The Saint Petersburg International Media Forum (SPIMF) will be held from October 1^st to October 10^th, 2014.

The Forum is organized by ROSKINO and supported by the Government of St. Petersburg under the personal patronage of the Acting Governor, Georgy Poltavchenko, with the participation of the National Media Group holding, Petromir LLC, and Aeroflot Russian Airlines.

SPIMF is a cross-platform cultural initiative aimed at promoting a synergy of professionals and the general public while creating a communal meeting place for representatives of the film and TV industries and also leading new media start-ups. An international content market for media business representatives and a film and tv screenings for the general public will take place under the umbrella of the Forum.

Georgy Poltavchenko, Acting Governor of Saint Petersburg:

St. Petersburg is well known to the business community as the traditional venue for the Economic Forum. I am thrilled to welcome the leaders of the international media industry to our city, which we hope will become an important venue for business development and interaction. The Media Forum has prepared an exceptional program of film and TV premieres for the citizens of Saint Petersburg and we are delighted that the historical building of the Stock Exchange, originally meant for fostering business ties and holding negotiations, will become the event’s main venue. I have no doubt that the expertise of the organizers, combined with the support of the city, will guarantee the success of the initiative.

The aim of the Media Forum is to establish St. Petersburg as an international location for the development of the film, TV and digital content industries. The Forum offers an opportunity for stimulating commercial interaction to its participants as well as an intensive program including panels, master classes from leading world and Russian specialists, creative laboratories for young filmmakers and a diversified, vibrant film program for the public. The SPIMF format, devised by ROSKINO, is largely based on the concept of the TIFF, one of the most high-profile film events in the world, which combines an exciting market with out-of-competition public screenings. 

The festival line-up of the Media Forum features 50 premieres in 10 programs created by renowned curators. The films will be judged by three independent boards: a jury of bloggers, a jury of the press and a jury of the public.

Katya Mtsitouridze, ROSKINO CEO, concept developer and SPIMF general producer:

The whole idea of the Media Forum is to establish an exciting entertainment industry venue in Saint Petersburg. We went to great lengths in order to achieve our goal, devising a cross-platform concept, inviting the participants well in advance, preparing a list of films and panel discussion topics, picking out an appropriate location for the film market, and many other things. But no one could foresee that the Forum would acquire an additional significance. The political climate should affect neither the professionals that create films, TV or digital content nor the public that such productions are meant for. Culture represents a bridge that unites nations and people of good will and is especially relevant in one of the most beautiful cities of the world, one in which bridges are drawn every night. In due time, an annual Forum will allow St. Petersburg to establish itself as an internationally in-demand area for the entertainment industry.

The Advisory Board of the Media Forum has enlisted a number of leading world industry professionals such as the EFM President Beki Probst, the media entrepreneur Jay Penske (owner of the iconic magazine Variety), director, producer and Lenfilm Studio Head Fedor Bondarchuk, Co-Chairman of the Film and TV Producers Association Alexander Akopov, the State Hermitage Museum Director Mikhail Piotrovsky and other experts. The Board is headed by the Acting Governor of St. Petersburg, Georgy Poltavchenko.

Over 1200 media industry professionals - producers, directors, distributors and sales agents representing leading companies from Europe, Asia, North America, and the BRICS countries - will participate in the SPIMF agenda.

Film and TV industry will be showcased by the projects and representatives of major companies such as Warner Bros, Disney, Fox, CBS, Showtime, HBO, Starz, Sony, Fremantle, Lionsgate and Endemol.

Digital technologies will be showcased by Netflix, Hulu, Film London, Tribeca Film Festival, TFI New Media Fund, ViceMedia, Power to the Pixel and PopUp Cinema, and the list of their Russian counterparts includes Rambler&Co, VKontakte, Ivi.ru and Amediateka. 

The international press has taken a keen interest in the Media Forum. The list of the SPIMF-accredited journalists includes correspondents from leading industry publications such as Variety, THR, Screen International and a number of other print and digital outlets.

DDA, a leading British film, television and entertainment PR consultancy, is handling international promotion and PR for the Forum.

Vadim Zingman, Aeroflot Russian Airlines Deputy CEO for Work with Clients:

The St. Petersburg Media Forum is just starting out but I am sure that it will become one of the most important events for the Russian and world media industries. We are proud of our partnership with ROSKINO and the Forum, since it is of paramount importance for us to support initiatives that offer a major role for Russia in shaping the world’s common cultural space. We wish all the SPIMF participants a fruitful time, successful new partnerships and a fresh sense of perspective. We are glad that Aeroflot Russian Airlines is contributing to the development and expansion of our national media industry.

The SPIMF program consists of the following sections:

1.  PUBLIC SCREENINGS:

GALA SCREENINGS: Russian and international film and TV premieres of 2014;

KOR-KOR: A showcase of the diversity of North Korean cinema, curated by Vasily Koretsky;

LOCARNO LOCAL: The best of the Locarno Film Festival 2014;

MAMENTUM: The best of the Cannes Film Festival 2014, selected by Alexander Mamontov;

N-L-PO: Iconic sci-fi movies that lead to the triumph of Gravity, selected by Boris Nelepo;

NON FICTION: A line-up of high-profile 2014 documentaries;

WORD ORDER: Films and TV drama pilots created by renowned critics, in partnership with Séance magazine;

THE BIRTH OF A NATION: Alexey Medvedev’s program of new British cinema;

TEEN SPIRIT: Films aimed at children and teenagers that raise some questions concerning social issues;

TROFEY: Films dwelling on political leaders and their roles in the crucial events of 20^th and 21^st century film history, selected by Mikhail Trofimenkov.

