Internationalize, opportunities and experiences

Opening new markets abroad is an indispensable milestone in guaranteeing the future of the audiovisual industry. In this session we discussed the possibilities of internationalization of Catalan companies, their experiences, challenges and opportunities that are found, and on what policies are being carried out by the Generalitat.

Roundtable with the participation of Carles Brugueras (general director and executive producer of Polar Star Films), Albert Lorente (coordinator of the Industries of the Experience in ACCIÓ-Agency for the Competitiveness of the Company), Miquel Rutllant (president of the Cluster Audiovisual de Catalunya, and general director of the Lavinia Group) and Francisco Vargas (director of the Audiovisual Area of the Catalan Institute of Cultural Companies). Moderator: Daniel Condeminas (communication consultant).

Video summary of the session: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_u3kO-Fuo2U

 

 

The audio industry

On Friday, 1st of June, at Primavera Pro festival, we held a discussion table with professionals from several sound companies, partners to the Audiovisual Cluster. An excellent space to comment on the challenges and horizons of an industry that is often underestimated, that of audio.

How have digitalization and new technologies changed the industry? What professional profiles do audio companies need? What are the technological trends of the sector? Can new markets be opened at the local or international level?

Luis Posada (Polford), Pep Aguiló Miquel (Idea Sonora) and Dani Espinet (BSO) were the speakers and Dani Trujillo Martínez Martínez and Carles Reixach of EUMES, as moderators.

Video summary of the session: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfWFeExGaAk&t=15s

 

 

Creating a documentary production company

On Friday, May 25, we co-organized the Round Table ‘Creating a documentary production company’ within the framework of DocsBarcelona.

Our speakers talked about what their journey was and how they have experienced the creation of this project. Why did they decide to create this new business? How do they get financing to start the first projects? How do they get stability?

 

Laura Collado, Eli Dalmau, Paula Palacios and Stacey Tenenbaum spoke. Moderates the session Noemí Cuní.

 

Video summary of the session: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RPv6eJ5Wyw&feature=youtu.be

 

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Zoom Brands. Influencers. New audiovisual marketing.

In 2018, trademarks are expected to invest more than 2,500 million euros only in influencers on Instagram. Some amounts that reflect the great commitment that the main brands are making to social networks and new digital environments.

With the aim of analyzing this phenomenon, the Audiovisual Cluster, the Zoopa agency, Foment del Treball Nacional and DirCom have organized the fifth edition of Zoom Brands, this year dedicated to the marketing of influencers.

During the session, close to two hundred attendees, between agencies, brands and producers, had the opportunity to talk with a selection of influencers and celebrities with the most impact and more experience in influencers marketing. They were Santi Millán, Lucas Lorén, Ona Carbonella, Daniel Illescas and Roc Massaguer.

 

Daniel Pérez Barriga, Brand Communication Director of Desigual and Carlos Ortet, CEO of Zoopa, both influencers marketing experts, made a presentation before the round of questions and answers, analyzing the potential of influencers in relation to communication and valuation of the brands, as well as the latest trends and new strategies.

The session has been on a multi-camera streaming in ten different channels for webcasting and social networks, thanks to the technology of Watchity’s partners.
Full Streaming: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVoF5aGoixY

 

 

“Keys of a successful script” with Paul Brown, X-Files writer, Star Trek Voyager

The Audiovisual Clúster has organized, along with the New York Film Academy (NYFA), a session on script creation with Paul Brown, screenwriter, director and multi-award-winning American producer who has participated in productions such as X-Files, Star Trek or Disney films.

In light of a hundred attendees, Paul Brown has focused his explanation on the creation of characters, through examples of cinematographic referents and current international series.

This session marks the beginning of a collaboration with the NYFA with the aim of establishing bridges with the US audiovisual sector and linking the Catalan university and training centers associated with the Cluster with their American counterparts.

 

 

 

 

Nine companies of the Audiovisual Clúster and more than one hundred interviews at the Job Market Place of JobBarcelona

The Audiovisual Cluster has co-organized with Barcelona Activa  a section of the Job Market Place (job interviews) dedicated to the audiovisual sector in the JobBarcelona, international labor congress and career guidance. The Job Market Place has brought together nine companies associated with the Audiovisual Clúster in the field of post-production, animation, television and film production, festival organization, etc., with job offers. It has counted on more than one hundred interviews of a selection of candidates seeking work.

This session is linked to the Cluster’s effort to connect emerging talent with the audiovisual industry and has, as a main activity, the organization of the Audiovisual Talent Week [see website]. Within the week, which is held the last quarter of each year, a space for job interviews is also enabled in the New Professionals Market.

Cluster companies that have participated in the Job Market Place are:

 

 

Member Companies of the Cluster Take Oart in the Mobile World Congress and 4YFN

Once again, Barcelona was the setting for the Mobile World Congress, one of the world’s largest mobile technology shows which brings together companies, institutions and investors from across the world. In 2018 the Congress has seen the participation of some member companies of the Cluster who had stands and presented their latest projects.

