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6 months ago
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Berlin’s European Film Market (EFM) has posted a record of number of visitors for its 2024 edition, with more than 12,000 professionals from 143 countries attending this year.
But there was a 3% dip in registered buyers to 1,263, against 1,302 in 2023.
There was talk this year among TV professionals that the scrapping of the festival’s Berlinale Series TV screenings had led to a fall in TV buyers attending the EFM.
However, in response to a question on this rumor, the EFM told Deadline that the number of TV buyers was the same as 2023, without providing exact figures.
There was also a 14% drop in the number of film and series screening in the market, with 664 films and series shown in 728 onsite screenings and 301 online screenings, for a total of 1,029 screenings. There were 536 market premieres.
By comparison, in 2023, 773 films and series were shown in 906 onsite screenings and 647 online screenings, for a total of 1,533 screenings. There were 599 market premieres last year.
The fall follows in the wake of the Hollywood strikes, which drastically reduced production last year, as well as the Berlinale’s trimming of the number of films in its program to 237 this year, from 281 last year.
However, the EFM suggested the drop in films and series getting a physical market screening was due to the greater length of the films this year, which had resulted in fewer slots and that it had not been able to accommodate all booking requests.
Beyond the figures, however, this EFM, which was the first market to take place since the end of the Hollywood strikes, was a buzzy one in terms of projects dropping and deal-making.
The market noted that 660 new film projects had been registered on its Producers & Project Pages offering, which were launched last year to help participants set up meeting as they seek international partners. There were 629 project registrations in the inaugural year.
“From day one, it was apparent that the European Film Market 2024, the first trade fair event of the year, and also the first after last year’s industry strikes in the U.S. was very well-attended and extremely busy,” said outgoing EFM Director Dennis Ruh.
“The market participants’ meeting schedules were filled to capacity. Many high-turnover deals were being reported every day,” he added.
The 2024 EFM marks the final edition for Ruh after five editions at the helm, including a virtual one in 2021 and hybrid version in 2022 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
His successor has yet to be announced.
