The leading Mexican festival wants the scheme to be in place for next March, covering films from Mexico, Latin America and the Caribbean.
Films in Progress kicks off its 10th edition in San Sebastian on Tuesday, while its counterpart for films from the Maghreb and Portuguese-speaking Africa, Cinema In Motion, ran all day Monday.
The news was just one of a series of industry announcements from San Sebastian with a theme of searching for new sources of financing to produce films in Spain, Europe and beyond.
"There is an eternal need in Europe for financial tools," said Berlin-based Peacefulfish's Thierry Baujard, who announced the creation of new film consultancy and financing hub Fortuna Screen Finance with Spain's Markab Creativos and Arena Audiovisual to offer film producers creative content analysis and help in drawing private equity financing from around Europe.
"We aim to provide the instruments and transparency to bring together producers looking for financiers and investors looking to invest in cinema," Baujard said of the project, launched with Markab's Vicente Mora and Arena's Peter Andermatt.
Meanwhile, Spanish Minister of Culture Carmen Calvo confirmed at San Sebastian that a new national film law would be approved by year-end. Although she declined to reveal details of the contents of the law, she said it would pay special attention to supporting "creative cinema."
It will also likely take into account a 16-point proposal of measures presented to the administration by the Spanish Producers' Federation FAPAE. Among FAPAE's proposals for the industry are new fiscal incentives to inspire private investment in Spanish cinema, and a state cinema agency modeled on neighbouring France.
Spanish producers are already taking advantage of reciprocal guarantee fund Audiovisual SGR, created earlier this year with backing from the Ministry of Culture's film institute ICAA. SGR said in San Sebastian that it has closed agreements with six leading banks in Spain to help negotiate and guarantee loans and discount contracts and subsidies for local companies. Films to have tapped SGR's services in the last six months include Antonio Banderas' Summer Rain (El Camino De Los Ingleses) and Iciar Bollain's Mataharis.
Finally at San Sebastian, creators of the two-year-old Raices fund that backs co-productions between Galicia, Catalunya and Argentina announced in San Sebastian that they would increase the fund's coffers by Euros 150,000 with the incorporation of the Andalusian region of Spain. Other Latin American countries beyond Argentina are also considering independently joining the fund, which offers up to Euros 450,000 to film projects. Newly-announced recipients of Raices funds include Fernando Nogeira's Algo Habran Hecho, Paula de Luque's El Vestido, and Jorge Algora's El Nino De Barro.
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