The companies are (click on each company to see the details of their stands):

Cellnex Telecom: Operator specialized in wireless telecommunications for broadcasting in Europe. It provides audio-visual services to broadcasters and “Smart Cities” solutions

Filmarket Hub: Online platform for audio-visual professionals and producers to facilitate the search for projects, funding or job opportunities

Tviso: Online platform specialized in the cataloguing and personalized managing of audiovisual content (films, documentaries and television programs)

VISYON (projecte Vroadcaster): Digital services company specialized in virtual reality, augmented reality and immersive technologies

Vodity: Video on demand platform that offers films, documentaries and series with specialised content in the history, culture and science fields

Watchity: Collaborative video platform to follow events by amalgamating, in streaming, participants’ device footage

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The Cluster companies attend 4YFN – 4 Years From Now

Thanks to the collaboration agreement between the Cluster and the Mobile World Capital, the Cluster members have been able to attend 4YFN — an international meeting of emerging technology companies. More than 20,000 people and about 700 investors have attended this year. This is a great opportunity to learn first-hand about the latest trends in technological entrepreneurship.

 

Challenges and opportunities in the fields of education and media

Educational technology and audio-visual companies met in a session aimed at exploring new forms of collaboration and business opportunities arising from the field of education. The session was organised by Edutech Cluster, a group of companies and entities in the ICT education sector, and the Cluster.

The work session was built around three main ideas: “Virtual reality, increased reality and education”, “Gamification and other participatory resources” and “Creation of audio-visual content”.

 

Tourism and media. Opportunities, models and options

For the second consecutive year, the Audio-visual Cluster participated at the “Saló del Cinema i les Sèries” (Cinema and Series Show), a meeting place for professionals and fans of the sector that takes place annually in La Farga de l’Hospitalet. This time the Cluster has taken part by organising “Tourism and Audio-visual. Opportunities, models and options”— a session aimed at reflecting on the growing relationship between audio-visual productions and the tourism sector.

With Pere Claveria (Terrassa Film Office / Parc Audiovisual de Catalunya), Eugeni Osàcar (CETT-UB), Carlota Guerrero (Catalunya Film Comission), Patrick Torrent (Agència Catalana de Turisme-ACT) and Jaume Banacolocha (Diagonal TV).

Audio-visual companies meet in Terrassa, City of Film by UNESCO

Organised by the Cluster, around sixty agents from the audio-visual industry visited the Audio-visual Park of Catalonia, in Terrassa, after UNESCO recently chose the city to be part of the Creative Cities Network in the Film section. This is an important milestone in the effort to internationalise the industry.

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Miquel Rutllant is the new chairman of the Catalan Audiovisual Cluster

The new presidency begins a new stage based on the strengthening of the Cluster and focusing on internationalization of the Audiovisual sector

Miquel Rutllant was appointed Chairman of the Catalan Audio-visual Cluster last Tuesday 12th of December, after the Assembly of Members unanimously approved the proposal of the Board of Directors and of the outgoing Chairman, Jordi Mendieta.

Director General of Lavinia since 2012, Miquel Rutllant is a senior telecommunication engineer who graduated from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, and also has an MBA from IESE Business School. He has worked in the telecommunications and chemical industries and has held senior positions over the last 15 years in companies in the audio-visual sector, including the position of Sales Director of TVC Multimèdia at the Catalan Media Corporation (CCMA), and Regional Director of Audio-visual Engineering at VITELSA.

Rutllant had been the Vice Chairman of the Cluster to date, and has taken the role of Chairman with the aim “to follow the line taken by the former Chairman, with more activities, more interaction between partners, and more collaboration with other sectors and markets.”

In his presentation before the Assembly of Members, Rutllant also stressed that, during his term, he aims to strengthen the international side of the Cluster. “We need to find ways for all companies to internationalise, including small and medium-sized businesses. The sector needs it now more than ever.”

The outgoing Chairman, Jordi Mendieta, who was appointed in December 2016, has generated a period of growth for the Cluster. The number of partners, scheduled activities and the number of contacts with national and international sector institutions has increased over the year. Jordi Mendieta is now a member of the Board of Directors.

According to official data, the audio-visual and multimedia industry has a turnover of 1.662 billion euros — a figure that represents 18% of the overall Spanish audio-visual industry, and 16% of the Catalan cultural sector. It also has 2,235 companies with 14,047 employees.

“What could we learn from the Danish audio-visual system to apply in Catalonia?”

“What could we learn from the Danish audio-visual system to apply in Catalonia?” is one question asked during a session entitled “The Danish audio-visual model”, which began the Audio-visual Talent Week, a meeting space between emerging talent and the audio-visual industry organised by the Cluster, from 28th November to 1st December 2017.

