AFCI Locations Show

AFCI News Post: February 21, 2012

The AFCI SHOW 2012 is the AFCI’s premier industry event. In 2012 the AFCI Locations Show – held at the LACC on the 15th & 16th June 2012 - will feature not only exhibits and information booths from the major film production centers worldwide, but also networking events, workshops, seminars, discussions and presentations, all geared to sharing the most current, dynamic and effective body of knowledge about working on location throughout the world.

This content is aimed not so much at educating film commissioners (though it certainly will) but rather at attracting a broad range of the filmmakers and the wider production community to the AFCI Locations Show. Please note, the event will be physically designed to filter filmmakers through the stands, and we are also structuring the program so that activities are staggered in such a way that filmmakers will be able to spend time in the exhibition hall.

The program and speakers will be finalized over the next couple of weeks / months – but here follows a summary outline of the kind of content that has been identified by our industry partners and fellow associations as the kind of information that would attract their members to the event, and that we’ll be working on to try to deliver:

1. State Of The Industry Panel
The Locations show will offer a panel on the state of the industry, in particular focusing on the changes to incentives programs, how these affect Hollywood, the other key trends and areas of interest to producers.

2. LA Film Festival Keynote Speech
Los Angeles Film Festival Keynote/State of the Industry speech as the opening component of a day full of panels and discussions presented by other organizations that the AFCI is working with, such as Los Angeles Times, IDA, Directors Guild of America, etc.  on Saturday, June 16.The Los Angeles Film Festival Keynote usually focuses on the state of the industry from the point of view of a respected professional in the field.

3. Co-Production Panel - The Next Financial Frontier For American Filmmakers
A significant contributor to the success of international filmmaking has been the Co-Production Treaty. These treaties are signed between countries and, in allowing a production to claim the nationality of the signatories involved, allows the filmmaker to create meaningful production partnerships AND source funding directly from the funding sources of the treaty partners. In this way, for instance, an official Italian-Canadian-German Co-Production could source not just incentives from each of these countries, but government film funds too. American producers are currently denied access to these opportunities because there is currently no vehicle with which to manage a co-production treaty arrangement. We will discuss what is needed, and how this could inject resources and new opportunities into Hollywood.

4. “BRICS” Summit
In December 2011, Variety’s Future of Film summit in Los Angeles identified that understanding how to do business with China is a hot button topic. In line with the AFCI’s own breadth of membership and future planning, Variety will expand upon their summit and produce a “BRICS” Summit focusing on doing business with the worlds fastest-growing economies. From production trends in those countries, to production financing opportunities, and from the assessment of new partnerships, to copyright issues, to distribution ideas for indie producers, we will look at the impact of the BRICS on the way film and media deals will be struck in the coming years. This is a unique opportunity for creatives, producers, buyers and film financiers to discuss current issues relevant to the film & media production, from top studio executives and independents not just from Hollywood but from the BRICS countries themselves.

5. Fast Track @ AFCI
Fast Track is a highly selective film financing market that takes place during the Los Angeles Film Festival designed to help narrative and documentary filmmakers move their current projects forward. During three days of intensive meetings, Fast Track connects filmmakers with financiers, production companies, and other industry professionals. This highly selective program is open to established as well as up-and-coming filmmakers with exceptional projects still seeking funding. The films are represented by producer/director teams, and there are approximately 15-25 filmmakers in the program each year. On Saturday, June 16, we will be scheduling a special half- day session of meetings at AFCI for the Fast Track filmmakers. These meetings would be between the filmmaking teams and a range of film commissioners.

6. Fast Track Script Breakdown
All ten projects accepted into Fast Track will participate in a Script Breakdown Competition. AFCI will choose one project from Fast Track projects and provide it with a broken down production budget for five different destinations, including examples of the incentives available in each area. 

