THE BUSINESS JOURNAL OF FILM, BROADCASTING, BROADBAND, PRODUCTION, DISTRIBUTION September 2023 - VOL. 43 NO. 4B - $9.75 (Continued on Page 10) Lately, everyone is talking about Artificial Intelligence. That’s because AI can morph your voice into someone else’s voice. AI can replace actors with synthetic voices. AI can also generate audio with Text to Speech. And finally, AI can now process a face transformation of the original actor to follow dubbed audio tracks on screen. But what about human emotions? When we speak, and even more when we act, we can produce an infinite number of nuances to express ideas, a little like all the shades of gray between black and white. How many emotions could MIPCOM to Set Tune and Pace for Five Fall Markets Drama at the Oscars: The clash of talent and ideas at awards A dilEmmy: Should the Academy decide program genres? Is the Venice Film Fest too Italian for an int’l competition? My 2¢: Don’t blame Canada if now it’s “politely kicking ass” Page 8 Page 6 Page 4 Page 3 We’re all preparing for a whirlwind fall, with five film/TV markets set to take place over a nine-week period, meaning there will be one event every 12 days or so. It all starts with the Rome, Italy-based MIA Market (October 9-13), followed three days later by MIPCOM in Cannes, France (October 16-19). After that some of the industry’s caravan will be flying to Santa Monica, California, on the shores of the Pacific Ocean, for the AFM (October 31-November 5), and nine days later it’ll head to the beaches of the Atlantic Ocean for MIP Cancun (November 14-17). Finally, 20 days later, some of these same South Africa’s TV Mart Out for Full Acceptance (Continued on Page 12) Dubbing a Culture, Not Just a Language With the second edition of MIP Africa, which is organized by RX Global and is set to take place in Cape Town September 4-6, 2023, the market is slowly inching its way toward the content industry acceptance… something that has, up until now, been hard to come by. “Yes, we are attending MIP (Continued on Page 14) AI reproduce? We could very well see a simplification of the “art” of acting in dubbing due to the AI capacity to reproduce only a few basic emotions. So far, AI is very limited in this field, but as we’ve been seeing in recent months it learns very quickly. But will AI be able to “interpret” a character the same way an experienced INTERNATIONAL www.VideoAge.org THE BUSINESS JOURNAL OF FILM, BROADCASTING, STREAMING, PRODUCTION, DISTRIBUTION September 2023 - VOL. 43 NO. 4B - $9.75
COME VISIT US Booth D26 Booth R7.F12 AMERICAN CINEMA / AMERICAN CINEMA INSPIRES To schedule a meeting, please contact Chevonne O’Shaughnessy at chevonne@aci-americancinema.com
3 September 2023 My 2¢ Canada is having a moment in Hollywood ...We thought we'd have a bit of fun with it. Canadians, tired of being blamed for bringing the cold weather to the U.S., built a series of Hollywood billboards that use cheeky messages to celebrate Canadian filmmakers. A few months ago, a series of billboards were erected near L.A.’s Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue, in the heart of Tinseltown. The billboards were part of a campaign, launched last February to highlight the abundance of Canadian talent in the U.S. entertainment industry. The campaign, called "MADE Better", was sponsored by the Canada Media Fund (CMF) and Telefilm Canada, and was created with the agencies Rethink and Torque Strategies, both from Toronto, and 123w from Vancouver. Playing off Canadians’ reputation for being wellmannered, one of the billboards shared the message that Canadians are “Politely Kicking Ass. (Sorry.)”, while another celebrated some of Canada’s buzziest directors via the message “Need Direction? Look North” with a visual of four directors’ chairs emblazoned with the names of (Denis) Villeneuve, (Sarah) Polley, (James) Cameron, and (Domee) Shi. “Canada is having a moment in Hollywood with so many Canadian storytellers enjoying huge success right now. We thought we’d have a bit of fun with it, and we love that people are sharing the billboards online and it’s generating buzz”, said Valerie Creighton, CEO of CMF. “As proud Canadians, we are reinforcing and celebrating the strength of our talent in the screenbased industry”, added Francesca Accinelli, CEO of Telefilm Canada. “Through the fun and effective placements of these billboards in L.A., we honor our fellow Canadians’ successes and remind our friends down south and around the world that Canadians have good reasons to play cheeky.” Said Mathieu Chantelois, executive vice president of Marketing and Public Affairs, CMF: “MADE Better is about giving us a chance to appreciate the incredible talent we have in this country and feel good about it — maybe even get a goosebump or two.” He then concluded: “Canadians have been calling the shots in Hollywood for a long time and it’s time to spread the word about the outstanding entertainment we create, whether it’s in our country or anywhere in the world.” While some Canadians are cozying up to Hollywood, others are readying for a fight in the nearby (Silicon) Valley. "Canadians will not be bullied by billionaires in the U.S.", said Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on July 5, 2023 following Canadian legislation passed earlier that compelled digital platforms to compensate media outlets for links. On August 1, 2023, Meta Platforms started to block access to news links for Facebook and