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In addition to opening the Week, this session was part of a group of activities in which the Cluster aims to analyse the different audio-visual models in the world. The French and North-American models have been tackled so far (Click here to find out more).

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The Denmark model was the focus on this occasion, as it is a country which Catalonia has often taken as a reference, and for this reason, the round table had top-notch participants with diverse backgrounds. David Matamoros, the representative in Spain of the Danish production company Zentropa (founded by Lars Von Trier) was the moderator of the round table, which saw the participation of Madeleine Ekman (Zentropa Sweden), Martin Kofoed (Danish Film Institute), Petar Mitric (University of Copenhagen), and Ton Lladó, a Catalan economist specialising in the Danish model.

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Watch the streaming session here =DANISH AUDIO-VISUAL MODEL

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World TV Day: A debate on the success of TV series

This year, the World TV Day in Catalonia  focussed on the success of fiction series, both from the point of view of the narrative and the business model that accompanies them. The session, held at the TecnoCampus in Mataró, had the support of the Catalan Audio-visual Cluster.

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Eastern Europe: opportunities for the audio-visual market

The countries of Eastern Europe offer a good opportunity for growth in the audio-visual sector and for Catalan companies that wish to open markets. This was the main conclusion drawn from the work day for partners only, which the Cluster organised together with ACCIÓ.

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ZOOM Brands 2017. Brands and the new media [video streaming]

Targets transforming into audience; technological platforms becoming televisions; brand value transforming into content… It is not news that brands explore new formulas to promote their products, including advertising on TV, on the internet or social networks, as well as new formats such as branded content and virtual reality.

However, brands are beginning to explore a new strategy: the creation of their own audio-visual media. TV channels, applications and online platforms with their own content are the trends in brand communication. This is a new model that opens up new avenues in the relationship between the audio-visual sector, agencies and brands. Zoom Brands 2017 analysed the new strategies and success stories with the participation of companies including Lavinia Next (Ideas & Solution Factory at Lavinia Group), ‘La Caixa’ Foundation and Agència &Rosàs (with the ALMA project), ZOOPA Creative Studio and Nestlé TV.

The Cluster takes part in the conference organised by ‘Distretto Produttivo Puglia Creativa’

The Audio-visual Cluster participated in the meeting of managers of European cultural and creative industries held in Bari (Italy) on 30th and 31st October. Organised by the Italian company Distretto Produttivo Puglia Creativa, the conference was part of the “ChIMERA – Innovative Cultural & Creative Clusters in the Mediterranean Area” project, a programme created for the networking of clusters and institutions in the creative and cultural sectors.

Virtual reality and short film

The leading company in the field of virtual reality, (VR) VISYON, the leader in post-production, Antaviana Films, and the distribution company of VR glasses, Goodie Cardboard 360, met at FILMETS Badalona Film Festival in a session organised by the Cluster and  Badalona Comunicació to discuss the relationship between emerging VR technology and short film formats.

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The Cluster participates in the international conference CHIMERA, in Slovenia

Invited by the Chamber of Commerce of Terrassa, the Audio-visual Cluster travelled to Ljubljana (Slovenia) to take part in the international conference “CHIMERA – Innovative Cultural & Creative Clusters in the Mediterranean Area” (3rd to 5th October).

The conference brought together clusters and institutions relating to cultural and creative industries in Europe, and was an opportunity to network with a nearby and emerging market like Eastern Europe.

The Cluster presented the Catalan audio-visual sector and participated in the discussion panels on cultural and creative industries in Europe.

The Cluster Promotes the Video Game Industry

The Cluster will promote the video game industry with a plan that focuses on talent and aims to strengthen the competitiveness of companies.

The initiative comes out of several meetings recently held with creators and representatives of the video game sector, a sector that has emerged with a strong rate of growth in Catalonia over the last few years.

In one year (from 2014 to 2015), the video game sector grew 41%, and by 2015 it was comprised of 120 companies (24.8% of the national total for Spain), 1,687 employees, the highest employment rate in all of Spain (38% of the total), and a turnover of 217 million euro (42% of the national total).

Video, Music and Virtual Reality

Virtual Reality technologies have emerged as a driving force for change, both in the audio-visual and in the music sector. Are they economically viable? What creative potential do they hold? What is the forecast for their future?

In order to answer these questions, the Audio-visual Cluster organized the session “Virtual Reality, Video, and Music,” with internationally-known VR producers, within the context of the professional conference component of Primavera Pro – Primavera Sound.

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The session included the participation of Steven Hancock, from Melody VR, the largest music content library of VR; Adam Rogers, from Gentle Manhands, American producer of videoclips and VR animation; Xavi Conesa, from Visyon, a Catalan benchmark company concerning the VR content, the Immersive and Augmented Reality. The moderator was Fèlix Balbas, from Minimo VFX, a 3-D and VFX company.

Goodie Cardboard 360, which works on the distribution of VR technology, distributed VR glasses among the attendees.