Berlin's EFM to screen a record 40 3D films

Berlin’s 2011 European Film Market (EFM) will have more than twice as many 3D films presented in market screenings compared to last year when the EFM introduced a dedicated venue at the Astor Film Lounge.

Speaking exclusively to ScreenDaily, EFM market director Beki Probst [pictured] said that, according to figures collated until last week, screenings were planned for at least 40 3D films compared to 18 in 2010.

Last year had seen such companies as Focus, Fortissimo and Timeless booking screening slots for 3D films at the Astor Film Lounge on Berlin’s Kurfürstendamm shopping boulevard.

Probst explained that there will also be other screening venues at Potsdamer Platz which are equipped for 3D: “We try to accommodate those people with just 3D trailers at Potsdamer Platz so that they don’t have to go the Film Lounge,” she said.

According to Probst, the film industry’s recovery from the economic crisis is still continuing apace.

“For some companies, there is an end of that tunnel because you could see this last year in Berlin and the trend continued in Cannes and Toronto as well as the AFM,” she observed. “At the same time, the Euro, pound and dollar rates are also playing a role. You can’t say that everything is a bed of roses, but there is a drive to carry on because everybody needs films: the cinemas need them and the production companies need to make them.”

“As a film market, we can only reflect what is going on,” Probst said. “I think the big challenge today is adjusting to all of the changes in the market as far as technology is concerned and how people use their free time. We not only have to adapt but also foresee these changes.”

According to the EFM, the market already has 395 exhibitors registered so far from 54 countries, while the number of buyers accredited to date has topped the 1,000 mark at 1,018 from 51 countries (the final figure in 2010 was 1,365).

Moreover, 644 films had been entered by last week for screening at the EFM (compared to 2010’s final total of 666), with the number of market premieres already exceeding 2010’s 517.

This year sees four new countries taking stands at the EFM: Albania (National Centre of Cinematography), Namibia (Namibia Film Commission), Qatar (Doha Film Institute), and the United Arab Emirates (BizTV Network).

Other first time exhibitors in 2011 include Miramax Films, Enterprise Lithuania and the European Development Fund’s new programme for support the audiovisual sector in Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific (ACP).