Palms Resort Among Las Vegas & Los Angeles Venues Under Consideration For AFM

Andreas Wiseman
·2 min read

EXCLUSIVE: The Palms Casino Resort is one of the Las Vegas venues being considered by IFTA for this year’s American Film Market.

Less than a mile from Interstate 15, the upscale hotel and casino near the Vegas Strip includes 700 rooms, a movie theater (which has hosted several film premieres), bars, indoor and outdoor pools, exercise rooms, a music venue (the Pearl Concert Theater) and a recording studio. Between 1999-2009 the resort hosted the film festival CineVegas.

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Within the resort is the multiplex venue Brenden Theaters, comprising multiple screening rooms.

We’re told by sources close to AFM organizer IFTA (Independent Film and Television Alliance) that the Palms is one of a handful of options still being explored among locations in Las Vegas and Los Angeles, including last year’s venue, the Delfina in Santa Monica.

This year’s event is confirmed to take place November 5-10. We’re told a decision should come in the next two weeks. San Diego and Miami are off the table.

AFM’s location has been a talking point for years. IFTA has been on a fact-finding mission in recent months speaking to industry and gathering information about potential new venues. The event moved away from longtime Santa Monica home The Loews last year, but the Delfina location was beset with issues.

Most of the Europeans we’ve spoken to in recent weeks prefer the idea of an AFM in Los Angeles, so they can combine the trip with other meetings around town. A number of the Americans we’ve spoken to prefer the idea of Las Vegas to Los Angeles.

The AFM sees hundreds of U.S. and international film and TV companies gather for multiple days of deal-making, screenings, industry panels and meetings.

IFTA declined to comment.

Palms Casino Resort

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