7. MPAA - Chris Dodd
The MPAA was recently embroiled in a tumultuous and controversial effort to tackle piracy through two bills – SOPA and PICA. In this session, Senator Dodd speaks about his personal journey with the Piracy Legislation, lessons learned, doors closed, opportunities still to be grasped etc. It will look at some of the economic impacts of Piracy on film production viability, and include a moderated panel discussion around the core issues of the Piracy debate, in particular setting out the areas where buy-in will need to be sought in order to move forward.

8. Using The Creative Team To Save Money & Add Value To The Production
The Locations Show will offer a panel for filmmakers featuring Location Managers, Production Managers, Production Designers and Producer discussing the complex decisions made on production that can affect cost, quality and the value that ultimately appears on screen.

9. Production On Location
We are also working with Variety on the publication of a special edition of a Variety Impact Report on Production-on-Location. Variety’s Impact Reports are typically a look at around 50 players at the top of their game in a particular field who’ve been rewarded by box office success, critical acclaim and industry kudos as they push the limits of their art and their craft. Variety has produced similar reports on Women, Youth and Below-the-Line Crew, and in this instance will look at the men and women making huge contributions to location filming – producers, production designers, locations scouts and managers, physical production executives. The publication, which will be launched at the event, is expected to be the gold standard of Film Commission clients – literally the 50 people we should all know – and the winners will be presented their awards at the Locations Show.

10. Documentary Producers' Summit
The AFCI is working with the associates to create a global documentary summit for Documentary Producers and the heads of Documentary Producer Associations Worldwide to discuss the opportunities and access available for documentary production. We hope that Film Commissions will encourage Documentary Producers in their respective areas to attend the event to network, find out information on the support and opportunities available from film commissions and of course, meet exhibitors at their stands.

11. From Documentary To TV Commercials
The International Documentary Association has also identified that many of its members are interested in the field of TV Commercial Production. The show will therefore have a workshop that will explore the differences (and similarities) between the genres, and identify the challenges and opportunities for producers.

12. "How To Work The AFCI Show"
We will be positioning AFCI members as unique sources of funding, information and services that will help FMA members to get their projects off the ground. These are the filmmakers of the future, and our dialogue will position AFCI members as an integral part of the production process.

13. TV Commercial Focus On Latin America
The Association of Independent Commercial Producers has identified a rising trend for international commercial production in Latin America. 25% of AICP business is now conducted on the continent and commercial producers are interested to find out more. The show will feature a panel with a number of senior TV Commercial Producers with experience filming in the south, who will discuss the opportunities, challenges, cultural differences and alternative practices involved in producing in South America.

14. How To Work The Trade Show
The Locations Show will offer a morning session of “How to Work The Trade Show”, encouraging up—and-coming filmmakers to get the most out of their experience at the LACC.

15. "On The Ground With" Panels Discussing Film Making Process
We are working with the Swedish film commissions to bring members of the Production Teams of both the Swedish and American versions of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, to discuss the differences between US and European films in terms of funding models, filmmaker approach, working practices and experiences during production.

We are also working with Honolulu Film Office and the producers of Alexander Payne’s “The Descendents”, specifically addressing the relationship between film commission and production regarding the research of Hawaiian culture and music that has made the film so interesting.

We have further reached out to Gale Ann Hurd, producer extraordinaire, about her work on the awesome Walking Dead TV series that filmed on location in Georgia.

- WE NEED MORE FILM COMMISSION INPUTS HERE!!!!

16. Location Scout "Draw"
We would like to investigate pooling the Locations Scouting Trips offered by members a single giveaway event. The concept would be to offer a range of Locations Scouts as prizes in a “raffle” or “prize giving draw” or similar. In association with Film Independent, the AICP and The Location Managers Guild of America have all expressed that their members would be interested in this, and we would thus encourage pre-qualified (Guild, FIND members etc.) to enter a draw. 

17. Training Sessions
Through our partners we are also looking at providing some informal training sessions for interested industry participants – for Production Assistants for instance, and Locations Assistants, as well as a Filmmaker Masterclass.