With Cannes approaching, UK sellers report good business from buyers who generally respond to projects, a very clear proposition.
“If you’re clear about the right actor, the right director, the right pitch, and what genre it is and it doesn’t fall between the cracks, there’s a lot of activity,” said Sarah Lebutci, senior vice president of photo sales and distribution for the main character.
KaleIdoscope CEO Spencer Pollard reported on his robust activity in the documentary A Strange Journey: A Story oF Rocky Horror.
“It was a title that attracted a lot of attention because it aims firmly at a particular audience and buyer, the public knows, and often loves IP,” he said.
Buyers from Germany and Eastern Europe were particularly active, but the US remained a challenge with the disappearance of PAY-1 transactions. There was also a recession in the French buyers, which offer ambitious minimum guarantees, amid uncertainty about the impact of reducing investments from Canal+.
“Everyone in the world wants more Pay-1 windows and buyers to open, and we must believe that those opportunities will become useful again as the year progresses,” Pollard said.
Horror is still a safe bet. “Genre films can be made at (rational) prices, so there’s no big burden on the cost,” said Zygi Kamasa, founder and CEO of True Brit, a UK distributor whose horror is a key target this year.
“We were very active. We got two British films. Rejoice Restart Creep, Creep. Horror is a great theatre business. People still want to go to the cinemas in groups to watch the horror. British horror has been underserved these days. There is a fair number of British horrors in our slate. ”
Horror remains the bedrock genre, but the easing of saturation seen in the last few major markets was clear. “There was a lot of fear in the market, but buyers said it was probably a little less than Berlin and AFM, and it was very scary,” said the main character, Lebutsch. “There was still a lot to avoid, but overall it might be a bit less focused.”
Overall slowness in the market was detected as knock-on from the high prices sought in negotiations like Lions Gate Hunger Games: Sunrise of the Reaperg and rider and Drama For A24. As buyers sat closely and saw what would happen with expensive projects, British sellers were waiting on the wings with projects in budget range.
There were also signs that Russia, previously an active territory for British sellers, opened up the opportunity for Russian films to be officially distributed, as Hollywood films could be officially distributed under President Donald Trump, perhaps since the breakout of the war with Ukraine in 2022.
(tagstotranslate)Cannes
