The 4th International Film Festival and Awards‧Macao IFFAM Project Market

This year’s IFFAM Project Market (IPM) is taking place December 6^th – 8^th, 2019. Providing a platform for a blend of top-level talents and rising stars from around the globe, to showcase feature film projects and encourage international collaboration. 14 Project Market entries will be vying for four cash awards; while the program will also include two Work-in-Progress Presentations.

Thrills and chills throughout the selection

Projects include supernatural revenge thriller Nocebo from Irish director Lorcan Finnegan, who’s Vivarium was in Cannes Critic’s Week this year; as well as The Day and Night of Brahma, a new family drama by South African director Sheetal Magan, whose short Paraya was presented in Cannes Directors Fortnight, and Uk Kei屋企, a journey of self-discovery by Portuguese director Leonor Teles, the youngest director ever to have won the Golden Bear for best short at the Berlinale in 2016.

Renowned for his unique vision, Japanese director Satoshi Miki (It’s Me, It’s Me, Adrift in Tokyo) is among the selection, with his whimsical fantasy, The Convenience Store. Filipino director Dodo Dayao of the critically acclaimed Violator will take us into realms of dark terror with his cosmic horror Dear Wormwood.

The mishap-filled, road-trip comedy Escape to Oz from Sam Voutas (King of Peking, Red Light Revolution) is a highlight, as is Simon Yin’s horror-comedy, Dead Packet, involving a plethora of ghosts and exorcism. Other highly anticipated projects include folk horror Drum Wave by Japanese-Australian director Natalie Erika James, crime thriller Perspectives 三人成虎 directed by MAO Weiqing 毛渭清, coming-of-age drama Everybody Leaves from Filipino director Phyllis Grae Grande. Hailing from the Spanish-language world, director Geoffrey Cowper’s psychological horror Welcome is on the list as is fantasy drama Blue Mountain, the feature debut of Chilean director Joy Penroz. Maxim Bessmertny’s crime-thriller about a detective solving mysteries, Investigator Mendonza, and The Fortune Tower 幸運閣, a comedy drama from Harriet, Wong Teng Teng 黃婷婷, are the two projects stemming from Macao. This year’s projects include a number of incredibly exciting genre talents. 

Work-in-Progress showcase

Last year, IFFAM Industry Hub introduced its well-received program WIP Presentation. The WIP selections this year features Dutch director Jim Taihuttu’s Indonesian wartime drama The East as well as Yakuza Princess, an action thriller from director Vicente Amorim.

With more than 50% of the projects evincing Asian subject matter, 13 among the total 16 projects are genre films: 9 selected by IPM, and one each from international genre market partners, Blood Window (Argentina), FIRST Financing Forum (China), Frontières (Canada) and Sitges (Spain). The other 3 projects are arthouse titles.

The IFFAM Project Market organizes both the pitching event and the project meetings. A tailor-made meeting agenda will be created for each selected project, pre-planned specifically for the 16 projects to meet with interested potential co-producers, financers, sales agents and distributors. The 14 projects participating as Project Market entries will be vying for 4 Cash Awards: Best Project Award, Best Co-Production Award, Creative Excellence Award and Macao Spirit Award. The three person jury - Mr. Eric Khoo, Film Director (Singapore), Mr. Matthijs Wouter Knol, Berlinale EFM Director (Germany), and Mr. Shozo Ichiyama, Producer/ CEO of Kino International (Japan) - will meet with the 14 projects to determine the Award Winners over the course of project meetings from December 7^th to 8^th, 2019.

IFFAM Project Market 2019 Selection List

Ÿ   Blue Mountain, director: Joy Penroz, producer: Sylvain Grain

Ÿ   The Convenience Store, director: Satoshi Miki, producer: Emi Ueyama

Ÿ   The Day and Night of Brahma, director: Sheetal Magan , producer: Sheetal Magan

Ÿ   Dead Packet, director: Simon Yin, producer: Gary Lee

Ÿ   Dear Wormwood, director: Dodo Dayao, producers: Bianca Balbuena, Bradley Liew, Patti Lapus

Ÿ   Drum Wave, director: Natalie Erika James, producers: Anna McLeish, Sarah Shaw

Ÿ   Escape to Oz, director: Sam Voutas, producers: Jane Zheng鄭菁, Melanie Ansley

Ÿ   Everybody Leaves, director: Phyllis Grae Grande, producer: Alemberg Ang蔡怡銘

Ÿ   The Fortune Tower 幸運閣, director: Harriet, Wong Teng Teng 黃婷婷, producer: Cynthia Mo黃詠仙

Ÿ   Investigator Mendonza, director: Maxim Bessmertny, producers: Jeff Tang Hon Hung 鄧漢雄, Jorge Cordeiro dos Santos

Ÿ   Nocebo, director: Lorcan Finnegan, producers: Brunella Cocchiglia, Emily Leo

Ÿ   Perspectives三人成虎, director: MAO Weiqing毛渭清, producer: SONG Jia宋甲

Ÿ   Uk Kei屋企, director: Leonor Teles, producer: Filipa Reis

Ÿ   Welcome, director: Geoffrey Cowper, producers: Cayetano Casas, Norbert Llaràs

IFFAM WIP Presentation 2019 Selection List

Ÿ   The East, director: Jim Taihuttu, producers: Benoit Roland, Sander Verdonk, Shanty Harmayn Hofman

Ÿ   Yakuza Princess, director: Vicente Amorim, producer: L.G. Tubaldini Jr.