CineLink Talks 2022

Films can change the way we see and experience the world. They can also change legislations, lobby for social causes, campaign for human rights and even topple governments. In an industry increasingly interested in entertainment, where subscriptions are a measure of success, are there any new ways to finance films that want to change the world as we know it? Three marketing and distribution experts for social impact films will  share their insights on the current financing landscape and how they imagine the future of films for change.

Moderator: Paula Vaccaro

Panellists: Danielle Turkov-Wilson, Brian Newman, Sarah Mosses, Patricia Finneran

How is the rapidy changing documentary industry influencing strategies in film sales, curation, acquisition, means of distribution, screening- and launch strategies to name just a few of the areas that professionals between filmmaking and audiences have as their core expertise?  What concretely is transforming and what new strategies are in the making?  How do Sales Agents, Distributors, Aggregators and Film Festivals define and develop their current roles in this context and in a world with increased uncertainties? For documentary professionals change is inevitable. Yet the speed of things shifting calls for our additional attention and reflection.

Moderator: Gitte Hansen

Panellists: Mads Mikkelsen, Vincent Lucassen, Sophie Bourdon, Thierry Detaille

Today documentary films have the power to make sense of a complex world, deliver knowledge and emotion, uncover and fight injustice, open the eyes of the audience towards essential issues. They reach a large audience. With great power comes great responsibility. How do we deliver fact-based stories in the fake-news era? How do we gain (and not lose) the trust of viewers? How do we deal with censorship? What is the filmmaker’s responsibility towards the characters he or she films? How not to lose control of the message after the film is completed? Those and other questions will be discussed with a panel of filmmakers and experts.

Moderator: Christian Popp

Panellists: Nataša Urban, Henrik Underbjerg, Madeleine Leroyer, Mladen Kovačević

More than a filmmaker’s calling card, short films are a format of choice for many audiences online. For the filmmakers, shorts are a way to show artistic choices and skills. They are discovery portals into an artists’ vision while offering the makers a way to network and approach the industry with a less risky option in terms of budget. But they are not getting any easier to finance, and distribution of shorts seems overflooded. Our panelists will share their vision about how to make short films that can stand out. How to finance, craft, and showcase them, and what are the advantages of making shorts in the current landscape.

Moderator: Paula Vaccaro

Panellists: Holly Fraser, Neils Putman, Meghan Oretsky

Following a conversation we started in 2020 on re-imagining distribution strategies for independent films, two years later, this panel invites independent producers to discuss the challenges presented by the current film distribution model and how this is changing the producer's scope of work.  Are collectives of producers the only possible future of independent films? Or going rogue and nimble will provide a better chance to thrive? A conversation to think together about the producer’s role in a landscape where the fight for rights and access to audiences is just the tip of the iceberg.

Moderator: Paula Vaccaro

Panellists: Rodrigo Areias, Farah Abushwesha, Alexandra Lebret