This week the 2024 winners of the JETS Initiative were announced, and Directors UK member and previous Inspire participant Jo Southwell and her producer Sara Gibbings were amongst those awarded.
Front row L to R: G.S. Leitgeb, Viktor Perdula (A Cutter’s Coffers), Daniel Perlman, Kelsey Egan (Slay), Jo Southwell, Sara Gibbings (The Sleeper), Emmer Durcan (The Others). Back row L to R: Jason Branagan (The Others), Natty Zavitz (A Nose For Trouble), Markus Frings, Alexander Feichter (Fulgidusen).
A two-day international film festival which takes place in Berlin alongside the Berlinale, the JETS Initiative brings together directors and producers with funding organisations, sales agents and financing and distribution companies from partner countries, including the UK and Ireland, for their debut, second or third film.
The awards recognise feature film projects which have significant artistic and/or commercial potential. This year, the jury honoured six promising pitches out of a total of twenty entries and alongside Jo Southwell and Sara Gibbings from the UK, there were winners from Ireland, Austria, Germany, Canada and South Africa.
Jo and Sara’s winning pitch The Sleeper was a female-led road movie with psychological undertones, described as “Gina Davies and Susan Sarandon on speed” with the potential to be a cinema hit. The other winning pitches were Irish entry The Others directed by Jason Branagan and produced by Emma Durcan; Austrian entry A Cutter’s Coffers directed by G.S. Leitgeb and produced by Viktor Perdula; German entry Fulgidusen directed by Alexander Feichter and produced by Markus Frings; Canadian entry A Nose for Trouble directed by Natty Zavitz and produced by Stephanie Sonny Hooker; and South African entry Slay directed by Kelsey Egan and produced by Daniel Perlman.
The JETS Initiative (Junior Entertainment Talent Slate) is organised by WEP Productions and JETS Filmverleih & Vertrieb. Find out more about this year’s competition and all the winning pitches.
Learn more about the JETS Initiative and see if you qualify to participate.
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