The comings and goings of familiar faces dominated the agenda as the market bid farewell to a beloved friend.

If the imminent closure of Focus Features International came as little surprise, the confirmation on the first day by parent company Universal still packed a punch.

Alison Thompson and her team have spent the market attending to outstanding business with partners while Sierra/Affinity, a potential sales agent of choice for the Focus slate going forward, took over Somnia and Oculus.

Elsewhere, an over-reliance on famous faces caused problems. Sales agents bemoaned the challenge of finding packages with the tiny pool of headline talent acceptable to buyers, at the expense of more affordable newcomers.

Johnny Depp has lost none of his lustre. The upcoming adventure Mortdecai was one of several new titles on Lionsgate International’s prestige slate alongside Gods Of Egypt and the Point Break reimaging. All had sold out by Saturday.

Patrick Wachsberger also screened footage from Wally Pfister’s sci-fi epic Transcendence. “For us it’s been absolutely fantastic,” he said of the AFM.

Other must-haves in a market short on them were QED International’s Yakuza thriller The Outsider starring Tom Hardy, Corsan’s Expiration with Bruce Willis, HanWay’s Brooklyn and IFT’s Your Voice In My Head.

Good Universe’s Rocketman – reportedly carrying a $15m UK price tag – and Embankment’s Boychoir were also hot sellers. Talent attachments Elton John, Hardy and Dustin Hoffman were among a celebrity coterie that swung into Santa Monica to meet buyers.

Don Cheadle (pictured) talked up his Miles Davis biopic Kill The Trumpet Player for IM Global and Russell Crowe enthused about directorial debut The Water Diviner for Mister Smith.

Also drawing heat were Nu Image’s London Has Fallen, IM Global’s Autobahn, Sierra/Affinity’s The Age Of Adaline and 1:30 Train, Exclusive Media’s Passengers and Shomer, Foresight Unlimited’s Spinning Gold, Radiant Films International’s Wild and StudioCanal’s Stephen Frears Cycling project.

Cinema Management Group reported plenty of interest in Plastic and Saving Santa, The Exchange was fielding offers on The Last 5 Years and buyers continued to circle Inception Film Partners’ comedy Eisner, which marks the reunion of Andrew Bergman and longtime producer Mike Lobell and will star Robin Williams, Isla Fisher, Sienna Miller and Shirley MacLaine.

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