MIA Unveils Co-Pro Market & Pitching Forum Selection

The sixth edition of the MIA—International Audiovisual Market, which is set to take place next month in Rome, has revealed the 50 titles selected for the co-production and pitching forum.

The drama pitching forum will present a lineup of 15 projects from 11 countries and divided into four different categories. Among the titles in the drama series category is the French series Lafayette, a costume drama set during the American Revolution, produced by Wild Horses. There’s also Miss Fallaci Takes America, Cult, King of Fortune and Courtesans, created by Anya Camilleri.

In the new categories that include miniseries and films conceived for TV and digital platforms are Kill, a dark comedy created and written by Barry Devlin, and the film Strecaperdas (Steamrollers). This year the short-forms will also enter the selection, with the animated sitcom Karetabla and Fabula, co-production between Italy and Germany. The ViacomCBS International Studios Award will be assigned by a panel of experts to the best project submitted at the Drama Pitching Forum 2020.

MIA Drama is also unveiling an agreement with IDM Film Fund & Commission to present the three finalists of RACCONTI | Script Lab, a laboratory dedicated to serial writing. Further, MIA Drama will co-organize with APA (Audiovisual Producers Association) and Pact (Producers Alliance for Cinema and Television-the industry association of British independent producers) a bilateral session to facilitate the exchange between the television producers (both scripted and unscripted) of the two countries.

The Producer’s Keyone, organized by the MIA|Drama section, will feature a series of exclusive interviews with international execs in the industry, streamed on the MIA digital platform and live at the Palazzo Barberini venue. The first meeting will be with Michael Ellenberg, founder and CEO of Media Res. The second appointment of The Producer’s Keynote series will be with Stephen Cornwell, co-founder and co-CEO of The Ink Factory, with his brother Simon.

The official selection of the Doc Pitching Forum this year includes 19 projects, which will compete for the NAT GEO Award for the third consecutive year. The titles in the Feature Doc category include Amate Sponde, produced by Leonardo Baraldi; and La Grande Opera, produced by Muud Film. The Docuseries category includes Homo Cyborg—Il Futuro del Genere Umano and Barca Nostra—The Boat Beyond the Sea, produced by Road Movies. The One-Off category for classic 52-minute television documentaries includes Cinecittà—La Fabrique del l’Histoire from Temps Noir.

Half of the 16 projects of the MIA|Film Co-Production market, from 14 countries, are by female directors. In addition to the international selection, this year the MIA|Film Co-Production Market, presents “WANNA TASTE IT?”, a new section dedicated exclusively to Italian film projects in development and a launch and growth platform for the Italian industry and talent. Also confirmed for the 2020 edition, the Eurimages Co-Production Development Award: the Council of Europe Fund, recognizing Rome as one of the most effective European co-production markets, will award a prize of 20,000 euros for the development of the project that best meets the collaboration and co-production criteria that inspire Eurimages. This year, MIA is also presenting the ARTE Kino International Prize, a prize of 6,000 euros. The MIA|Film division will host three “taught” sessions for discussion and reasoning as well.

The sixth edition of the MIA—International Audiovisual Market will take place from October 14 to 18 in Rome, in its traditional location at Palazzo Barberini. The on-site activities will be complemented by online events on the MIA DIGITAL platform.