The meeting with Fresh Production Film Co. took  place during the Boat Meetings of the International Film Festival “Molodist”. Stelios Ziannis was invited as an expert & representer of Aktis Film International GmbH, a renowned world sales and production development company, based in Germany. The two companies met during last year’s Boat Meeting in Kiev and started since then a  close co-operation on the field of co-production and development of international feature films and projects i.e. “Ursus”, “Assassin’s Love”, “The Apostle”, “Beauplan”, “Snow In The Carpathians”, “Tsar” and many others.

Stelios Ziannis (Aktis Film International GmbH), Iulia Chernyavskaya, Zaza Buadze, Oleg Scherbina (Fresh Production Film Co)

Stelios Ziannis answered a few questions about the cooperation with Fresh Production and about future targets and projects.

- What is the job of a sales agent?

S.Z.  A sales agent is selling  film rights world wide. It concerns all rights of a film i.e. theatrical, Video, DVD, TV rights etc.

I work in the film business for more than 24 years. During this time I occupied different positions  in the film industry  i.e. DVD distribution, TV sales, production, world sales etc. I was working with big companies as Filmverlag der Autoren (founded in the 70s by Wim Wenders and other renowned German directors), Kinowelt  and Studio Canal since 2008. I started my own company Aktis Film early 2009. This experience is maybe the reason to be invited as an expert in international forums like „Boat Meetings“.

- What are the real chances to attract foreign investors and partners for co-productions and cooperation?

S.Z. The process has to be mutual! Any way, it has to be of international importance. The project has to include, for instance, international cast, production value and the most important – the subject  of a feature film has to attract an international audience. It must be interesting not only to the Ukrainian audience, but also to Asian, European and American.

Of course, on the first place, you choose the audience & market place of the product. If the project is for the national, home market – it is your business and decision. If you are interested to make movies for a wide international audience – you have to follow certain rules and start the project development from the very beginning as a mutual process of all partners. It gives the better results.

- Why are you interested in Fresh Production & how do you built the interrelations?

S.Z.  The people,  of course, are the most important thing! When we first met, got to know each other, I felt one spirit in common. Second, I was surprised of Fresh Production’s experience. The company, is working for long time & successfully on the Ukrainian market. All productions were made on a high level & quality. And third, the company has plenty of creative ideas and is working fast driven and effective.

- What are your future joint plans?

S.Z. Except to the projects we are already working at, we are creating the upcoming projects from the very beginning: creating the idea, treatment, script, financing (searching for the funds) in the Ukraine, Germany & other countries and working with international funds. The work is very specific but we already have the common base & methods of working.

-  A few words about joint projects & their realization.

The first project was „Ursus“. It was professionally prepared before our involving. We are all closely working at the „Ursus“ project  from February of this year, after discussing it in details in Berlin. The work is not the easy one, but we are on the right way.

In addition, we have other joint projects in different genre. They are under consideration in details & a  so-called „critical selection“ with our European & American partners. We thoroughly estimate every detail and segment in order to get the best results. There is just one sorrow because Ukraine is not a member of the European Media programme and Eurimages, yet. But we try to find ways of solving this problem. Our company will do it’s very best to find solutions so that we can finish all the projects with the best results.

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