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Realscreen Summit

South West Screen led an exciting visit to the Realscreen Summit in 2010 which was held 1 – 3 February 2010 in Washington, DC.

The Realscreen Summit is the most important non-fiction film & television industry event. Now in its 12th year, this highly anticipated annual event is dedicated to the development of business and creative opportunities for those in non-fiction and factual programming and content creation. Over 1,100 delegates attended the 2009 Summit representing 630 companies from 25 countries, and over 250 Commissioning Editors, Programmers and Acquisitions Executives attended the event actively seeking product to purchase.

South West Screen led a UK delegation of 10 companies on behalf of UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), supported through their Tradeshow Access Programme (TAP). Participating companies had access to a wide range of benefits including:

  • A general conference registration worth $999
  • The use of a meeting room for one-to-one meetings
  • Access to a UK-based pre-summit master class: "doing business in the US"
  • A place at the UK networking event held during the Summit
  • Inclusion in the full page UK advert in the January/February issue of realscreen
  • Association with the official UK delegation logo on all promotional material
  • Marketing and PR pre- and post- Summit
  • A UKTI TAP grant of up to £1,400

Read what the companies have to say about the Summit below and click here to read our Realscreen blog. 

"In addition to the funding which, for a small company like ours, was a huge help, it was extremely beneficial being part of a UK delegation. As well as providing a meeting place which the American Com Eds all seemed to really appreciate however senior they were (!), being part of a delegation lent weight to us as a company and meant that several American agents, commissioners and other industry professionals initiated meetings with us.

"We were able to offer each other advice, support and, in several cases tip each other off as to who was looking for what - especially valuable in the slightly bizarre three minute pitching sessions."I made some very useful contacts with commissioning editors, sales agents, Canadian and US producers all of which will prove invaluable in a market where co-production and patchwork funding are becoming more and more important.

"The only way to understand how American television really works, what they want and how they want it presented, is to be there talking to the people who commission it. South West Screen enabled me to do that and I've come away with a better understanding of what they want and a direct line of communication to those that want it.

"I got interest from several network and cable channels for different projects, including one from an Italian commissioning editor who, if I hadn't been at Realscreen I would never have thought of contacting." Lydia Conway, Moondance UK 

"Realscreen is rapidly becoming the must-attend conference for any factual production company working with US Broadcasters. A strong market, a great line up of speakers and almost every commissioning editor you could ever want to meet. This year we are hopeful that this will be our best market ever with real business being generated from it, including new introductions, interest in several series and specials and a possible pilot on the table.” Malcolm Brinkworth, Touch Productions Ltd

To read about our trip to the Realscreen Summit 2009 click here.


 

SWS at Realscreen

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