-Production Market and Pitching Forum with a +20% compared to 2023 and a 12.5% increase in the number of countries of origin, from all continents, which go from 80 to 90. MIA also grew on social media with a 30% increase in followers on Instagram and 16% increase on LinkedIn.
Across the ten editions, over 100 audiovisual works “Made in MIA” have been produced after their participation in the MIA co-production market, a testament to the success of the selection capacity and the important opportunities that the market offers in terms of research for co-producers and international partners (financial, distributive and creative).
During the final day, the MIA Awards 2024 were announced. Among these, the new MIA Development Awards, established to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Market, were awarded to 4 projects selected in the 4 categories of the Co-Production Market and Pitching Forum, decided by international juries of industry experts. Cash prizes will go to support the development of the winning work for each category.
The MIA Development Award For Outstanding Animation Project went to “Big Bang Parade” by Hermien Verstraeten, Sine Özbilge, Nienke Deutz, Karolien Raeymaekers, Imge Özbilge, Britt Raes, Martyna Koleniec, produced by Annemie Degryse, Lunanime, Producer and Co-Owner, Lumière Groupe (Belgium), co-produced by Momakin (Poland) and Les productions de Milou (France). In the film, characterized by a unique graphic style, two children open a secret chest, which contains only a bag of marbles. But each marble contains a tiny growing world, inhabited by surprising and colorful creatures.
The MIA Development Award For Outstanding Doc Project went to “Reborn-Perfect Love” directed by Giovanni Conte, Francesco Pascucci, produced by Nicola Maiello and Camilla Gazzola (Amartia Film), which explores the phenomenon of reborn dolls, hyper-realistic reproductions of newborns who are treated as if they were real children.
The MIA Development Award For Outstanding Drama Project went to “The Night Watch,” written by Steven Friedman and produced by Edvard van't Wout for Continent Studios, a tale of magic, friendship and mysteries buried beneath the city of Amsterdam.
The MIA Development Award For Outstanding Film Project went to “Death In Your Eyes,” directed by Guillermo de Oliveira; produced by Silvia Fuentes (Sétima), Nuria Landete García (Sideral Cinema).
The Paramount New Stories Award was awarded to “Aya In The Desert,” directed by Julia Horrillo, produced by Norbert Llaràs for Alhena Production (Spain).
The GEDI Visual Award, assigned by GEDI, went to “La Vita Che Mi Diedi/Pulling My Own Strings,” produced by Anna Frandino for Officina 38, Cinema Key, directed by Alessandra Cataleta (Italy) - dedicated to Anna Cuticchio, the most famous Sicilian puppeteer who, before being celebrated as a “pioneer”, was labeled a heretic, a good-for-nothing, a rebel, a madwoman. Anna's life is a compendium of all the small and large battles of Italian women over the last sixty years. The title was selected in Italians Doc It Better, the showcase of the Doc & Factual section of the MIA which over the years has established itself as the main international showcase of the best Italian documentary products.
The Screen International Award was awarded to “Father/Otec,” directed by Tereza Nvotová, produced by Veronika Paštéková and Anton Škreko (Danae Production), Karel Chvojka and Miloš Lochman (Moloko Film), Marta Gmosińska and Mariusz Włodarski (Lava Films) - a film selected for C EU Soon - the work in progress programme dedicated to European films in post-production looking for international sellers.
The third edition of the WIFTMI Award was won by “Uglycomics / Fumettibrutti,” a series based on the graphic novel trilogy by Josephine Yole Signorelli, known by the pseudonym that gives the series its title, produced by Riccardo Russo for Bim Produzione - a Wild Bunch Company, and written by Teresa Ciabatti, Laura Luchetti and Michele Pellegrini - an Italian scripted project selected within the Co-Production Market & Pitching Forum of the Animation, Drama and Film divisions. The project was found to be the one with the greatest potential for realization based on criteria related to the themes of eliminating gender inequality, positive representation, balanced representation, diversity and inclusion.
The 12th edition of the Carlo Bixio Award for Best Series Concept went to Giovanni Mauriello for the “Chukar” project, for the contemporary story of the Roman suburbs that here shows an authentic face in complexity, for the delicacy of the characters who face the harshness of the world with the grace of the little chukar, the Pakistani partridges that give their name to the story, giving a vibrant and original look at the issues of rights and inclusion but, above all, on the most universal theme there is: love. The award for Best Screenplay was won ex aequo by the “Doppio Fallo” (“Double Penalty”) project by Annalisa De Filippis and Eleonora Ghezzi - an original and new story, with two unforgettable characters: Bruno, a forty-year-old failed tennis promise, and Asia, an AMAB teenage athlete, committed to asserting herself, on and off the court. Two destinies that face each other in the most important match, that of life. Two different solitudes, two prime numbers that meet in a screenplay that impressed the jury because it challenges every genre and creates a unique story - and by the project “La Nube” (“The Cloud”) by Gianluca Tria and Lorenzo Garofalo, for the courage and expertise in tackling a dramatic and thorny topic in Italian recent history: the Seveso disaster.
The SIAE Award for best original screenplay went to “Il Gioco Dell'Oca” (“The Game of the Goose”) by Diego Pelizza, for the calibrated suspense and well-orchestrated narrative tension with which a cue somewhere between Black Mirror and Squid Game is developed: a cruel challenge borrowed from the classic children's game, but this time with a deadly stake, to which innocent victims are subjected who are unable to escape.
The Fideuram Award for young people goes to the concept “Gli Incerti” (“The Incertis”) by Marco Pozzato and Matteo Calzolaio, for the rich and varied narrative structure with which this concept explores the life of a family home for borderline kids, run by the Incerti family, from the point of view of their teenage son Andrea.