Kicking Off with TIES THAT BIND Workshop and Labs in Udine & Celebrating RENOIR in Cannes

press release

We are thrilled to announce that RENOIR, directed by Chie Hayakawa and produced by TTB alumni Eiko Mizuno-Gray, Fran Borgia, Yulia Evina Bhara, Alemberg Ang, and TTB’s Head of Studies Christophe Bruncher, is headed to the Cannes Competition! Huge congratulations to the whole team!

Meanwhile in Udine, we are gearing up for the second workshop of the 16th edition of the TTB Asia-Europe Co-Production Workshop, taking place from April 27 to May 1, 2025.

Guided by group leaders Fran Borgia (Akanga Film Asia, SG) and Jonas Weydemann (Weydemann Bros., DE), participants will continue developing their projects, companies, and careers in group work sessions.

The Workshop features a rich lineup of plenary sessions in partnership with FOCUS ASIA, the Industry Section of the Udine Far East Film Festival:

• Audience Design with AI Focus Groups by Sami Arpa (Largo.ai, CH)
• Do Remakes and Think I.P. by Thomas Bruxelle (Bright Lights Films, FR) and Shao-Yi Chen (Screenworks Asia, TW)
• Co-Production Case Studies on Amoeba & Stranger Eyes by Fran Borgia and Stefano Centini (Volos Films, IT/TW). Stranger Eyes premiered in Venice Competition 2024 and was co-produced with EAVE graduates Alex C. Lo and Jean-Laurent Csinidis.
• Distribution Strategies for Asian Films in Europe, curated by Europa Distribution, with speakers including Stephan Holl (Rapid Eye Movies, DE), Daiva Visockyte (Kino Pavasaris, LT), Irene Zoccolan (Tucker Film, IT), and Albert Yao (Swallow Wings Films, TW)
• Distribution Strategies for European Films in Asia, in partnership with Europa International, with insights from Vincent Quek (Anticipate Pictures, SG), Rapeepat Jumnongjit (Sahamongkolfilm International, TH), Sang Min Kim (Emu Artspace, KR), and Albert Yao.

Participants will also receive expert feedback on the distribution potential of their projects from leading European and Asian distributors such as Agnieszka Matynia (Gutek Film, PL), Eric Le Bot (Art House Films, FR), Stephan Holl, Rapeepat Jumnongjit, Vincent Quek, Albert Yao, and sales agents including Valeska Neu (Films Boutique, DE) and Ola Byszuk (Lucky Number, FR).

© Leonardo Bratti

Individual consultations will be tailored to the needs of the participants, covering financing in Asia with Weijie Lai (E&W Films, SG), insights into Asian cinema with Roger Garcia (General Film Services, UK/HK), and sales strategies with Valeska Neu and Ola Byszuk. They will also benefit from script consultancy by Clare Downs (UK), pitching and communication training with Sibylle Kurz (DE), and career, company, or project advice from Christophe Bruncher (Ici et Là Productions, FR).

Udine will also host two additional programmes:

• Distribution Lab, welcoming 15 European and Asian distributors for case studies, group work, and screenings — designed to explore release strategies across both markets. Organised in collaboration with Europa Distribution and Focus Asia.
• Sales Lab, bringing together 10European sales agents for sessions on exploring successful distribution of European films in Asia. Organised in collaboration with Europa International and Focus Asia.

Participants from the Workshop and both Labs will connect through joint plenary sessions, individual meetings and networking gatherings within the FOCUS ASIA framework, offering valuable opportunities to engage with a wider network of international industry professionals.

TIES THAT BIND is organised by the Friuli Venezia Giulia Audiovisual Fund, EAVE, Udine Far East Film Festival, and the Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA), with the support of the Creative Europe – MEDIA subprogramme of the European Union.

For more information please contact:

EAVE Project Manager - Tanika Sajatovic: tanika@eave.org

www.eave.org, www.tiesthatbind.eu

Page published 28 April 2025. Updated 30 April 2025.