BEIRUT-LOCARNO INDUSTRY ACADEMY

The “Beirut – Locarno Industry Academy” is an initiative organized by the Metropolis Cinema Association in collaboration with the Locarno Film Festival. 

This workshop aims at helping young industry professionals in sales, marketing, online and traditional distribution, exhibition and programming, to understand the challenges of the independent movie industry within the Arab world, and the International scene.

The fifth edition of the “Beirut – Locarno Industry Academy” will take place from April 27 to 29 2023, in parallel with the documentary film festival Écrans du Réel. It will offer a group of participants from the Arab world the chance to meet with International guest-speakers and tutors.

The Industry Academy, launched for the first time at the Locarno Festival in 2014, is a program for young professionals working in the fields of international sales, marketing, distribution, exhibition and programming (festival, cine-club, museum, cinematheque). It has been created in order to help them to position themselves in the industry, and also to allow them to directly interact with regional and international industry professionals and key players. The Industry Academy acts as a shortcut for a new generation of professionals entering the independent film industry, encouraging their progress, helping them to get a better understanding of the Industry’s challenges and broaden their network of contacts. The program has now expanded internationally under the name of Locarno Industry Academies with the following partners Morelia IFF and IMCINE (Mexico), Cinema do Brasil (Brazil), Australab (Chile), The Film Society of Lincoln Center (USA), Thessaloniki IFF (Greece). The aim of the Locarno Industry Academy is also at building bridges across different markets in Europe, North and Latin America, and now Middle-East and Maghreb, and encouraging the mobility of young professionals.