by Michel Noll
Board Member, GZDOC
When China’s most influential documentary festival, GZDOC in Guangzhou (formerly Canton) learned that Science Congress will hold its 2014 event in Beijing, the Board decided to intensively cooperate with WCSFP.
- The aim: To promote networking between foreign and Chinese filmmakers, broadcasters and producers.
The rationale was that there are at least two reasons for these industry-leading events to provide mutual support:
- They complement each other in a striking way: probably 90% of GZDOC attendees are from China and 10% are non-Chinese. Science Congress is probably the reverse: 90% foreign and 10% Chinese. By combing the two, you achieve the best outcome.
- The dates are very close: GZDOC: November 11 – 14. Congress: November 18 – 21.
With the help of Michel Noll and Pat Ferns, GZDOC and WCSFP struck a cooperation agreement to install a Bursary program that jointly supports emerging filmmakers from both Chinese and international backgrounds.
Part of the deal is a mutual 15% discount on accreditation fees: a GZDOC attendee gets a 15% discount when registering at World Congress and vice versa.
The recent decision to relocate World Congress from Beijing to Hong Kong provides a third reason for cooperation:
- Geographical proximity. Hong Kong is only 174 km away from Guangzhou and can be reached by train, bus and even ferries.
I invite DocumentaryTelevision.com readers to attend both GZDOC and Congress, and achieve the fullest coverage of trends and contacts in the fast-growing Chinese market in a singlevisit to Southern China.
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Here is Michel speaking about GZDOC at Rendez-Vous in Biarritz last week: