It’s almost anecdotal an episode I lived in Costa Rica right after the first edition of BrLab in 2011. Since the creation of this lab – first and only space dedicated to developing film projects in Brazil which includes foreign projects in the base of its conception, methodology and strategy –, we have fortunately had the support of various institutions, companies, people and events as partners to make a new BrLab edition take place each year. 

In 2011, right on the first edition, we consolidated an important partnership with Cinergia, a respected institution responsible for programs that have been collaborating with the development of a significant part of the audiovisual production in Central America. In that same year we were invited to take a closer look at their projects and because of that, I had the honor of being part of their selection jury. I was part of a roundtable where we discussed the importance of Rotterdam Lab and Cinemart as parallel activities to the International Film Festival Rotterdam, besides the great contribution of their famous international funds for filmmaking. On the occasion, I was in charge of presenting - and that’s why I say that experience was anecdotal - the BrLab project, which in 2011 was still a promise of a future space in Brazil favorable for meeting and interchanging experiences about the audiovisual market among Latin American countries. 

Evidently during this four years since the first edition a lot has been accomplished, and we believe that each year we are taking the best path to consolidate our achievements and partnerships.We do know that we can keep on moving forward, taking into account what we have experienced with the trust and generosity of each participant project, with the contribution of tutors and panelists and with the institutional partners and production team that give their best to make each edition happen.

Our partnership with Cinergia made us see this year an expressive positive result in regard to the projects submitted by Central American production companies, so much that in this edition we have four projects from Central America (within the eight spots for foreign projects), which has a lot to do with the continued efforts led by the institution. Still in 2014, it’s important to emphasize, we gained recam’s special support for the participation of small production companies from Mercosul, a new alliance bound to grow and last. And, coincidence or not, in 2011 BrLab was born, even if unware of it, in the last year of a blessed term in the Brazilian Ministry of Culture, whose Minister at the time came to be the same Municipal Secretary of Culture who created spCine, whose partnership and co-execution contributed expressively to our continuity in 2014. 

Lastly, I would like to extend our gratitude to all those who contribute to the strengthening of our alliances and the success of our achievements.

SELECTED PROJECTS

Selection Committee

Estrela Straus

actress and director

Eva Morsch Kihn

Cinéma en Développement (France)

Flavia Candida

Curator, filmmaker and producer

Marcio Miranda Perez

Filmmaker and curator

Mariana Pinheiro

scriptwriter

Rafael Sampaio

Director of BrLab and producer

Tatiana Leite

Tutors

Agustina Chiarino

Eliseo Altunaga

Erick González

programmer

Eva Morsch Kihn

Cinéma en Développement (France)

Fernanda de Capua

Fernanda Del Nido

producer

Juliana Rojas

screenwriter, director, editor

Paula Astorga

Cultural producer

Rosane Svartman

Sara Silveira

producer

Veronica Cura

tutor

Panelist

Albertina Carri

Diretora, produtora e roteirista

Andrés Wood

filmmaker

Bárbara Sonnewend

filmmaker

Daniel Ribeiro

screenwriter and director

Diana Almeida

producer

Eliseo Altunaga

Gabriel Mascaro

filmmaker

José Agripino

filmmaker

Meinolf Zurhorst

filmmaker

Sandro Fiorin

producer, distributor

Sara Silveira

Silvia Cruz

AWARDS

FiGa/Br Acquisition Award

FiGa Films is a world sales agency, production and distribution company. Its growing library contains critically acclaimed, award-winning films, acquired at top film festivals around the world, such as Pelo malo, Golden Shell winner at the 2013 Festival Internacional de Cine de San Sebastián. 

Privately funded in 2006, FiGa Films is a true independent voice for the best in filmmaking coming from Latin America, Spain, Portugal, and the rest of the world. Long lasting relationships, with a personal approach, are fundamental to co-founders Sandro Fiorin and Alex Garcia. 

FiGa Films’ mission is to select and sell worldwide rights of features and shorts, fiction and/or documentaries, with social relevance by up and coming directors. FiGa’s first co-production, Nicolas Pereda’s Verano de Goliat (Mexico, 2010), won the Golden Lion at the Bienalle di Venezia. Los viejos (Bolivia, 2011), A floresta de Jonathas (Brazil, 2012), You make me feel so young (USA, 2013), and Castanha (Brazil, 2014) followed up. 

The FiGa/Br Acquisition Award will be granted to one of the Brazilian projects participating in BrLab, with potential for the international market. 

In 2013, the FiGa Films Acquisition Award was granted to Allan Ribeiro’s A man alone.

Vitrine Filmes Acquisition Award

Founded in 2010, Vitrine Filmes is a company dedicated to the distribution of Brazilian films, investing in the growth and appreciation of the national cinema. Recently Vitrine Filmes incorporated some few and select international titles to its catalogue. 

In 2011, the distribution company created and consolidated the collective distribution project Sessão Vitrine, a new and successful model which released a total of twelve Brazilian films in ten capital cities. Among these titles are Estrada para Ythaca, Os monstros, Os residentes and Um lugar ao sol. The project was one of the finalists at the ibac – Escola da Cidade and the Faz Diferença Award from the O Globo newspaper, and it was elected the Best Cinematic Event of 2011 by the Rio de Janeiro Film Critics Association. 

Since then, its catalogue has grown in quality and prestige with representative titles such as Além da estrada, O céu sobre os ombros, Girimunho, Histórias que só existem quando lembradas, Vou rifar meu coração, O som ao redor and Hoje eu quero voltar sozinho. 

Vitrine Filmes commitment to Latin American cinema was born together with the company’s foundation. In 2010, it promoted the release of Maya Da-Rin’s documentary Terras, not only in Brazil but also abroad, such as in Peru and the French Guiana. In 2012, the Uruguayan film La vida útil joined its catalogue as the first foreign film distributed by the company. In 2013,Vitrine released Las acacias, Pablo Giorgielli’s first feature film. 

Vitrine Filmes reassures its commitment to Latin American filmmaking through an acquisition award for one of the foreign (non-Brazilian) participating projects.

In 2013, Juan Carlos Donoso’s project Huaquero received the Vitrine Filmes Acquisition Award.

Cinéma en Développment Award

Cinéma en Développment is a space designed for European and Latin American professionals to meet, without characterizing a market. The goal of this platform is to promote an interchange between professionals who seek talents and projects and directors and producers who are developing their films and want to strengthen their network. 

The Festival Cinélatino de Rencontres de Toulouse and BrLab have joined forces to carry on in Toulouse the support granted to Brazilian pro- ducers and directors with a project that will be jointly selected. 

This alliance aims to give continuity in Europe to the dynamic of guidance and support initiated in Latin America, offering this way an opportunity for one of the participant projects to benefit from a personalized program that includes: 

· Presenting the project on the “1-to-1” meetings of Cinéma en Développment; 

· Meetings with renowned industry professionals; 

· Case studies; 

· Access to Cinéma en Construction projections. 

Cinéma en Développement will take place at the professional platform of the Cinelatino 29th Rencontres de Toulouse (March 17-26th, 2017). The Brazilian professionals engaged on the chosen project will enjoy the support of the Brazilian National Film Agency – ANCINE for their participation. In 2015, the Cinéma en Développement prize was granted to Thais Fujinaga’s O Filho Plantado. 

In 2013, the winning project of the Cinéma en Développment Award was Marcelo Lordello’s Paternal.

Sponsors and partners 2014