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Documentary Business

Peter Hamilton Consultants, Inc

Cannes Film Festival: Documentary Takeaways with Veteran Sales Agent Jan Rofekamp. Podcast

JAN ROFEKAMP is the highly-respected, veteran documentary distributor and consultant who has led sales agent FILMS TRANSIT INTERNATIONAL since 1982, overseeing more than 500 documentaries.

Jan attended the post-Covid 2022 edition of the giant CANNES FILM FESTIVAL.

He shares his Takeaways on what happened at Cannes, and what it reveals about the state of the business in the ‘Golden Age of the Documentary.’

Podcast: Listen to Jan Rofekamp on Cannes 2022. (30 min)



Highlights

Jan reports that the genre was a relatively minor presence along the packed Croisette. I ask him:

  • What kinds of documentaries are selected?
  • How does Cannes compare with Berlin, Sundance, TIFF and others?
  • Did buyers attend?
  • What are the key deal trends?
  • Are rights difficult to negotiate in the Streaming Era?

The Single Documentary Economy

Jan argues that the rising count of festivals, pitch sessions, development grants, courses and more are all serving to encourage producers to commit to their (often) costly documentary productions.

However, there are fewer and fewer properly compensated slots, and therefore fewer potential buyers for their films.

More…