Instagram users in Canada. This action prompted Canadian Heritage (cultural) Minister Pascale St-Onge to complain since Meta currently faces no legal obligations because regulations have not yet been drafted. For its part, Google reported that it would remove links to Canadian news articles from its search function for Canadian users once Canadian authorities start enforcing the legislation. At the same time the U.S. government criticized Canada's plans to impose a three percent digitalservice tax starting next year. This move would buck a global consensus on restructuring international taxation. Dom Serafini In the U.S., Canada only makes news due to unwelcome winter chills that drift south or when smoke from forest fires blankets U.S. cities for days. Under normal circumstances, Canada is politely ignored in the U.S. But now, Canada is "Politely Kicking Ass." MAIN OFFICES 216 EAST 75TH STREET NEW YORK, NY 10021 TEL: (212) 288-3933 DAILY@VIDEOAGEINTERNATIONAL.COM VIALE ABRUZZI 30 20123 MILAN, ITALY EDITOR-IN-CHIEF DOM SERAFINI EDITORIAL TEAM SARA ALESSI (NY) BILL BRIOUX (CANADA) ENZO CHIARULLO (ITALY) LEAH HOCHBAUM ROSNER (NY) SUSAN HORNIK (L.A.) CAROLINE INTERTAGLIA (FRANCE) OMAR MENDEZ (ARGENTINA) LUIS POLANCO (NY) MIKE REYNOLDS (L.A.) MARIA ZUPPELLO (BRAZIL) PUBLISHER MONICA GORGHETTO BUSINESS OFFICE LEN FINKEL LEGAL OFFICE STEVE SCHIFFMAN WEB MANAGER BRUNO MARRACINO DESIGN/PREPRESS CLAUDIO MATTIONI, CARMINE RASPAOLO © TV TRADE MEDIA INC. 2023 "We no longer laugh at the same Canadian sticoms!"
September 2023 4 ity projects; 3 Biennale College Cinema projects. Reported Pascal Diot, head of Venice Production Bridge: “As of today [early August], we have around 1,500 accredited professionals, but we are forecasting around 2,800-3,000 and among them around 900 producers who are our main target, and around 200 buyers. If we compare these figures with last year, at the same time, we had just around 1,200, which means an increase in attendees.” At the film festival, the Italian director Liliana Cavani and Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Chiu-wai will each receive Golden Lion awards for Lifetime Achievement. There are 23 films in competition at the festival, including Memory from Mexico’s Michel Franco (which will also be shown at TIFF), Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla, and Bradley Cooper’s Maestro. Thirteen films will also be screened but are not in competition. These include Woody Allen’s Coup de Chance, Liliana Cavani’s L’Ordine del Tempo (The Order of Time), and Wes Anderson’s The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar. There are six Italian movies in competition, and these were considered above a fair limit, although they have generated some criticism of nationalism among the international artistic community. In order to accommodate more Italian titles, the number of movies in competition was increased to 23 (up from 19 last year). Even though the Italian films represent 23 percent of the total, the quota is not considered different from the French movies in competition at the Cannes Film Festival, which in May constituted 22.7 percent of films in competition, and 30 percent of “Un Certain Regard,” the section for films with unusual styles and nontraditional stories. The annual Venice International Film Festival is organized by La Biennale di Venezia and directed by Alberto Barbera. Roberto Cicutto is the president of La Biennale, a foundation whose president is appointed by the Italian Cultural Minister. The Board of Directors of La Biennale consists of the president, the mayor of Venice, and three members nominated by the Venetian Region, the Provincial Council, and private backers. The 80th annual Venice International Film Festival will take place in Venice Lido, Italy from August 30 to September 9, 2023. In association with the festival is the Venice Production Bridge, a film market (and conference) that began in 2016 and is housed at the Excelsior Hotel in Lido. There, executives can meet up and make deals from August 30 to September 5. The Bridge hosts the Gap-Financing Market (September 1-3), the Book Adaptation Rights Market (September 1-3), and the Final Cut (September 3-5) for films from Africa and the Middle East that are in post-production. The Venice Gap-Financing Market will present 62 projects from around the world in the final stages of development and funding. Almost 280 applications have been received from around the world and the selection is divided as follows: 34 feature-length Fiction Films and Documentary projects (including four country-focused projects); 14 Virtual Immersive Story projects (including 4 country-focused projects); 11 Biennale College Cinema - Virtual RealIs the Venice Film Festival Too Italian? World (Continued on Page 6) CONNECT + DISCOVER. This is your hotspot. People. Process. Products. Perspective. All in short order at NAB Show New York! Where thousands of just-like-you content economy professionals come for pivotal intel from industry innovators. Hands-on access to the latest tech and tools. Back-by-demand attractions like Cine Live Lab and the Tech Chat Stage. Plus the all-new Photo+Video Lab! Join your crew. Register now. Limited Time Offer Use code MP01 for a FREE Exhibits Pass and 10%* off when you add more than one conference! *Not to be combined with any other offer. NABShowNY.com | #NABSHOWNY OCTOBER 24–26, 2023 JAVITS CENTER | NEW YORK, NY REGISTER TODAY!
