CAA Media Finance’s Roeg Sutherland, Annapurna Pictures’ Skye Optican, Killer Films’ Christine Vachon, Patrick Wachsberger at 193, and Goodfellas’ Vincent Maraval are confirmed for San Sebastián’s fourth Creative Investors’ Conference, co-organized with CAA Media Finance.
They will be joined by Amazon Studios Javiera Balmaseda, Anton’s Sebastien Raybaud, AXIO Capital/Together Fund’s Alexandra Lebret, Christian Vesper at Fremantle, Sam Kozhaya at Legendary Entertainment, Logical Pictures’ Frédéric Fiore, Élisabeth d’Arvieu of Mediawan Pictures, Studio TF1’s Rodolphe Buet and David Atlan-Jackson at the Vuelta Group.
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Running Sept. 23-24 as part of Spain’s Spanish Screenings: Financing & Tech, the Conference features panels, discussions and private networking activities.
The Conference has a strong, if select presence of Latin American producers taking in Fabula co-founder Juan de Dios Larraín, behind “Spencer” and “María,” K & S Films’ Matías Mosteirín, producer with Netflix of global hit “The Eternaut,” one of the biggest series ever made in Latin America, and L.A.-based Axel Kuschevatzky of Infinity Hill, a producer on “Argentina, 1985” and many other top Argentian films.
Spanish execs take in David Arroyo of Barcelona-based Suma Capital, an investment fund. Further participants and possible speakers include Akunna Cook at Next Narrative Africa Fund, Mike Goodridge at Good Chaos, an agile London-based co-producer behind Edward Berger’s “The Ballad Of A Small Player”; Robin Kerremans at Caviar; ex-Neflix exec Teresa Moneo; Laura Rossi of MUV Capital; Andrea Scarso ; Karl Spoerri of Zurich Avenue; Thank You Pictures’ Lars Sylvest; David Taghioff of Library Pictures; Alexandra Tynion of Tricky Knot; Robert Walak of Iconoclast and Michael Weber of The Match Factory, one of the three biggest European sales companies at this year’s Cannes Festival.
Companies attending the Conference for the first time take in 193, Amazon Studios, Annapurna, AXIO Capital/Together Fund, Fabula, Fremantle, IPR.VC, Legendary Entertainment, Mediawan, MUV Capital, Next Narrative Africa Fund, Studio TF1, Thank You Pictures, Tricky Knot and Vuelta Group.
2024’s Conference saw panelists sketch the opportunities and challenges for independent production: the audience revolution, not only in the U.S. but also France and Italy; contracted U.S. studio investment and fixed U.S. union shooting costs. One obvious solution for the later is for U.S producers to look to Europe, said Sutherland. 2025’s attendees can be expected to pick up that conversation as they address topics of discussion such as the new European studio model; what private investors are looking for in 2025; how producers are staying nimble working across series and cinema as well as across country borders and the global growth of Latin American content. Sarah Sarah Schweitzman and Peter Dakich from CAA Media Finance will also participate in the Conference and, along with Sutherland, moderate some of the talks, as will San Sebastian Festival delegate-advisor Wendy Mitchell.
“We have been delighted to see the Creative Investors’ Conference grow in importance and influence in its first three years and are thrilled with the impressive group of executives and experts that will join us for this fourth edition,” said San Sebastián Festival director José Luis Rebordinos. “We are also grateful to count on the support of the Spanish government for this conference, and of course our continuing fruitful collaboration with CAA Media Finance. We know this year’s conference will include thought-provoking discussions on stage, as well as important private networking sessions and interactions between the global experts and the Spanish film industry.”
Spanish Screenings: Financing & Tech is promoted by the Ministry of Culture via its Institute of Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts (ICAA), and the Ministry for Digital Transformation and of Civil Service, ICEX, and the Malaga and San Sebastian film festivals.
The San Sebastian Festival also hosts, as part of the Spanish Screenings: the Financing & Tech, the Zinemaldia Startup Challenge, to be held on Sept. 25.
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