Blood Window, Brussels International Fantastic Film Fest Partner on TV Initiative

By Jamie Lang

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Argentina’s Ventana Sur, certainly one of Latin America’s most important meet-marts, announced today that its Blood Window sidebar will collaborate with INCAA – the country’s national film-TV body, which co-runs with Cannes – and the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFFF) on the B2 Genre TV project, the first such program aimed at the promotion of genre TV content.

The BIFFF Market will play host to the B2 event from April 10-12. There, TV industry professionals will take part in pitching sessions, presentations and one-on-one meetings with creatives looking to produce content specializing in horror, science fiction, thriller and fantasy, made for TV.

The agreement will be signed by INCAA president Ralph Haiek and BIFFF director Guy Delmote as the Ventana Sur market kicks off on Monday Dec. 10.

“The final aim of this agreement is to promote genre films, and especially genre TV series,” said Delmote and Romain Roll, managing director of the BIF Market, in a statement. “That’s why one of the biggest genre film festivals in the world, BIFFF-BIF Market, and the largest genre film market in Latin America, , made this agreement.”

“Even if this year’s agreement is only based on Belgian and Argentine TV genre productions, the aim is to support all European and Latin American TV genre projects in the future,” they concluded.

The pact comes as demand for genre TV programming is at a premium. Both linear and VOD operators have seen major audience success with series such as Netflix’s “Stranger Things” and “The Haunting of Hill House,” or FX’s “American Horror Story.”

As for international productions, in March Netflix announced that 90% of its audience for the German-language genre series “Dark” came from outside of that country. They also commissioned Mexican director José Manuel Cravioto (“El Chapo”) to helm the upcoming Spanish-language, Mexico-set “Diablero,” an over-the-top, monster hunting gorefest.

The Blood Window – BIFFF partnership is indicative of the Argentine organization’s increasing international swagger. Partnerships already exist with South Korea’s Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, the Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival in Catalonia. It also hosts the Blood Window Showcase at the Cannes Festival, among other initiatives.

An open call for participants will be announced in December, with two Argentine projects in development or post-production to be selected to take part in the new program.