MOSTRA INTERNAZIONALE D'ARTE CINEMATOGRAFICA LA BIENNALE Dl VENEZIA 2023 RAI COM and CANAL PLUS present -E LION'S SHARE A documentary by Baptiste Etchegaray and Giuseppe Bucchi 57'-2023 Execuitve producer FlabProd in collaboration wilh RAI CULTURA
September 2023 6 translate into poor reviews and short theatrical windows. One suggestion is for the Emmys to let the studios’ marketing people decide how they want to classify a show. If they did their research, checked their demos, and analyzed their focus groups, they will surely know the right category for a given series. And if they make a mistake and if the Academy members don’t laugh at their comedies, or don’t cry at their dramas, well ...and the Emmy goes to... “Agreed,” said New Yorkbased producer Robert Rose, before adding: “A big impediment to the travel genre growth in the U.S. — which is a massive genre almost everywhere but the U.S. — is the Academy combining nature programming and travel. These two genres may have some similarities (people often travel to experience nature), but they are shot and produced very differently. Many true travel shows focus on urban exploration with a focus on culture and people. It doesn’t make sense to throw them into the same category with big budget nature programming.” Another comment came from Los Angeles-based producer Todd P. Leavitt: “I was president of the Television Academy for a three-year term (starting some 20 years ago). As I understand the situation, there is a default assumption that if a program is shorter than one hour per episode, it will be treated as a ‘comedy.’ Having said that, it was always, as a general rule, up to the producers of a specific series to determine in which category they choose to submit.” He continued: “Thus, The Bear, which is the season’s finest ‘drama,’ was submitted by the production company as a ‘comedy.’ This certainly was motivated by seeking to avoid the significant competition posed by Succession and White Lotus, both of which are inherently dramas. The same rule applies to individual actor categories where the performer will decide which genre to submit in.” Meanwhile, adding to the drama, the 75th annual Emmy Awards show, set to be broadcast on FOX TV network on September 18, has been postponed due to the writers’ and actors’ strikes, and will possibly be rescheduled sometime in January 2024.” Is it drama, comedy, or dramedy? Steve Pond asked this very question in the June 2023 edition of The Wrap as he pondered the tough job facing the powers that be at the Emmys, who are tasked with deciding “where to put shows when the lines between comedy and drama are all but indistinguishable these days.” His solution? “Concede that TV is a giant mess, confusing and glorious, and often not completely unclassifiable. Drama? Comedy? Dramedy? Who cares? Celebrate it all and then throw some golden statuettes into whatever boxes make sense at the moment,” he concluded. Well, let’s ponder this a bit more and recall that this issue is not new. Movie marketing people at the studios wrestled with this problem even before the BBC launched Monty Python’s Flying Circus on television in 1969. To some people it was a comedy, but others found its insipid jokes and sketches to be dramatically sad! In the film business, promoting a movie as one genre when it really falls into another category entirely can spell disaster for its box office. Imagine if a movie were to be promoted as a comedy and the moviegoers came out with tears in their eyes, or it was promoted as a drama and people exited the theater laughing their heads off. In these cases, disappointment would DilEmmy: Should The Academy Decide Genres? World (Continued from Page 4) Africa’s leading film + TV content market HOST CITY BUILT BY PART OF www.mipafrica.com 04-06 September 2023 | CTICC2 Unleash Your Creativity, Connect with Excellence: MIP Africa - Where Content Converges, Networks Flourish, and Deals Take Flight.
