Rio2C, the biggest audiovisual event in Latin America, will talk about the new series by Fernando Meirelles

Three prestigious and, above all, internationally successful brands, radically different from each other – Iron Man, City of God, OldBoy -, spring to mind when you know who will be in front of the cameras in the miniseries The Sympathizerproject of HBO which will be the subject of discussion at one of the most popular panels at Rio2C, the largest forum on audiovisual creativity in Latin America, which begins this Tuesday, 11th, at City of Arts, in Rio de Janeiro.

The allusion to the trinity of cinematographic phenomena awakened by this spy story, derived from the book by Viet Thanh Nguyencomes from the scaling of Robert Downey Jr. for the cast and the convening of filmmakers Fernando Meirelles It is Park Chan-Wook to helm a high-voltage pop thriller of geopolitical undertones.

Many production companies, from different corners of the globe, joined forces for this mix of talents to succeed, such as Team Downey (the creative arm of Marvel star Tony Stark), the almighty A24 (Oscar winner for Everything Everywhere At The Same Time) and the South Korean Moho Film, with which Chan-Wook made decision to leave (Best Director Award in Cannes, in 2022). But there is a name from Canada, Rhombus Media, which has done (good) business with Brazil before, including Blindness essaywhich took Meirelles to the opening of the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. This Friday, at 4:45 pm, its founder, the Canadian Level Fichmanjoins the acclaimed director from São Paulo, head of O2 Filmes, to explain the future of the experiment with Downey Jr., also starring Sandra Oh It is Hoa Xuande.

“In the past, a project like this for a channel like HBO it would be entirely made in the USA, with professionals from there, with absolute in-house creative control. But now the world is changing, becoming more globalized every day. For you to discuss subjects that have so much diversity in their essence, a combination of talents like the one we are doing is necessary”, says Fichman to the State. “I’ve known Meirelles for years and we share many opinions about the preservation of the planet. Only the presence of a filmmaker like this, like Chan-Wook, and others that we’ve gathered can give this project the face it needs to discuss delicate themes under new and different perspectives”, he adds.

There’s cinema, streaming and there’s a game on Rio2C, but there is also talk of health, inclusion, anti-racist struggle and ecological sustainability. It is a mix of the most varied. Among 1,200 speakers, the Minister of Culture, Margareth Menezes, the singer Gilberto Gilsinger and activist Angelique Kidjothe pilot Rubens BarrichelloTV presenter Fatima Bernardesthe Argentine filmmaker Daniel Burman.

In the audiovisual menu, combinations of creative groups such as the one proposed by The Sympathizer in the synergy of international co-productions is one of the essential topics. With the global economic crisis and streamings cutting costs, the search for new forms of financing and risk sharing has once again gained prominence in the sector. Therefore, executives from international and national studios (Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner, Disney, Globo, Conspiração, O2) and digital platforms (Netflix, Amazon, Disney+, Warner Bros Discovery and Globoplay) assured their participation in the event.

Some will lead panels with aesthetic and industrial discussions open to the public, others will come to Rio in search of new investment opportunities. Some will come just to hear the current oracles of financing strategies, like the German Juliane Schulze. Her specialty is the art of pitching, that is, how to know how to “sell” an idea.

“Germany has not managed to position itself as efficiently in film as it did when it hit TV and streaming series, which are everywhere. The challenge is knowing how to find a project’s selling proposition. A film has many layers. of meaning, has a lot to say. The question is to find the essence that mobilizes the right financier in the right way. The role that I play internationally, in partnership with those who want to promote projects with investor companies, is precisely to refine this articulation that our cinema doesn’t always have it. My job is to translate an artistic project into numbers, into the language of those who invest expecting a return”, says Juliane Schulzedirector of Investors Lab Berlin.

She is optimistic about the expansion of co-productions. “At Europe, markets are fragmented, as identities are very different. There are countries that concentrate a strong production with global reach. But there are territories whose audiovisual content does not work in other places, because it is too localized, that is, too stereotyped”, says Juliane.

According to a recent list of international co-productions by ancine, recorded between 2005 and 2021 and released by Rio2C, 213 national films were released in international co-production (with countries in South and North America, Europe and Asia). There has been notable growth from 2017 onwards, with over 20 releases a year (with the exception of 2020, because of the pandemic), including hits like nightjar It is The Invisible Lifewhich strengthened the role of Brazil.

It is what defends Christian Gabelasenior vice president and head for Latin America and Spain at the French producer Gaumont, citing the success of the franchise narcosthe Netflix series that earned the Wagner Moura an indication to Golden Globe. Gabela passes through Cidade das Artes this Friday at 3 pm. “I am proud of the path taken by Narcos, opening space for great Brazilian filmmakers like Fernando Coimbra. After the pandemic, the market once again offers a viable co-production path. That’s why I’m going to be in Brazil,” he says.