Z365" or "Festival all year round" is the new strategic point of the Festival in which converge investigation, accompaniment and development of new talents (Ikusmira Berriak, Nest); training and cinematic knowledge transfer (Elías Querejeta Zine Eskola, Zinemaldia + Plus, Filmmakers' dialogue); and investigation, disclosure and cinematic thought (Z70 project, Thought and Discussion and Research and publications).
Ten projects were pitched to five broadcasters (TVE, Canal+Plus Spain, Arte, TV3 and ETB) and a distributor (Notro Films) at the 4th Trans-Pyrenean Co-Production Forum, Thursday.
Mario Real, head of fiction at TVE, outlined three presales categories for feature films - event pictures (“A”), modest box-office hits (“B”) and festival-orientated fare (“C”).
Basque pubcaster ETB and Catalan state TV TV3 showed considerable interest in two Basque-Catalan productions, “Ezinezko maletak” - a feelgood “Irish-style” comedy - and “Zorion perfektua”- a love story haunted by a 1987 ETA terrorist attack.
General interest was expressed in Mexican production “Vagar entre sombras”, about a Basque exile returning from Mexico after 30 years, and in the four-country co-production “The Breach”, a stylish $4.4 million thriller about a female undercover cop harboring an ETA terrorist in San Sebastian.
French production “Nomads”, set in Morocco, generated script requests from Arte and Notro Films.
Between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. there was a networking cocktail and in the afternoon, five documentary projects were pitched - two from the Basque country, another duo from Catalonia and one from France.
M.D.