Marit van den Elshout (CineMart), Vanja Kaludjercic (HFM), Willemien van Aalst (NFF), and Bero Beyer (IFFR) at the launch of BoostNL in Cannes yesterday. 

46th International Film Festival Rotterdam

25 January - 5 February 2017

Rotterdam, 17 May 2016

Cannes 2016 sees the launch of BoostNL, a new initiative of Dutch co-production markets CineMart and the Holland Film Meeting (HFM). The collaboration will maximise market support for international feature projects that have already been presented at CineMart or supported by the Hubert Bals Fund, and for Dutch feature projects currently in development.

BoostNL targets projects that are already recognised for their potential and quality. Throughout the program, project participants will benefit from ongoing support and guidance, whether in terms of business planning or creative decision-making, and participants will be encouraged to incorporate inspired feedback into their project. What’s more, one-on-one sessions with key international mentors will deliver bespoke festival, sales and marketing strategies that will support the project through all stages of development, from advanced script to post-production stage to marketing and distribution.

The selection of international projects will be announced at the end of June, while the Dutch projects will be announced by the end of July/early August.

The program, co-managed by CineMart’s Marit van den Elshout and HFM’s Vanja Kaludjercic, will run in three stages, kicking off at the Holland Film Meeting 2016 (September 22-25). A follow-up session is scheduled for October/November and the third stage will take place during CineMart at IFFR in January 2017.

Comments CineMart’s Marit van den Elshout: “The Holland Film Meeting and CineMart have always been friendly partners, but we are very glad to join forces in a more structured way. By doing so we will be able to offer a lot more services to projects that have already proven their quality. We are doing more for less in an overcrowded project market landscape. The partnership really fits in with IFFR’s overall plans to offer continuous support to the projects that the festival is already attached to, from development through to their eventual distribution and release. Through this partnership we are glad to be connected even more to the blossoming Dutch film industry.”

HFM’s Vanja Kaludjercic adds: “Every year some 20 international projects are selected for the HFM whose mission is to stimulate the production and funding of independent cinema. Dutch and international producers are becoming increasingly involved in high quality co-productions. What we are offering through this new and exciting collaboration with CineMart is more elaborate, longer-running support that will prove invaluable to the chosen projects. It is very easy to lose momentum after the intensity of a market and keep a grip on ongoing strategy. The BoostNL program is designed to address this with a three-part structure spanning two major events over an intense and fruitful 5-month period of development.”

Marit and Vanja are contactable during Cannes Film Festival at the Dutch See NL Pavilion, as are Bero Beyer, director of International Film Festival Rotterdam, and Netherlands Film Festival director Willemien van Aalst.