IFP Announces Program for Screen Forward: IFP Conference 2015
by Erik Luers on September 3, 2015
Tickets now available to the public for the fall’s leading conference on the convergence of film, television and media-making
September 3, 2015 (Brooklyn, NY) – The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP) announced today the full program for its premier gathering, Screen Forward: IFP Conference, running September 20-25, at Lincoln Center in New York City. The lineup for IFP’s largest annual event includes workshops, case studies and discussions with some of the biggest names and media organizations from all across the creative content community, as well as opportunities for aspiring artists to meet directly in small group meetings with executives, funders and innovators who can move their projects and careers forward. Open to the public, the Conference provides film and media fans with access to panels with filmmakers and industry leaders reflecting the major trends of the entertainment industry.
“Screen Forward: IFP Conference is a prime opportunity for filmmakers to collaborate on ideas,” said Joana Vicente, Executive Director of IFP. “It is the place where aspiring artists meet established filmmakers, where new discoveries are uncovered and seasoned experts learn from emerging talent, inspiring a more creative, more sustainable industry. It is a must-attend event for filmmakers or anyone interested in the art or business of filmed content.”
Attendees will have the chance to interact with representatives from nearly every facet of the industry, from major film societies, festivals, distributors, studios, TV/cable networks, media companies and financiers, to individual directors, producers, cinematographers, artists and creators.
Topics will be reflective of the hottest issues facing the media industry today, such as resourcing, crowd-funding, VR, branding, web series, non-fiction storytelling, streaming content, diversity and the future of theatrical distribution.
Highlights of the 2015 Independent Film Conference include:
*Industry Talks, featuring candid discussions with prolific filmmakers, including writers/comedians David Wain and Michael Ian Black, who recently brought their cult classic WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER into the digital age via Netflix; Jon Kamen, co-founder of @radical.media (THE FOG OF WAR, “Mad Men,” “Concert for George”); producer Christine Vachon, celebrating 20 years of projects at Killer Films, including Todd Haynes’ festival sensation CAROL; and Michael Barker, president and co-founder of Sony Pictures Classics, whose slate last year included award-winning films STILL ALICE, FOXCATCHER and WHIPLASH.
*Each day of the conference will conclude with the In Conversation Series with thoughtful leaders who champion unconventional stories by boundary-pushing artists. Participants include producer Julie Goldman, Motto Pictures (BUCK, GOD LOVES UGANDA) moderated by Nancy Abraham, Senior Vice President, HBO Documentary Films; Greg Clayman, General Manager of Audience Networks, Vimeo, moderated by Laura Lee, President of Margaritaville Media; and veteran producer Mike S. Ryan (THE COMEDY, JUNEBUG).
*“Who Needs the Boys Club?” a discussion on inequality and the misperceptions of women in the entertainment industry, featuring director Mary Harron (AMERICAN PSYCHO) and key executives from HBO, Film Independent and Gamechanger Films
*Case studies on two of the year’s successful breakouts, David Robert Mitchell’s IT FOLLOWS and Crystal Moselle’s THE WOLFPACK
*Blitz Presentations by emerging artists such as Harlem street photographer Khalik Allah, director of the KhalikoVision exhibition, and Dylan Marron, creator of the blog “Every Single Word,” which has garnered attention for shining a light on the lack of diversity in Hollywood films
*Insightful discussions on acquisitions and theatrical/digital releases with leading distributors, including Amplify, A&E Documentaries, Bleecker Street, Broad Green Pictures, HBO, The Orchard and Oscilloscope Laboratories and more!
*Screenings & Readings of new work:
- New Voices! Narrative Feature & Web Series Reading, presenting live performances of screenplays from RBC’s Emerging Storytellers program;
- An IFP/Rooftop Films outdoor screening of new work at Elevated Acres. This party and screening on Wednesday, September 23rd is open to the public and presented in partnership with the Time Warner Foundation. The screening features excerpts from 20 new films from emerging talent of the 2015 IFP Labs, the nation’s only program that supports diverse feature filmmakers when they need it most: through the completion, marketing and distribution of their first features. Screenings will be preceded by live music and followed by filmmaker Q&As.
- *Secret Film Club, an exclusive screening for passholders to see one of the year’s most talked about films yet to be released
*Meet the Decision Makers: roundtable sessions with experts in sales, distribution, festivals, financing and resourcing. Participants include reps from Above Average, Chicken & Egg, Conde Naste, DOC NYC, Dogfish Pictures, Film Independent, Fandor, Impact Partners, Indiegogo, Kickstarter, Nantucket Film Festival, New York Television Festival, Paradigm, Preferred Content, Seed&Spark, SeriesFest, SlamDance and many more.
IFP Conference: Screen Forward runs in conjunction with the previously announced Project Forum, a meetings-driven forum connecting filmmakers to key industry executives interested in projects at the development, financing or distribution stages. Both events are part of Independent Film Week, a staple of the New York independent film scene. Past IFP alumni include Laura Poitras (CITIZENFOUR), Dee Rees (PARIAH) Gillian Robespierre (OBVIOUS CHILD) and Benh Zeitlin (BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD).
For a full schedule of events or to purchase tickets, visit www.ifp.org/conferences/filmmaker-conference/schedule/#.VeRtac6Z78l
2015 SPONSORS
Independent Film Week’s Premier sponsors are Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and HBO. Gold sponsors are A&E IndieFilms and SAGIndie. Silver sponsors are Durga Entertainment, Indiegogo, Kodak, National Film & Video Foundation of South Africa, Phosphate Productions, Shutterstock and Telefilm Canada. Independent Film Week is supported, in part, by funds provided by the Ford Foundation, Heineman Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council on the Arts and TimeWarner Foundation.
ABOUT IFP
The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP) champions the future of storytelling by connecting artists with essential resources at all stages of development and distribution. The organization fosters a vibrant and sustainable independent storytelling community through its year-round programs, which include Independent Film Week, Filmmaker Magazine, the Gotham Independent Film Awards, and the Made in NY Media Center by IFP, a new incubator space developed with the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment. IFP represents a growing network of 10,000 storytellers around the world and plays a key role in developing 350 new feature and documentary works each year. During its 35-year-history, IFP has supported over 8,000 projects and offered resources to more than 20,000 filmmakers,.
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