8 Sometimes there’s nothing more boring than an awards show. The glitzy parade of who’s the most talented, who’s the prettiest, who’s neither but is well-connected, or who has the greatest marketing budget. Then there’s the awkward performance of bad jokes, the long list of people to acknowledge, the hours of announcing winners, and the number of commercial breaks that makes it seem like there are more advertisers than talent. Then there’s also the fact that awards shows can make one feel like the film and entertainment industries — and we as viewers, in turn — haven’t matured past high school, when (in the U.S.) graduating seniors are given superlatives such as class clown, biggest flirt, and most likely to succeed. Often, as viewers, you’re only watching an awards show for that one moment that will shake you out of your utter boredom, and that one moment is usually when your favorite actress or director or multi-hyphenate talent wins or loses. But awards shows are more than just overblown dog and pony shows. Awards shows are often battlefields for art, politics, and culture, wherein the changing of the guard and the changing ideas in society are on full view, and it is this point that the writer Michael Schulman illustrates in his recent book Oscar Wars: A History of Hollywood in Gold, Sweat, and Tears (608 pgs., Harper, 2023, $40), a doorstopper of the most satisfying conflicts and dramas in the history of the Academy Awards. Schulman is a New York City-based writer who focuses on arts and culture. He’s been a staff writer for The New Yorker since 2006, and his byline appears in several other noteworthy publications. His first book was the best-selling Her Again: Becoming Meryl Streep, a biography of the American actress who has garnered 21 Academy Award nominations. In Oscar Wars, Schulman delves right to the core of why awards shows, but the Oscars specifically, hold so much cultural significance. On one hand, it comes down to a societal fascination with power. Who has power? Who is losing it? Who is powerless? Then there’s also that awards shows like the Oscars embody humankind’s interest in competition. The Oscars are rife with conflict, and as Schulman points out, that conflict is not always between talent and craftspeople, but changing ideas about storytelling: “An aesthetic sea change that sets the tone for a decade might be buried in the screenplay nominations”, writes Schulman. “A political upheaval might be a whisper one year, a roar the next. Like Hollywood’s greatest sagas — Star Wars, The Godfather — the Oscars often play out as a drama of generational conflict, as a new cohort shows up to displace the old.” Oscar Wars shows Schulman’s adept skill in chronicling and synthesizing the shifting cultural tides as exemplified through the history of the Academy Awards. Each chapter looks at a distinct moment of importance in the Academy’s nine-decade-long run, from the very first ceremony held in May 1929 to the present moment, and delves into the backstory and impact on each of these “turning points” in Oscars history and in culture with a capital “C.” The book partly argues that the Oscars are often the site of cultural and ideological conflicts between businessmen, talent, politicians, working people, between races and genders, and it’s interesting how the formation of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the origins of the Academy Awards ceremony reflect Schulman’s point. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio head Louis B. Mayer played a foundational role in the development of the organization. The feelgood version of the Academy’s origins goes something like this. Mayer wanted to build harmony between the film industry’s business executives and its labor unions. At the same time, the rest of the United States looked at Hollywood as a glitzed-up den of iniquity, and the creation of the Academy came as a balm to smooth over that public image and recognize the industry’s morally upstanding talent. Another key figure at the inaugural awards ceremony was the actress Mary Pickford, who took it upon herself to clean up Hollywood’s image despite her adulterous personal dealings with Douglas Fairbanks. Throughout each of the book’s chapters, a whole cast of major and minor characters appear, and it’s here that that the reader can see Schulman’s storyteller flair in characterization and dramatic irony. Oscar Wars presents the “turning points” that are equally as dynamic, dramatic, and well-researched as the first. There’s 1942, when Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane was snubbed. There’s the 1950s, when screenwriters tried to fight the Hollywood blacklist. There’s 1989, when the awards show bombed so badly that it ruined the show producer Allan Carr’s career. Schulman addresses the more contemporary blunders around race and the Academy’s efforts toward diversity and inclusion, which are compellingly detailed in the chapter on the #OscarsSoWhite campaign, and the infamous 2017 Oscars when actress Faye Dunaway incorrectly stated the critic’s darling La La Land as Best Picture instead of the actual winner, Moonlight. As Schulman notes, “The Oscars are a battlefield where cultural forces collide and where the victors aren’t always as clear as the names drawn from the envelopes.” Oscar Wars offers a wide depth of material for the Hollywood aficionado and drama addict to dig into. Schulman has pinpointed moments that feel unexpected, farcical, and occasionally even tragic. Since their inception the Academy Awards have not only celebrated and upheld the talent and craftsmen of award-winning films but have also highlighted conflicts and divisions in society. Oscar Wars has perhaps also reached the essence of why viewers get such a thrill when they hear: “And the Oscar goes to…” Editor’s note: This is one of the many articles that VideoAge has devoted to the Oscars over the years. Examples include The Academy and The Awards (January 2023) and The Oscars Win Big in LATAM. A Love Affair With Showbiz (May 2014). Arts and culture critic Michael Schulman explores key moments from the history of the Academy Awards and discusses how they came to be and their impact on society. Drama at The Oscars: New Book Explores The Clash of Talent and Ideas at Awards Shows September 2023 Book Review By Luis Polanco Awards shows can make one feel like the lm and entertainment industries — and we as viewers — haven’t matured past high school.
