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Rome’s MIA Market is launching a new initiative called European Investment Hub, which aims to help European industry professionals navigate the wide range of financial tools — in both the soft money and equity financing
spheres — that are currently at their disposal.
MIA (which stands for Mercato Internazionale Audiovisivo or International Audiovisual Market) will run Oct. 19-23. Roeg Sutherland, who is co-head of CAA’s media finance department and its international film group, and U.S. specialty finance company Media Capital Technologies principals Raj Singh and Christopher Woodrow are expected to make the trek to the Eternal City to attend this new MIA strand.
The Rome market’s new project — which is conceived in collaboration with the European Commission, the European Investment Fund (EIF), the CineRegio network of regional film funds in Europe and pan-European fund Eurimages, along with leading private equity players — will unfold during the event’s first two days. There will be panels, roundtables and advisory one-to-one meetings dedicated to stimulating dialogue between producers and the myriad funding sources available to them just as the amount of private equity money they can tap into is on the rise.
MIA’s European Investment Hub will focus on exploring and explaining financial tools such as European co-production funds, equity funds dedicated to content creation and completion bonds and risk-mitigation mechanisms, including those developed in synergy with European and national institutions.
“The idea is to foster direct contact between producers and representatives from these various entities who can provide guidance,” MIA chief Gaia Tridente tells Variety.
“I am truly pleased that this new edition of MIA is opening with such an in-depth focus spanning two days on the subject of investments and financial tools tailored to companies in our sector,” Alessandro Usai, head of Italy’s motion picture association ANICA, said in a statement.
“In recent years, it has become clear to everyone that access to finance is the true game-changer for the industry, and that we must work together to remove remaining barriers and obstacles, better understand best practices and implement new ones,” Usai added. “In particular, delving into public-private partnerships, guarantee systems and the interplay between national, European and international tools is crucial for the growth of the entire sector— and not just in Italy.”
Commented Chiara Sbarigia, head of Italian TV producers’ association APA: “There was a need for a new space dedicated to audiovisual financing to address the challenges faced by producers, particularly small and medium-sized ones.”
“A few months ago, APA presented a proposal to the relevant institutions for a public-private fund, which we will showcase to industry professionals during the market. MIA will provide domestic and international players with a clear overview of available tools through a practical approach: while competing in international markets certainly requires ideas, talent, and production capacity, understanding where to invest in development — and how and where to secure resources — remains crucial,” Sbarigia went on to point out.
Dedicated panels will comprise “Unlocking Italy’s Potential,” during which Raj Singh, Roeg Sutherland and prominent U.S. entertainment lawyer Steve Saltzman, head of the International Entertainment Group at London-based law firm Fieldfisher, will delve into the range of opportunities the Italian industry ecosystem has to offer.
Singh, during a separate session, will launch a new venture that aims to expand content creation financing opportunities.
Christopher Woodrow, founder and chairman of Media Capital Technologies (MCT); Celine Dornier, content executive at Finland-U.K. based film investment fund IPR.VC; and Alexandra Lebret, who is a partner in Together Fund that was recently launched in partnership with Paris-based investment firm Axio Capital, will be among participants in a panel titled “Equity and Growth Capital: Investing in Creativity, IP and Long-Term Value.”
“Clearly, there will be funds supporting very high-budget films or series — projects on a massive scale —alongside others that operate within the indie circuit, dedicated to auteur cinema, or more modestly scaled serial productions,” Tridente said.
“We are talking about funds accessible to projects with budgets of €50 million and up, as well as others with lower budgets that are more typical for European cinema and television,” she added.
Teps from 35 European co-production funds will be making the trek to Rome to explain their various national mechanisms. For instance, Spain will be repped by three different funds, “ensuring that those at the table can understand exactly how to access specific tax credits or funding within the Spanish or French systems,” the MIA market chief specified.
The 12th edition of MIA will run Oct. 19-23 in the Eternal City.
