Last month, the American Film Market (AFM) marketing department sent a note to all potential exhibitors and participants to announce that, for its first in-person market since 2019 (before the pandemic), “all office costs are lower than 2019.” This, ostensibly, is because the event will be three days shorter than it usually is.
As usual, the offices will be located at the Loews Santa Monica, and this year, according to the note sent by Robin Burt, VP of Marketing for the AFM, “the full conference program is moving from the Fairmont Hotel to the Loews.” The conference program is expected to be presented in July. Another hotel to lose out is the Marriott, which most likely will not have offices located there this time around. During the pre-pandemic period, the Marriott, which is adjacent to the Loews, was a vibrant AFM meeting place.
The two other announcements were that the 43rd edition of the film market will start on Tuesday, November 1, 2022, one day earlier than its traditional Wednesday start, and that the last full day of the five-day market will be Saturday, November 5, with office move-out on Sunday.
Exhibitors are urged to reserve by July 15 in order to request space preference.
Previously, on May 3, 2022, AFM’s organizer, the Independent Film & Television Alliance (IFTA), announced that Jonathan Wolf, Managing Director of its AFM, and EVP of the IFTA trade association, will step down when his current term ends on June 30, 2022. Wolf, who has led the AFM for 24 years, will continue on as an advisor through the 2022 AFM.
The IFTA press release did not specify the reason for Wolf’s departure, but an AFM insider told VideoAge that it was due to budget cuts. Officially, “regarding Jonathan’s role, IFTA has a strong internal team in place and future [AFM] leadership will be announced at a later date.”
Finally, the AFM will not have its traditional umbrella stand at MIPCOM 2022. However, it is expected that IFTA will have a presence at the Cannes TV market.
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