LE MÉRIDIEN DELFINA NOW TAKING RESERVATIONS. AFM®23 SANTA MONICA OCT. 31 – NOV. 5 PHOTO: DYLAN PATRICK PHOTOGRAPHY INC AMERICANFILMMARKET.COM
10 September 2023 Road to the Fall Markets (Continued from Cover) executives will reconvene between the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea for Singapore’s ATF (December 6-8). The whole circus-like caravan will involve some 8,000 people, with the highest number reached by the “mother” of all markets: MIPCOM. After that, in descending order, we have estimated (based on last year’s figures) to have ATF with 3,000 people, MIA with about 2,250 participants, MIP Cancun with 1,000, and the AFM with fewer than 900. The overlaps could, at the most, involve an estimated 10 percent of the attendees, as well as 20 percent of the exhibiting companies. Many of the same people and the same companies will participate at most of the events — although probably not all. The industry is expected to invest an estimated $50 million for the five aforementioned markets, with the hope that those markets will spearhead business in the order of $1 billion. Setting the tone for all the fall markets is, of course, MIPCOM, and there are many reasons for this. First, sales executives can follow up on conversations initiated in Cannes, or to reach clients who did not attend MIPCOM (like, for example, many LATAM buyers). Second, people can initiate sales that simply couldn’t happen at MIPCOM or even decide to reduce future market attendance due to MIPCOM overspend or underperformance. It is expected that this upcoming MIPCOM will come close to pre-pandemic years in terms of participation, engagement, and results. As for the quality and quantity of attendees, that can generally be gauged by the topics of its conferences and seminars, which can determine the level of engagement. Bland topics typically translate into a lack of interest on the part of attendees, and recurrent issues covered again means reduced resources. Even though the success of MIPCOM is mostly due to its good market-timed calendar dates, and not for its conferences, MIPCOM was fortunate to have secured the participation of Gerhard Zeiler, president, International Warner Bros. Discovery, as one of its keynote speakers. The TV executive has experience in content acquisition and sales in both Europe and the U.S. An example that links markets’ conference topics with their success could be found in the apparent disinterest that MIPTV organizers had in leveraging the power of the developing new season that unfolds right around April’s MIPTV dates — although this decision was possibly made due to a lack of appeal from top-level TV executives. Either way, as a result, the market wasn’t all that successful. Conversely, the conferences at MIP Cancun were interesting (if poorly attended), and the event was a success. At the Asia TV Forum, on the other hand, the conferences were mostly domestically focused, and indeed the market took on a localized tone. In terms of business expectations, in early August, this 39th annual MIPCOM already boasted 350 exhibitors, as well as 16 countries with national pavilions. In VideoAge’s MIPCOM preview story, scheduled for the October 2023 Issue, the publication’s contributors in New York and Los Angeles will report on a survey of 20 content distribution companies from 10 countries regarding the following topics: Do you expect this year’s MIPCOM to return to the success of its pre-pandemic years? Do you think that the Hollywood strikes will ultimately benefit indies’ sales? Are you satisfied or disappointed about the topics presented at this year’s MIPCOM conferences? What would you rather them cover? What is the main issue that concerns you right now with regard to MIPCOM? Will MIPCOM’s results determine your involvement/presence at other fall markets? Last but not Least... NAB Show New York Not mentioned among the fall markets highlighted in the adjacent article is another TV trade show — but one that focuses on hardware, The NAB Show New York. But, that doesn’t mean that the show isn’t a factor in the big trade show picture. Indeed, it is especially important this year since it doesn’t conflict directly with MIPCOM as it did last year (when NAB started on October 19, right in the middle of MIPCOM, which was held October 1720, 2022). Organized by the Washington-based National Association of Broadcasters, the market and conference is taking place October 24-26, 2023, at New York City’s Javits Center, with the exhibition starting on October 25 — five days after MIPCOM and five days before the AFM. Last year’s NAB New York was attended by some 9,500 film and television executives from around the world, and featured 245 exhibiting companies. Even though there aren’t many overlaps among exhibiting companies, many of NAB’s conference topics will be the same as at panels during content markets, such as streaming issues, linear television woes, AI, and data collection. New this year at NAB will be a workshop on career development. Led by industry expert Evan Shapiro, the full-day SkillUP workshop — scheduled for October 24 — will teach how to pivot into new opportunities and transform careers into thriving businesses. Oddly, as per mid-August, the hot topic of the dual Hollywood strikes hadn’t yet come up on any of the show’s program websites. It’s possible that the topic is simply too “hot” to handle for both the organizers and the potential panelists. Warner Bros. Discovery’s Gerhard Zeiler will deliver the opening keynote address at MIPCOM in Cannes.