The screenings will take place from October 1^st to October 5^th, 2014, in the Aurora, Angleterre, Velikan, Leningrad, Rodina and Khudozhestvenny cinemas as well as on the New Stage of the Alexandrinsky theatre and the Old Stock Exchange building on the spit of Vasilyevsky Island.

2. FILM, TV AND NEW MEDIA CONTENT MARKET

The DOORS International Traveling Film Market, successfully held in Moscow in 2012 and in St. Petersburg in 2013, invites major buyers and sales agents from Europe, Asia, North America and the BRICS countries to view Russian films produced in 2014.

The co-production market aimed at Russian and international companies interested in developing potential co-production projects has been co-organized by the Northern Seas Forum.

Sergey Selyanov’s P.O.V. Film Development Fund’s will grant awards to the winners of the development funding competition held from July 1 to August 1, 2014

The TV Content market for Russian and international professionals has been co-organized by the World Content Market.

The TV Showcase will exhibit Russian and international dramas produced by leading studios and TV channels. Co-organized by Amediateka.

START-UP ALLEY is a digital, new media and entertainment industry Start-Up Market, co-organized by Rambler&Co, the RusBase platform and Variety Russia.

GLOBAL RUSSIANS will showcase the top 50 shorts directed by Russian film school graduates over the last 5 years (2010-2014). These will be made available in the digital library of the Forum. Co-organized by ROSKINO and the Youth Center of the Russian Filmmakers’ Union.

The International Film, TV and New Media Content Market will be held from October 6^th to October 9^th, 2014, in the Old Stock Exchange building on the spit of Vasilyevsky Island.

3. C.L.A.S: CINEMA LAB BY ALEXANDER SOKUROV

A team of professionals headed by Alexander Sokurov, one of the world’s most important filmmakers, will spend a week with directors whose works have been preselected via the program website. The campus program has been tailored for 100 participants. The aim of the workshop is to help these talented non-professionals to find their way in the world of cinema and to expose them to the many possibilities of contemporary filmmaking and its various processes. Creative workshops will be supplemented by master classes from leading industry specialists, and a professional jury is to select the best projects.

The C.L.A.S. lab will take place at the Baltiets Hotel at Repino from October 4^th to October 10^th, 2014.

4. CROSS-PLATFORM PANELS DEALING WITH MAJOR ISSUES IN THE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY

A total of 12 panels, including discussions on:

-    Competing for the VOD market and alternative content distribution strategies, with the participation of the Film and TV Producers Association;

-    The Internet as a piracy battlefield, with the participation of the Federal Supervision Agency for Mass Media and Communications, the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA).

-    Crowd-funding: making the most of minimal budgets, with the participation of PopUp Cinema (UK).

The Panels will be held in the Old Stock Exchange building from October 6^th to October 9^th, 2014.

ROSKINO is the only Russian state institution promoting Russian cinema internationally. Since its foundation in 1924, it has facilitated the integration of Russian filmmakers into the world’s cinema industry. In 2014 the company celebrates its 90th anniversary.

ROSKINO promotes Russian cinema at major international film festivals (Cannes, Venice, Berlin and Toronto), markets (AFM in Los Angeles, EFM in Berlin, Marché du Film and MIPCOM in Cannes), and awards (The Oscars, Golden Globes, EFA Awards). It supports the distribution of Russian films and solicits international investments and co-production partnerships.

One of the most prominent initiatives of ROSKINO is the DOORS international travelling film market that will allow the company to showcase national cinema at various markets around the world.

Since 2012, ROSKINO has been operating the Russian Film Commission USA based in Los Angeles.

In 2014 ROSKINO launched its London office, ROSKINO UK.

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KATYA MTSITOURIDZE is the SPIMF concept developer and general producer, Channel One film expert and Variety Russia Editor-in-Chief.

Katya graduated from Tbilisi State University with an MA in history and film studies.

She is the author and narrator of This Is Cinema, a regular show on Russia’s Channel One.

She has been ROSKINO CEO since 2011.

Her portfolio includes the film festivals in Cannes and Venice and the AFM market in LA.

In June, 2001, she was a member of the FIPRESCI jury at the 23^rd Moscow International Film Festival.

In May, 2002, she was a member of the FIPRESCI jury at the 55^th Cannes International Film Festival.

In June, 2003, she was on the jury for debut films at the 25^th Moscow International Film Festival.

In May, 2008, she was a member of the jury of the Un Certain Regard section of the 61^th Cannes International Film Festival.

Also in 2008, she initiated the creation of the Russian Pavilion at the Cannes Film Festival which she still heads. 

From September, 2010 to January, 2011 she provided PR support for The Edge (Krai), a film by Alexey Uchitel, which was nominated for Best Foreign Film at the HFPA Golden Globe awards.

In September, 2011, she was in charge of the international PR and advertising campaign for Alexander Sokurov’s Faust, which won the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival.

In June, 2012, she held the first DOORS International Travelling Russian Film Market as part of the 34^th Moscow International Film Festival.

In November, 2012, she reached an agreement with HULU, one of the leading US digital platforms, for the VOD release of 12 contemporary Russian titles.

In May, 2014, she reached a further agreement for the distribution of CTC Media TV Content through HULU platforms.

Katya is a member of FIPRESCI, the Russian Filmmakers’ Union, the Russian and International Union of Journalists and the National Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of Russia. She holds an MA in History.