“‘The Night Watch’ Wins Drama Pitch as MIA Market Closes”

Dutch drama series The Night Watch won the MIA Market Drama Development category in Rome as the tenth edition of the Italian festival came to an end.

Written by Steven Friedman and produced by Edvard van’t Wout for Continent Studios, the show, along with the film directed by Guillermo de Oliveira, won the MIA Development Awards at the Co-Production Market and Pitching Forum Death in your eyeswho received the film project award. Born again – perfect love won the Doc Prize and was a Belgian-Polish-French co-producer of the animated film Big Bang Parade won in the children’s category. In total, over 600 projects were received this year.

The winners were announced as MIA announced more than 2,800 participants for the 2024 edition, an increase from 10% a year ago.

The Night Watch is described as a story of magic, friendship and secrets hidden beneath the city of Amsterdam. The jury consists of Manuel Alduy, head of cinema and youth and international fiction at France Télévisions, France Télévisions; NRK drama director Marianne Furevold-Boland; and Buendía Estudios Executive Vice President Scripted and Global Business Development Laura Abril – said: “The Night Watch presents a bold and deeply captivating concept that is sure to captivate audiences around the world. We hope that the team behind it goes far with this project and wish them all the best on their journey.

“This show has the potential to entertain at a time when escapism and humor are needed, in a world that can sometimes feel overwhelming. It has the ability to create common ground for audiences of all generations by providing shared experiences based on quality storytelling.”

Death in your eyesproduced by Silvia Fuentes of Sétima and Nuria Landete García of Sideral Cinema, was announced as “a project that offers, from a deeply personal perspective, a complex portrait of characters losing their humanity in a world dominated by greed, corruption and violence.” by Judges Robert Aaronson, Executive Vice President of Cohen Media Group; Jennyfer Gautier, head of international sales at Luxbox in France; and Benjamin Kramer, Co-Head of Media Finance, CAA.

Outstanding Doc Winner Born again – perfect love is about “reborn dolls” – hyper-realistic replicas of newborns treated like babies – and was described by the jury as a “powerful, emotional and very personal presentation of an untold story”. Björn Jensen, managing director of Ginger Foot Films in Germany; Pamela Martinez, CEO of Limonero Films in Spain; and Myriam Weil, chief documentaries officer and producer at Federation Studios in France.

Several other awards were presented in Rome today, including the Paramount New Stories Award for the feature film directed by Julia-Horrillo Aya in the desertwhich comes from Alhena Production in Spain.

MIA started on Monday and ended today, having strengthened its reputation as an important European meeting point for co-productions of different genres. The event claims that over 100 films and television programs have been produced following its participation in the Rome festival.

“Thanks to its strong identity and credibility, MIA has now secured an important place on the agenda of international operators,” said Gaia Tridente, Director of MIA International Audiovisual Market. “It is a unique curatorial market, a strategic player in the co-production market and a fundamental engine for the financing, distribution and circulation of works and talent.

“It represents the needs of an entire ecosystem made up of the different industries and genres of the audiovisual sector, offering specific activities for the different formats, taking into account both distribution in cinemas and consumption on television and platforms.” It is a reflection of the transformation of the audiovisual sector and is able to capture and anticipate changes, with particular attention to technological innovations for the creative sectors.”

“MIA continues to grow and has established itself as a high-profile event that can engage the entire audiovisual industry. In its tenth year, it reaffirms its ability to attract the attention, interest and resources of international actors to the national system, thus contributing to the growth of the ability of Italian companies to develop dialogues and collaborations necessary for the further development of the sector, employment and the products are essential, and the soft power of our country,” said Francesco Rutelli, president of ANICA, which promotes the event together with the APA.

“This edition of MIA has successfully attracted and expanded international audiences, a result that, as APA, strengthens the voice of producers in the audiovisual sector,” added Chiara Sbarigia, President of the APA. “The internationalization of the industry depends both on our sector’s ability to modernize and train new professionals and on our regions becoming more competitive. I am confident that the path we are taking and the work we are doing will lead directly in this direction.”

MIA is supported by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the ITA-Italian Trade Agency and the contribution of Creative Europe MEDIA. It also receives support from the Italian Ministry of Culture, the Italian Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy and the Lazio Region.