News round-up: DocuBay strikes Shimla film festival; Conecta Fiction names France as ‘focus country’

No Woman’s Land

DocuBay strikes Shimla film festival deal

Fledgling factual streamer DocuBay has partnered with the International Film Festival Shimla (IFFS) in a deal that will see IFFS documentaries featuring on the OTT service.

Select titles will be featured under their own category called IFFSBay, with select docs from the most recent IFFS event now available. DocuBay is also the official streaming partner of the IFFS, which takes place in the historic Himalayan foothill town.

Titles featured include: Authenticity, which explores the effectiveness of Ayurvedic treatments; No Woman’s Land, about women in a Himalayan village defying the laws that keep them from inheriting property; and Behind The Bars, which delves into how learning skills such as stitching and baking are helping to rehabilitate prisoners.

Akul Tripathi, CEO at DocuBay, said: “Working with independent filmmakers and film festivals like the IFFS reinforces our commitment to providing a platform for storytellers to showcase their work worldwide.

“We’re very proud to highlight these features on DocuBay and look forward to further building relationships with independent filmmakers and other international film festivals to become a global voice for the factual film community.”

Conecta Fiction names France as ‘focus country’

Spanish drama festival Conecta Fiction has unveiled France as its European Focus Country at the fourth edition of the event, which takes place this summer.

The designation will see major French institutions and bodies attend the event, including TV France International and the European Producers Club, as well as French TV networks and production houses such as TF1, France Television, Arte France and StudioCanal.

Mediawan Originals, Banijay Group, Orange Studio, Lagardière Studios and Federation Entertainment are also involved, along with Elephant International, Gaumont, Wild Horses Group and Newen. The National Center for Film and Animation (the CNC), the Audio-visual Production Union (USPA) and La Guilde Française des Scénaristes (the French Screenwriters’ Union) have also signed up.

FilmFrance, the country’s promotional agency, will also attend the event, which takes place from 22 to 25 June, is held at the Palace of Congress of Baluarte in Pamplona-Iruña, in the Navarra region of Spain.

Géraldine Gonard, director of Conecta Fiction, said: “The program of activities is designed to improve and consolidate professional relationships with key players in the French industry, undoubtedly one of the most influential in Europe.

“We’ll present and analyze in depth how it works: its production and financing mechanisms, its latest successes in fiction, its challenges and talents. We’ll set up networking slots to connect the members of the French delegation with the rest of the participants.”