Slamdance Entertainment, a joint venture between the Slamdance Film Festival and Marco Weber's production company Atlantic Streamline, is to launch a Slamdance Film Festival event in Cologne, Germany, on Aug 18.

Taking place in association with music convention Popkomm, the new event is aimed to create and develop a European counterpart to the annual US festival which takes place in Park City, Utah, at the same time as Sundance.

Slamdance was launched in 1995 by a group of writers, producers and directors as a showcase for films from first-time directors working with limited budgets. The new event intends to support new German and European film-makers in the same way.

Popkomm is a 12 year-old trade fair for pop music and entertainment and dubs itself the world's largest music event. "In our understanding Pop has always been more than just music - it's also an enjoyment of life, art, fashion, new media, technology and also film," said Uli Gromaas, Managing Director of Musik Komm, in a statement. "Film and film music has had as a special a place in the Pompom program and now to invigorate it with a partner like Slamdance is a natural development, particularly as we match very well in "touch & feel." Popkomm. has proved many times to be a starting point for new projects and we are looking forward to an exciting integration of the Slamdance Film Festival in Popkomm 2001."

Slamdance is calling for German-produced entries by new film-makers by July 20.