14-17 November 2023 Moon Palace Resort Hotel, Cancun, Mexico The TV Market that will put you face-to-face with LATAM & US Hispanic executives thanks to its 1-to-1 pre-scheduled meetings format. The #1 Content and Co-Production Market for Latin America and US Hispanic Television MIPCANCUN® is a registred trademark of RX France - All rights reserved
12 Africa this year”, said one British content distributor. “But we are just dipping our toes in the water.” Another U.K. participant had this to say: “The organizers are overstating things — we have one person going.” One South African TV operator was even more succinct: “It is unlikely that I will attend.” The issues facing the market are varied. Some TV executives think that one of its major problems has to do with its calendar dates, September 4-6, meaning it’s taking place a few days later than it did last year (August 2426, 2022), although it’s still at the end of the region’s winter season. However, the bottom line has more to do with the amount of business expected to be done there. One Sales executive with vast experience on the African Continent explained to VideoAge that MIP Africa doesn’t attract buyers from outside the region, and that the domestic market is very small for independent distributors, who, our source revealed, “are lucky to get offers for U.S.$200 per hour. And the risk of piracy is high.” The U.S. is a case in point. Even though there are seven channels in the U.S. that are fully programmed with content aimed at attracting African diaspora viewers, they do not acquire programs from Africa. But this is said to be caused by the Africans themselves because they are still not yet capable of adequately promoting their content. Nonetheless, there are some past attendees who are fully committed to the South African market and hope to repeat the positive experience this year. Last year, Chevonne O’Shaughnessy (pictured at her stand at top right), president of the Van Nuys, California-based American Cinema International (ACI), reported: “The market was great for both Billy Dundee of African Entertainment and ACI. Billy and I produced A Royal Surprise, our first movie in South Africa and diversity that is unique to the region’s cinematic artistry. Lyse Nsengiyumva, who’s originally from Rwanda and based in Belgium, steps into the role of the FAME Film Shorts Festival Program director. She is known for curating film programs that take place at art and cultural spaces in various cities across Europe. “The FAME Film Shorts Festival celebrates and elevates African filmmakers and their thought-provoking cinematic creations”, she said. “As an alumnus of the first edition of the Southern Africa-Locarno Industry Academy, I’m honored to be part of this program again, this time around as a program director. I will be working closely with a team of nine women film professionals to curate a balanced program that will captivate and inspire audiences, innovating from the first year, and putting African curators at the forefront of the selection process.” The Locarno Industry Academy, part of the Locarno (Switzerland) Film Festival, is a workshop for young professionals working in international sales, marketing, traditional and online distribution, exhibition, and film programming. Cape Town-based Realness Institute, known for nurturing professional African screen talent, played a vital role in the festival’s selection process. Through its Southern Africa-Locarno Industry Academy 2023, participants and FAME Film Shorts Festival judges, they ensured a process and selection that captures the complex realities faced across the continent. “After eight years of sourcing talent through our labs, with a strong focus on discovery, we believe Realness Institute is well appointed to present this showcase of stories”, commented Elias Ribeiro, Program director and Locarnoappointed Southern Africa manager, “We wanted to spotlight fresh and untapped narratives, with all 31 films coming from Africa and the diaspora, for a Cape Town audience, and could not be more proud of our collaboration with Lyse Nsengiyumva on the program.” last year. We did not [pre-sell it]. We just financed it and we got lucky that the movie sold to the BET network in the U.S. And now BET wants two more movies with the same cast as a continuation of the story. Billy and I saw different production companies [at MIP Africa], as well as talked with the major channels in South Africa to buy some of their content for our U.S. platforms. We were very busy with very good meetings.” As of early August 2023, MIP Africa organizers reported a total of 289 participating companies, of which 59 are buying enterprises, 66 are distribution companies, and 92 are production entities. With some 30 companies, Canada represents the largest group among foreign participants, followed by the U.S. (with 23 companies), the U.K. with 10, and Turkey with seven. Last year, there were four elements that were blamed for the market’s poor showing. This year, some of these issues have been addressed by organizers. First, the market focused too much on Africa-centric exhibitors. Indeed, of the 40 exhibitors at MIP Africa, three