The third edition of Italy’s international Audiovisual Producers Summit (June 10-12, 2024) wrapped at the Altafiumara Resort & Spa last week. The AVP Summit is a three-day conference dedicated to the Italian and international entertainment industry with attendees coming from production and distribution companies, television networks and digital platforms as well as independent studios and the major Hollywood studios.
This year’s event kicked off with Senator Lucia Borgonzoni, the Undersecretary for Cultural, and Anton Giulio Grande, the film commissioner of the hosting region of Calabria, in the National Archaeological Museum of Reggio Calabria. With the 430-460 BCE Riace bronze warrior statures setting the backdrop, Sen. Borgonzoni reaffirmed Italy’s commitment to the audiovisual sector before the start of the first day’s discussion of the value of co-production. Hollywood producer and CEO of Revelation Entertainment Lori McCreary emphasized the real value of co-production today with European production companies.
Wayne Garvie, the President of International Production at Sony Pictures Television, opened the first working day of the AVP Summit with a challenge and a quote that was appropriate both for the summit and its location in southern Italy: “Everything must change for everything to remain the same.” This famous quotation comes from the Sicilian novel The Leopard, written by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa and filmed by Luchino Visconti. Garvie urged the audience and European producers to tell their stories and to begin exploring and developing successful franchises, noting how Americans are better at reinterpreting European stories, and better at building franchises around their stories.
Garvie’s frank opening keynote set the tone for the Summit’s panels, where open and honest dialogue was a noted and prominent aspect. This was particularly true of the closing roundtable discussion on the future of Hollywood, led by producer Gary Lucchesi of Revelations Entertainment, who is also President Emeritus of the Producer’s Guild of America.
The preacher and spiritual success coach Devon Franklin, CEO of Franklin Entertainment, joined Lori McCreary, Neils Juul, CEO of No Fat Ego, Veronica Sullivan, Senior Vice President of Global Production at NBCUniversal and screenwriter John August in what became a lively debate challenging Hollywood to embrace change.
