There are 3 main sections of FEST - New Directors | New Films Festival, the Film Program, Training Ground and Pitching Forum. So, if you are planning on coming to Training Ground, you should be advised that there is a lot more to it than the masterclasses and the workshops.
With the Training Ground pass you can access all the screenings of the Film Program. From the competitive sections, such as Golden and Silver Lynx, to the non-competitive sections, like Flavours of the World or Be Kind Rewind. Happening a bit all over Espinho, at Centro Multimeios de Espinho, Cinema Casino and even at the beach, these screenings show the best of what’s being made right now all over the world.
This pass also grants you access to the Pitching Forum presentation sessions. Although you can’t submit your own project and ask your own questions, you get to listen to major names of the industry give advices to new filmmakers like you, that may have the same questions and will surely receive advices that can apply to you too. These sessions are held at the Library, Friday 22nd and Saturday 23rd, from 10h00 to 18h00, each session is dedicated to a genre, so check that out to make sure you go to the session or sessions that can help you the most.
We also want to make sure that you don’t miss any Training Ground parallel activities, such as the Speed Meeting, that happen on the first day, Tuesday 19th, where you can, for a single minute, meet the people you are to spend the next few days with and some of the guest speakers and experts.
Another activity worth to mention is the Industry Meetings, a platform where some of our most accomplished guests will be available for one-on-one meetings to offer advice on project development. An extremely valuable tool for advanced participants looking for feedback for the projects they are already working on.
As well as the Filmmakers Corner, a great opportunity to expose your work to an audience of choice in a special screening space. The space is open throughout all week of the event and can be booked by any participant. Besides, you can promote your screening by any means you wish, from leaflets to encouraging word of mouth or displaying posters, just be inventive and get noticed.
Taking place in the main room of the Piscina Solario Atlantico, the Networking Dinners are only accessible to FEST attendees, being the perfect occasion to gather with participants, invited filmmakers and guests of Training Ground and Pitching Forum, whilst enjoying tradicional Portuguese dishes (vegetarian included) and wine. Networking Dinners require separate registration.
Open to everyone and aiming for a bigger connection between the people of Espinho and the festival, there will be what we call the FESTival Village, the festival’s leisure space. Right in front of one of the most visited beaches in the north of the country, in comfortable seats and in the shadow provided by tents, enjoying some popcorns or street food, you will be able to relax in between all this other activities.
And after all this excitement there are the FEST Nights, the perfect way to finish your day and one of the main networking points of the festival. The motto during FEST is Work Hard, Play Hard, so while we invite you to take part in the masterclasses and workshops, we also invite you to join other participants, guests and staff the oficial FEST bar, where there are parties every evening.
If you feel like you need some advice to get through all of this, don’t forget to check our team advices for a great FEST week.
If you just realised that you definitely need to be at Espinho from 18th to 25th of June, you can register for Training Ground, or sign up as a volunteer.
If you still aren’t convinced about FEST - Training Ground, see more about the event in our About page or take a peek in the video.
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