AFM Returns In-Person, But Is It Time to Rethink Its Purpose?

Patrick Frater, Elsa Keslassy and Leo Barraclough
·6 min read

This year’s American Film Market made a comeback as an in-person event after two years off due to Covid, but judging by the Loews Hotel’s empty corridors and the dearth of deals announced, it seemed to be a smaller, quieter affair than May’s Cannes Market.

While participation figures unveiled by the Independent Film & Television Alliance on Wednesday are more than decent — a record 87 countries were represented among 5,866 attendees — the AFM suffered a scarcity of new major project announcements. Other recurring themes included a continuing anxiety about the new realities of the theatrical sector, and the dangers just over the horizon from political and economic factors, such as a looming recession and the war in Ukraine.

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At AFM, 305 companies from 38 countries registered as exhibitors, with the largest number of exhibitors after the U.S. coming from the U.K., followed by Italy, France, Germany and Canada. From Asia, South Korea and Thailand had 17 and eight exhibition companies respectively. Buyers from 68 countries turned up, with the largest bulk coming from the U.S., followed by Germany, the U.K. and Japan, which was the most active contingent from Asia. There were only two buyers from China, and 14 from Russia.

A few brave souls were heard uttering the mantra about film being counter-cyclical or even recession-proof. But those optimistic sentiments don’t fully consider the harsh reality of China being largely absent as buyer, currency movements of anywhere between 10% and 25% that are big enough to endanger dealmaking; and rising interest rates that threaten stagflation in territories such as the U.K.

Few deals were unveiled during the market, which is due to the fact that there were fewer projects shopped, as well as the fact that the pandemic has changed “buying cycles,” as Arianna Bocco, IFC Films president, puts it. “Dealmaking is more constant, it’s not broken into the markets any more, and deals are taking longer to get done — they might not close until a month later,” added Bocco, who also pointed that IFC is in talks for one of two titles out of the AFM. Bocco said she was “on the fence” about the effectiveness of a market like the AFM which she says is not as competitive as Berlin and Sundance even on a normal year.

Bocco admits it was invigorating to be “engaged with colleagues,” but it was also “a lot time, energy and money to travel to Los Angeles.” She also says some projects are “on the expensive side” and “buyers are tightening purse strings,” notably due to the “across-the-board inflation” which is making dealmaking even riskier.

But these problems – and the changes wrought by COVID and streaming – are better worked out by buyers, sellers, financiers and producers meeting face-to-face, rather than on Zoom.

So, the Santa Monica convention, like Cannes before it, served the purpose of bringing the independent and international components of the industry together. The first day was sleepy, but on Thursday (day three of six) there were long queues of visitors seeking short-term passes.

“Even though the Loews was less well attended, it was the first AFM back in person in three years. And just as the industry is reinventing itself, AFM too is going through a period of self-analysis and reinvention – some companies conducting business via remote, others using hotel lobbies and public venues and others still in the offices they’ve been in for years. But where there’s no doubt — people want to gather and conduct business,” said Dylan Leiner, the executive vice president of acquisitions and production at Sony Pictures Classics. “People still want three markets. But the format is changing, as was seen by how few people rented space in the Loews.”

The Loews’ taped-off upper floor corridors, a retreat from the nearby Merigot Hotel and rooms shared by as many as three companies were all visible scars on face of the old order.

Buyers and sellers alike continued to argue that good stories/quality films/premium content (pick your ubitquitous phrase) continue to have a bright future.

“AFM was a great opportunity for us to sell Pawel Pawlikowski’s new film ‘The Island,’ which excited distributors everywhere. We also were able to take the time to go through our upcoming films that will deliver in 2023 so we can prepare for theatrical success alongside our distribution partners,” said Glen Basner, CEO at Filmnation Entertainment. “Though we all face challenges as the world around us evolves – including interest rate increases and currency fluctuation – we left with the impression that our dynamic independent marketplace is prepared for each change and will continue to be a bedrock for the film business.”

Hugo Grumbar, partner at Embankment Films, is equally optimistic. Granted, the company handles some of the rare hot packages launched at the AFM, notably “An Ideal Wife” with Emilia Clarke playing Constance Lloyd, Oscar Wilde’s wife and Irish author. “Distributors are employing a much more targeted approach to their acquisitions, but we are very encouraged by their continued engagement in the knowledge that our titles have recognizable stars and clearly identifiable audiences,” says Grumbar.

Over at Munich-based Global Screen, Klaus Rasmussen, SVP of international sales and acquisitions, points out “AFM is mostly for commercial product that reaches a wide audience.”

Like many European sales banners, Global Screen was shopping many franchise-based family films and animated features. These included “Lasse,” which Rasmussen says worked well with buyers. Meanwhile, Martin Moszkowicz, chairman of Constantin Film, one of Germany’s biggest distribution company, questioned the purpose of the AFM even though he found it to be a “decent market.” “Los Angeles is always a good place to do business. With or without AFM,” says the executive.

Korean executives visited Los Angeles in large numbers, with production executives taking meetings away from the Loews and being sought out for co-productions and remakes possibly outnumbering those in Loews booths hoping for passing trade.

Contents Panda, the sales arm of Next Entertainment World, conducted strong sales on “The Night Owl,” a thriller with an imminent local release. “Horror titles seem to be going well,” sales head Danny Lee said. “And in several cases we are preparing content as both film and TV series, enabling us to talk with both sets of buyers.”

All in all, there’s still room for a straight-up market like the AFM to exist alongside festivals’ industry confabs like Cannes and Berlin’s EFM, but it may need a rethink. An even tighter format sprinkled by more networking and fun events, as well as affordable rates and a different venue could bring a needed sense of excitement and help the AFM thrive in this brave new world for independent film.

Manori Ravindran contributed to this report.

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