content sales companies were from the U.S., and five were from Europe. This time around, the 66 selling companies hail from a variety of countries, including Mexico and the Philippines. Second, the organizers tried to cram too many parallel and sideline events into its FAME Week, which caused the market to lose some of its focus. Unfortunately, this “dilution” still persists this year. Third, the event was too reliant on the presence of executives from streamers, which don’t traditionally sell their content, and usually only exhibit as a promotional tool. This year, there is a better mix of linear and streaming TV outlets that are participating. And finally, there were the dates, August 24-26. This period was a low season for the southern hemisphere and it is therefore not all that appealing for foreign visitors, especially when many would-be participants would rather have taken their summer vacations then. However, this year’s market inches into September, meaning better weather. Then there was the criticism that Cape Town was too expensive a destination for buyers. This year, the lower exchange rate with the local currency (U.S.$10 for 187 Rands, versus 140 in 2022) has solved the issue. Nonetheless, the African filmmaking community is looking forward to the FAME Film Shorts Festival, an addition to FAME Week Africa 2023. The event is also organized by RX Africa, is open to the public, and is dedicated to celebrating the innovation, creativity, and exceptional talent of independent filmmakers from across the continent. The aim is to discover and connect these filmmakers to the international film industry. The FAME Film Shorts Festival takes place from September 7-9. The Labia, Cape Town’s oldest independent art-repertory movie theater in South Africa, will showcase short films from a selection of African filmmakers. The festival will feature 31 films from across Africa and the continent’s diaspora that reflect the creativity MIP Africa Preview (Continued from Cover) September 2023 American Cinema International is among the U.S. exhibitors returning to this year’s market.
MAXIMISE YOUR SAVINGS REGISTER BY 31 AUG to enjoy over 35% OFF on your all-access pass (Early Bird Rate: SGD885 / ~ USD660) REGISTER NOW 5 Dec 2023 | The ATF Leaders Dialogue 6 – 8 Dec 2023 | Market & Conference MARINA BAY SANDS, SINGAPORE www.asiatvforum.com
September 2023 14 AI and Culture AI can also generate text, which is part of the growing fear of all the writers striking in Hollywood. This time around, the strike is not only about salary raises, but also about the use of AI to generate text that could replace writers’ work. The writers’ dispute is about not using AI and not training AI with their previous scripts. This is the most important point in all of these discussions as AI only exists because we are feeding it with millions of scripts, voices, pictures, etc. The image, but also the voice, is part of an actor’s likeness, and no one can use it without his consent. Just as writers don’t want their scripts to be used to train AI engines, actors don’t want AI to reproduce their voices. This could result in less work for them, so it makes sense that they wouldn’t give the rights to use their voices (for a variable amount of money depending on a given actor’s notoriety). Their voices would be recognizable in the case of morphing, or not if they become a component of synthetic voices. The main issue is that there is no regulation on this matter and the U.S. government is seriously considering creating new rules as many already exist in the dubbing field globally. At the same time, United Voice Artists, a worldwide group of voice acting guilds, associations, and unions, is officially calling on the European Union to address “the need to adjust the protection of artists’ rights and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR rules), with the development of AI technologies in Europe.” If rates for a dubbing actor are set in most dubbing countries, why don’t we have rates for actors who choose to give their voices to train AI? In the TTS or morphing cases, it will be easy to recognize the source, but in the case of synthetic voices, which are generated from a huge database of voices, who will own the rights if no one can identify the different components of these new voices? This will be a real challenge for all legal teams worldwide. In conclusion, will AI become more human than humans? We don’t know what new applications will be discovered using AI, but we can say that AI will be part of our lives in the future and we won’t be able to change that. AI will certainly progress on all the points above, but it cannot be seen only as a threat to the dubbing community. In fact, we all hope that it could be a great teacher and a great help for the new generations to enter into the wonderful world of dubbing! (Continued from Cover) actor does? Some voice actors are able to add a personal touch in their interpretation and follow the director’s intent at the same time. As I like to say, we don’t dub to a language, we dub to a culture. So should we rely on AI to adapt dubbed dialogue to a culture? Or is this a domain where the human