MIA 2022

At MIA 2022, the directing duo Samuel León and Saúl Valverde pitched Diary of an Infiltrator, a 4x45’ docuseries project set to be filmed between Chile, Rome, Berlin and Buenos Aires. The series revolves around the “incredible, untold story” of anarchist filmmaker Miguel Herberg who infiltrated Pinochet’s Chilean military regime from 1972 to 1974, exposing its murderous iniquities.

What is the moral cost of the War on Terror? Is it legitimate to violate the law in the name of national security? These are the two main questions tackled in the new doc feature, fully titled Ghost Detainee – The Extraordinary Rendition of Abu Omar and pitched at this year’s MIA market. “It is a spy film but also a reflection on what limits our governments can push to defend their own democratic principles,” the Italian doccers tell BDE.

On 14 October, the Rome-based MIA market shone the spotlight on one of the most successful non-fiction hits of the year, the Netflix documentary The Tinder Swindler. The one-hour discussion, moderated by Joel Zimmer, President of AGC Unwritten at AGC Studios, saw the participation of director Felicity Morris.

Formerly head of Mercato Internazionale dell'Audiovisivo’s Scripted Division, Tridente succeeds Lucia Milazzotto as overall director of MIA, whose eighth edition will be held in Rome from 11 to 15 October 2022. “My ambition is to produce a high-quality new edition of MIA, representing a turning point that will meet the needs of the global industry’ ecosystem and bringing content in all its formats and genres at the centre of the market," she says.

The DOC Co-Production Market & Pitching Forum will present a selection of 18 documentary projects divided into one-offs, series and products primarily intended for television or platform use. These projects come from 10 countries. Additionally, the event's new B2B Exchange Program is designed to support the Ukrainian audiovisual industry. Plus the MIA Buyers’ Club returns. The Rome market runs October 11-15.

Producers of documentary, fiction film and drama series looking for finance or a co-production deal are invited to submit their projects intended for theatrical distribution, television broadcast and digital streaming. The deadline for submission is July 4 2022.

Award winning director, DoP and TV author Edoardo Anselmi and producer Carlo Ghiani last week pitched their new non-fiction project at Rome’s MIA, a TV one-off titled Banksy and The Sad Girl (La ragazza triste di Banksy). The film follows the rescue of the titular contemporary icon and promises to explore the impact of street art today.

On 11 October, Rome’s Cinema Barberini hosted a panel titled ‘Archives, Market and Free Access: Value, Cost and Social Use of Audiovisual Heritage,’ moderated by Marco Spagnoli, MIA’s Deputy Director and Head of Doc & Factual. Leading players from Italian outfits Doc/It, Istituto Luce, Fandango and Anica, as well as international trade body Focal International, took the floor.