Realscreen Summit came first on February 3, followed by NATPE Global on February 5 — both at the Miami InterContinental Hotel, which was sold out for both events. Some participants treated it as one five-day market stretching from February 3 to February 7.
The Summit is best described as an unscripted and nonfiction conference. Chairs were hot commodities here — there were very few stands — as the event was built around meetings among producers, co-producers, developers, and financiers. The Summit also saw a number of parties, which were great for meeting people outside of pre-set appointments, as well as many organized breakfasts and luncheons, including a pre-awards show cocktail prior to the induction of Cris Abrego, co-founder and CEO of Hyphenate Media Group, chairman of the Television Academy, and former CEO of Endemol Shine North America, into the Realscreen Hall of Fame, recognized for his career, which has spanned more than two decades.
Still, executives who came early for NATPE found the Summit “different from what we’re used to.” One participant described the event as a “place to hear pitches for productions and a way to meet the people on the dais that are difficult to reach.” Others, like reps from film commissions from Florida (and even as far as Romania) were here to pitch their facilities, rebates, and incentives to producers.
Last year’s Summit was held in New Orleans, January 28-February 1. On Tuesday, while the Summit continued, the venue was slowly transformed by the more familiar tables and stands — and hotel suites were readied — for the start of NATPE at 9 a.m. the next day.
NATPE Global, which held its second annual event since its reincarnation, moved to the month of February to distance itself from Miami’s LatAm-focused Content Americas, which took place in January, making February a very busy month for the international entertainment industry. There’s also Berlin’s European Film Market or EFM (February 15-19); the London Screenings (February 24-28); the BBC Showcase in London (February 24-25); MIP London (February 24-27); the CDSA Summit from the Content Delivery & Security Association, also in London (February 27); and the Video Service Forum (February 25-27) in Marina del Ray, California.
Adding even more activity, participants in the Miami Marathon ran around the InterContinental Hotel the day before the Summit’s opening day, but caused little disruption.
Claire Macdonald, NATPE Global’s executive director — from the Toronto, Canada-based Brunico publishing group that organizes various international TV conventions, including NATPE Budapest — made sure that, this year, the exhibitors’ list was released well in advance (so that buyers could schedule their meetings in a convenient way). “We shared the first floorplan and exhibitor list by December 20th.”
In terms of attendance, NATPE recorded a total of 120 exhibitors and 2,350 participants, of which 700 were registered as content buyers. A total of 550 delegates from the Summit remained for NATPE.
As for the recreational activities, there was a cocktail party on Wednesday night straddling the Summit and NATPE. That same evening featured the NATPE Honors Award Gala, a new program designed to celebrate the visionary leaders in the industry, which, this year included Paul Buccieri, president and chairman, A+E Networks Group, and Luis Fernández, chairman, NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises. At one of NATPE’s conferences on Wednesday, Dan Cohen, Paramount Global’s Chief Content Licensing Officer, launched a FAST channel from author Tony Robbins. And finally, the WAWA Woman of the Year Awards presentation and networking cocktail took place on Thursday.
Two badges for the price of one; Chairs everywhere: They’re the hottest commodity at the Summit; Cris Abrego, co-founder and CEO of Hyphenate Media inducted into the Realscreen Hall of Fame. From the NATPE floor: ACI’s Chevonne O’Shaughnessy and Billy Dundee; From the NATPE suites: FilmRise’s Jonitha Keymoore and Melissa Wohl with Phoenix TV’s Jaimi West and Miles Jarvis; From the NATPE conference room: Dan Cohen, Paramount Global’s Chief Content Licensing Officer, and author Tony Robbins.
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