feeling is still very important to avoid a systematic approach that could also be predictable? If you watch the same theater play but performed by different actors, each performance will vary as each actor will add his or her personal touch while staying true to the text. This is probably where human versus AI differs the most. The emergence of streaming platforms created a bottleneck in the distribution process. Timelines became shorter and more content therefore needs to be dubbed each and every day. The same way Machine Translation didn’t jeopardize the human translation business — even though everyone was sure of the opposite at the time — AI will probably not put the human dubbing business at risk. AI should be seen as a great opportunity to do what humans have difficulty doing: dubbing a lot of content very fast. Text To Speech (TTS) could be used to do many projects (like e-learning and documentaries) while actors could concentrate on projects where all the nuances of different emotions would be needed to convey all the attitudes of the original actors. Additionally, with voice morphing, a small pool of actors could dub more characters as their voices could be changed after their recording. Is this a threat for all actors? It could be, but not necessarily, as the demand for new actors is simultaneously growing very fast. The best actors — and this is currently the case as a small group is doing the majority of the work — will be able to concentrate on the acting and AI will be able to change their voices in such a way that they will not be recognized. Each time a new tool is introduced, the reaction is usually that of suspicion. This is exactly what happened with the digital revolution, when the CD replaced vinyl, when recording was done with a computer instead of using tape, or more recently, with the digital “rythmo” band used in markets other than France, where many actors didn’t want to abandon their beloved paper scripts during the recording. In all these examples, the new technology gained an important place in new processes. So, instead of fearing that AI will replace actors in the dubbing process, we should wonder what will AI be able to do for the dubbing industry? What tasks will AI be doing in order to dub faster while keeping human actors, directors, and writers involved in the most creative steps of the process? First, AI could be a great teacher. In emerging countries where our company recently started to dub, including Kenya, Vietnam, and Morocco, AI can create an interest in the dubbing business for a young generation. Then, AI could be a great quality control expert with all the reference models it has available. On the same topic, AI can now generate pictures in the style of known painters; could it be able to generate speech in the style of famous actors? What tasks will AI be doing in order to dub faster while keeping human actors, directors, and writers involved in the most creative steps of the process? *Jacques Barreau is considered the Dean of Dubbing and he’s vice president of Barcelona, Spain-based Media & Interactive Entertainment, a division of New York Cityheadquartered TransPerfect Media.
September 2023 Event Planner 15 Protest Letter Sent to E.U. Airline Regulators It might not have come to your attention, so I need to let you know that some of Iberia Airlines’ flights ought to be declared illegal. I’m referring in particular to flight IB 3251, which, on June 26, 2023, flew from Milano-Linate, Italy to Madrid, Spain. On that aircraft the distance between the end of the seat that I sat in and the back of the seat in front of it measured just 23.7 centimeters in the economy cabin. Now, you surely understand that a normal person cannot comfortably fit in that space, and indeed, I had to place my bent legs outside the seat, in the aisle. I am a frequent flyer (one million miles plus with Delta alone) and I can assure you that I have never, ever seen such narrow seats before. It is a shame that E.U. regulators would allow such terrible abuse of consumers. VENICE FILM FESTIVAL August 30-September 9 Venice, Italy Tel: (39) 041 521 8718 www.labiennale.org MIP AFRICA September 4-6 Cape Town, South Africa Tel: (27) 010 496 3500 www.mipafrica.com MIA MARKET October 9-13 Rome, Italy Tel: (39) 331 838 5205 www.miamarket.it MIPJUNIOR & MIPCOM October 14-19 Cannes, France Tel: (33) 7 7769 3496 www.mipcom.com NAB SHOW NY October 24-26 New York, NY Tel: (202) 595-1953 www.nabshow.com AFM October 31-November 5 Santa Monica, CA Tel: (310) 446-1020 www.americanfilmmarket.com MIP CANCUN November 14-17 Cancun, Mexico Tel: (33) 7 7769 3496 www.mipcancun.com Recognized standard of quality in Audio Description Descriptive Video Works is committed to providing access to all forms of visual media With more than 40,000 television shows, feature films and LIVE shows completed, you can rely on us to deliver your project on budget and on time. Our technical expertise guarantees a top quality product - a commitment we’ve made to our clients for more than 17 years. Request a Quote info@descriptivevideoworks.com descriptivevideoworks.com
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTI4OTA5