Spearheaded by Costa Rica’s film commission, its Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (PROCOMER), and Ministry of Culture & Youth, the inaugural Costa Rica Media Market (CRMM) kicks off June 24 and 25 as it positions itself as a key platform for regional projects in the international market.
A spin-off from the Central America and Caribbean Audiovisual Market (MAUCC), which organized hundreds of business meetings during the course of seven editions, CRMM, led by film commissioner Marysela Zamora, will host over 500 business meetings and more than 50 international buyers.
“Last year, I made the decision to change things. I told the team: ‘We need to rethink this.’ We then worked on securing a bigger budget since I needed more resources than I originally had. In the end, everything came together, and it’s working. This is the first time we’ve done something like this, and I’m really excited. The team is excited too, and I think the rebranding and the direction we’ve taken were the right choices,” said Zamora.
Marysela Zamora, Costa Rica Film Commissioner
The CRMM agenda includes business roundtables, matchmaking sessions, expert panels and masterclasses. It also features project showcases presented by the industry section of the Costa Rica International Film Festival. In the run-up to the market, the third edition of Tres Puertos Costa Rica – a development lab supporting Latin American film projects, ran June 18-23.
Key buyers and participants include Gaumont (Germany), ND Pictures (Netherlands), La Bonne Epoque (France), Arnon Manor of Chemical Soup and U.S.-based Creative Chaos, led by Tom Donahue (“Mafia Spies,” “Thank You for Your Service”).
Mariana Salas Campbell, Warner Bros Discovery Senior VP, original production LatAm, holds a workshop and masterclass, albeit online due to scheduling issues. “Ever since I left Costa Rica 13 years ago, I always had this idea in the back of my mind — that someday I’d come back and bring a bit of what I’ve learned throughout my journey in the Latin American TV industry,” she told Variety.
“This year, we decided to offer this workshop on reality shows for two main reasons: First, it’s a genre you learn way more on the job than in a classroom; and second, the reality TV industry is still pretty underdeveloped here, which makes it a huge opportunity to give local audiovisual professionals the tools to create and produce this kind of format,” she said, adding that the Masterclass will cover different types of reality shows, how they’re structured, key things to keep in mind when developing a format, how to build a content deck and tips on how to pitch ideas.
Given the prominence of female directors and producers in Costa Rica, its leading lights, led by filmmaker Antonella Sudasassi (“Memories of a Burning Body”), producer Lynette Coll (“In the Summers”) the co-founder-director of Luz Films, and Karina Avellán, co-founder-director of top indie distributor Pacifica Grey, will participate in a panel on independent cinema on the first day.
Other panels on Day One will focus on how to navigate content markets, with Content Americas’ Fabricio Ferrara and MIP Markets’ Manuel de Souza participating; a panel on post production led by Chemical Soup’s Manor, a former senior VP of visual effects at Sony Pictures; an interview with Costa Rican actor Jose Palma, whose credits include “Batman,” “Venom” and “High Wire,” and a panel on global opportunities in sound design led by Erick Vargas Williams, president of the Costa Rican Association of Audiovisual Sound Designers.
Day Two highlights include a talk by Hollywood publicist and Academy Awards PR specialist Alvar Carretero about film awards as a marketing tool. Andy Van Veen, CEO of ND Pictures, and Johanna Chacón, head of international acquisitions at Gravitas, discuss product placement and distribution in the era of global cinema while composer Arturo Cardelús holds a Masterclass titled “Scoring Emotion: How to Compose a Score that Speaks for Your Film.”
CRMM also runs alongside the Costa Rica International Film Festival, now on its 13th year, which opened on June 20 and wraps on the 29th.
As an added perk, location managers and producers with projects seeking Costa Rican locations, will join fam trips across six Film Friendly Zones in the country after CRMM wraps. The current 11% cash rebate, while small, is an added incentive given the country’s stunning locations, Zamora noted.
Over June 23-26, the Locarno Industry Academy Latin America holds closed door sessions of its 3rd Costa Rica Industry Academy with selected participants. Run by Avellán and Marcelo Quesada of Pacifica Grey, the training program gives participants the chance to delve deeper into the world of the film industry and network with professionals participating in the market and festival.
“Each year, we select 10 active projects from across Latin America, with a dedicated focus on Central America and the Caribbean. The four-day program offers an intensive and enriching schedule of masterclasses, roundtable discussions, group sessions, and hands-on workshops led by leading professionals in the global film industry,” said Quesada, who listed Morbido Group CEO Pablo Guisa, a keynote speaker at the market, Paula Astorga, former director of Mexico’s Cineteca Nacional, and Fernando Vílchez, programmer at Seminci Valladolid and founder of FilmMadrid among the participating industry leaders.
Said Guisa, who delivered his keynote speech on the first day: “Costa Rica and the Caribbean are perfect for creating new corridors between North and South America. With strong infrastructure and connections, Costa Rica serves as an ideal hub, instead of just building bridges, we can focus on creating pathways for collaboration.”
“There’s been real progress, but there’s still a long way to go. Thankfully, we now have spaces like the Costa Rica Media Market — a great place to network, find partners for your project, and just talk. These kinds of events are super valuable because they let us exchange ideas with fellow creators, find solutions, and discover shared goals,” said Salas Campbell, adding: “I still think we’ve got a big journey ahead — especially when it comes to creating more content by and for Central Americans. I’ve always believed the industry should look at Central America as one united market. That would really help build audience volume, and open up opportunities to produce more content for the region as a whole. It’s a long and probably tough road — but definitely not impossible.”
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