EUROPEAN TRAINING
$10.5m (£6.5m) to $5.3m (£3.25m). Even so, no other territory in continen- tal Europe has government-backed support of this kind. Instead, the MEDIA Programme is a
major supporter of training across Europe (see p10): there are 63 training courses with MEDIA support listed in MEDIA’s 2011 training guide, ranging from Maia Workshops and EAVE, both for young producers, to ACE for the more experienced. Furthermore, young professionals
wanting management, legal and fi nance training can turn to two in-depth courses: the Atelier Ludwigsburg-Paris, a joint venture between French film school La Fémis and Germany’s Fil- makademie Baden-Württemberg; and Spain’s MEGA Plus, run by the Madrid- based Media Business School. In addition to formal training, these
schemes can be excellent networking opportunities, giving producers and executives access not only to leading industry fi gures but to each other. And in an industry so dependent on rela- tionships, this is invaluable.
s CAREER CHANGE
With lines blurring between production, distribution and sales businesses, training which focuses on building wide skillsets is increasing in value. By Geoffrey Macnab
In Europe the emphasis is increasingly placed on 360-degree business training — giving executives an understanding of the myriad creative and business functions which make up the fi lm industry. As EAVE chief executive Kristina Trapp points out: “We are at a
moment when the industry is in transition and it’s very important to be up to speed with that. The producer, especially, has to be more entrepreneurial and have many hats at the same time.” On one level, this approach gives Europeans an advantage over
their US studio rivals. Having spent nine years living in the US, former PolyGram head Michael Kuhn soon saw the fragmented nature of the studio system. “Someone will be the world’s greatest expert on marketing big movies, but beyond that they have zero knowledge. They’re like somebody who has been training in a gym but only lifting weights with their right arm.” In contrast, an increasingly fl uid European business offers more
opportunity for executives to change specialisation and to learn about every aspect of the fi lm business. Training schemes which enable executives to move beyond their
usual specialised roles have an increasing value at a time when many independent fi lm companies are setting up international sales arms, or moving into distribution, or becoming more active in production. Producers need a wide skillset given that most European projects
are elaborate co-productions with budgets put together from many different sources. They need to know how to pitch — for example, at the numerous co-production markets now in existence — how to deal with contracts, how to put together budgets and how to access soft money.
‘If I’d had the opportunities available today, I would have been successful
more quickly’ Iain Smith, producer
n 4 Screen International European Training Special 2011
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