Cannes Festival Encourages Independent Cinema with The third Cinéfondation Atelier 

Cannes, France, (rushprnews) May 25 2007 -The third Cinéfondation Atelier, which opened May 18 and ended this Friday, was a great success.

The purpose of this workshop, set up as part of the Cinéfondation’s mission to promote artistic creation, is to strengthen ties between film co-producers. Film-world professionals did indeed show interest in artistic projects recognized by the Festival: over 300 appointments were scheduled, at the request of international professionals wishing to meet directors and their producers.

Positive feedback from potential partners reassured producers, convincing them to greenlight films even before they have finished securing the financing. Certain agreements have already been concluded, which is the case in particular with Colombian filmmaker Ciro Guerra. In other cases, investors have shown interest, but the contract has yet to be signed. This is the case of Romanian director Cãtãlin Mitulescu. The Festival is proud of the promising results of this initiative it took for the 15 projects selected this year, and will continue to provide its support, with the goal of finalizing the agreements over the summer.

The purpose of the Cinéfondation Atelier, which was launched in 2005, is to encourage independent cinema and promote the emergence of a new generation of filmmakers. Selection of a project by the Atelier carries weight, and is a significant endorsement for a project which may initially have been judged fairly complex to carry out. It can kick-start a stalled project by helping producers get access to international financing.

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