Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg Campus Magazin 23/24

ATELIER LUDWIGSBURG-PARIS
The maximum of 18 participants per year also gain important
insights into the industry through excursions to
internationally renowned festivals (Berlinale, Cannes,
Clermont-Ferrand, Series Mania) as well as meetings
with representatives of tv broadcasters and funding institutions
(ARTE, SWR, EURIMAGES, FFA, MBB, MEDIA
and others).
Many participants have already gained experience in
production before attending the programme and are particularly
motivated to learn more about distribution and
sales. This is another reason why the internship in world
sales or distribution - among others at DCM, The Match
Factory and Beta Film in Germany, at Memento, Coproduction
Office in France as well as Hanway, Mister Smith
and Artificial Eye in the UK - can be an important step
towards a successful professional future.
Due to the relevance of the social discourse and the prevailing
grievances in the industry in the area of gender
equality, the Atelier - as well as the Filmakademie
in general - takes this topic into account in its teaching
and structure, for example through workshops that explicitly
impart knowledge on the topic of gender. In order
to support future female producers and distributors
in particular, there is mentoring specifically tailored to
the needs of female participants. This topic is also implicitly
taken into account in the selection of relevant
female lecturers setting an example, thus triggering discourses
in the area of compatibility and changes with regard
to role models.
CAMPUS FILMAKADEMIE AND NETWORKS
A big plus is the location of the Atelier at the Filmakademie.
This opens up almost unlimited networking and
development opportunities for the participants through
the shared campus with the students of FABW, its Animationsinstitut
and the Academy for Performing Arts
Baden-Württemberg. It is undisputed that the contacts
made here are valuable for professional advancement far
beyond participation.
ATELIER NETWORK is the association of former Atelier
participants that has built up an active network of over
350 young European and international industry representatives
who meet regularly. This network facilitates
the Europe-wide exchange of information, experiences,
contacts and job offers. Cross-border film projects are
developed jointly by alumni. The association members
also benefit considerably from the networking within
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the Franco-German Film Academy with the initiatives
Minitraité, Franco-German Film Meeting and the Atelier.
The common thread and at the same time another practical
strand running through the continuing education
year is short film production. The production of a short
film series, produced in cooperation between the two
film schools together with ARTE and SWR as co-producers,
has been the central project in the Atelier curriculum
for 18 years. Every year, up to nine short films
are produced on a common theme, which the participants
work on in bi-national producer teams and successfully
realize throughout the year. The finished films
not only enrich the portfolio of the Atelier alumni, but
also always reach a broad public by being shown, after
the premieres in Ludwigsburg and Paris, at the Festival
of French Films in Tübingen, the Max Ophüls Prize Festival
in Saarbrücken and in the programme of the ARTE
television channel.
There is close cooperation with several trades at the
Film akademie, especially in the field of screenwriting:
students from the screenwriting department have been
writing the screenplays for the Atelier short films produced
in Ludwigsburg since 2006. There is also intensive
cooperation between Filmakademie students and Atelier
participants in the areas of cinematography, editing,
production design, film music, film sound & sound design
and other trades. While the FABW students benefit
above all from the international atmosphere in the team
and, among other things, from the secured festival and
TV exploitation of the short films, for the Atelier participants
the firmly established connections of the Filmakademie
students at their school prove to be particularly
profitable.
POSITIVE EFFECTS ON THE INDUSTRY
The film industry is enriched by the alumni of the programme
and the competitiveness of the European film
industry is improved: this is done by imparting knowledge
in the Atelier that focuses on current developments
and trends in all areas, especially digital distribution
channels and marketing. The entrepreneurial and economic
side of business is also elementary for most participants:
Many are on the threshold of founding their
own production company - workshops on setting up
companies and alternative business models are helpful
here. Social aspects such as conflict management, team
leadership and gender awareness are also part of the curriculum.
The exceptionally high employment rate of