Karla

Source: Courtesy of Flanders Film Days

Karla Puttemans

“The biggest challenge is how to create enough opportunities for the many ambitious and talented film makers we have in our region,” says Karla Puttemans, the new director of the Flanders Audiovisual Fund (VAF) 

Puttemans took over at VAF from Koen Van Bockstal in March at a time when the Flemish government was implementing serious spending cuts. The Fund, which supports films, series, games and podcasts, “emerged unscathed”, she says with relief, with an annual budget of €19.5m.

Soon after she arrived, VAF announced Flanders Film Days (October 7-8), a relaunch of Flanders Image’s feature and TV showcase, previously known as Connext, at which 63 feature projects are being presented to international industry executives 

Representatives from film festivals including Venice, Berlinale, Locarno, Karlovy Vary and Rotterdam, as well as sales agents The Match Factory, Goodfellas, Taskovski, M-Appeal, Coproduction Office, Square Eyes and Mediawanare are attending the two-day parade of the best in Flemish cinema in Ghent.

Puttemans talks to Screen about how VAF is prioritising stability in terms of industry support, the fund’s innovative talent development programme and what to expect from Flanders Film Days. 

What are your plans for VAF?

I strongly believe in evolution not revolution. My first priority is to safeguard stability for our industry during this economic downturn by establishing a flexible framework within our five-year agreement with the government. This will enable us to respond to - and anticipate - the rapid evolutions that define our industry more than ever.

One of the first new steps I’m taking is the launch of a local talent development programme for screenwriters and stand-up comedians who want to collaborate on new film ideas infused with lightness and humour.

I also aim to intensify our Innovation Workshop, a programme we designed for the cross-pollination between storytellers from film and TV and professionals from the gaming and extended reality [XR] industries. It’s such a great advantage to have all these profiles under one roof at VAF. A remarkable example that resulted from this programme is the virtual reality experience A Long Goodbye by Kate Voet and Victor Maes which was awarded the Achievement Prize at the Immersive Competition of the Venice Film Festival just last month.

Who are the new wave of local filmmakers?

Filmmakers such as Bas Devos, Fien Troch, Felix van Groeningen, Teodora Ana Mihai and Lukas Dhont naturally attract the interest of the international film industry thanks to their status and their track record in festivals and sales.

But a whole new generation of filmmakers is eager to bring their film projects to the international market too: Anthony Nti and Chingiz Karibekov, Rand Abou Fakher and Meltse Van Coillie are just a few directors we have high expectations for.

Flanders Film Days will also mark the return of some established names from Flanders such as Stijn Coninx, Jan Verheyen, Patrice Toye and Caroline Strubbe. There is much to look forward to.

How is the Fund developing new talent?

Our coaching programmes have proven to be powerful accelerators for new talent. One standout example is our Wildcard programme, designed for graduating students from Flemish film schools. It has given a significant boost to the careers of filmmakers such as Nathalie Teirlinck, Leonardo Van Dijl, Gilles Coulier, Sahim Omar Kalifa and Adil & Bilall, among many others. The latter are now internationally recognised as the directors of the Bad Boys franchise yet they continue to be active as filmmakers in Flanders.

How strong is documentary making in Flanders now?

The Oscar nomination this year for Johan Grimonprez’s Soundtrack To A Coup d’Etat was obviously the most visible example but documentaries from Flanders have been showing at almost all major documentary festivals in recent years. Our annual budget for documentaries is around €1.6m and we are delighted to be able to present exciting new doc projects at Flanders Film Days by Laura Vandewynckel, Volkan Üce, Olga Lucovnicova, Pieter Jan De Pue and many others.

What are you hoping for from the inaugural Flanders Film Days?

[We are] already receiving encouraging signals from international festivals and sales agents even before the event begins. VAF supports filmmakers every step of the way. Our role does not end with financing. We also want to give our films every opportunity on the international market and in the festival circuit. Fifty international guests [are] coming to Ghent. In addition, we will welcome around 65 Belgian distributors, broadcasters, film festivals and the broad audiovisual field.

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