The Blend: Film & Games conference was held yesterday at Algebra Bernays University in Zagreb, which was held for the first time with a two-day program dedicated to the combination of film and gaming. Experts and representatives of both sectors of the audiovisual industry from Croatia and the world discussed trends, innovations, and challenges that shape future projects.
During the two days of the conference, more than 20 panels and lectures were held, attended by renowned speakers from of Croatia, Belgium, Canada, Italy, Germany, Latvia, Poland, Sweden, Austria and the United Kingdom. Keynote lectures attracted special attention: by Thierry Van Gyseghem, the animation director of the 15 million-selling megahit Baldur's Gate 3 video game, Martins Upitis, the main animator the Oscar-winning film Flow, and marketing magician Fernando Machado, former CMO of Activision Blizzard and Burger King.
At the very beginning, the conference was opened with welcoming words from the conference organizer and academic partner of Algebra Bernays University and all partners. Benjamin Noah Maričak, head of the Games Croatia office at HAVC and co-organizer of the conference, said "Blend is not only an opportunity to exchange experiences, ideas and to network, but also an invitation to think about the future of the film industry and the video game industry". Mia Pećina Drašković, voditeljica Zagrebačkog movieskog ureda i su-organizator naglasila je "Program this oneodišnje konferenciis onjbogatiji je do sada, vrlo smo ponosni i na veliki broj stranih profesionalaca koji su dio Blenda, what otvara vwara našim stručnjacthere is za kontakte i moguće buduće zajedničke projekte". Dobrodošlicu na Sveučoršte Algebra Bernays uputio je predsjednik Upravnog vijeća Ph.D. Damir Jugo, which is naglasio how is it interdisciplinarnost konferencije važna za budućnost obrazovanja studenata te declareo ''Studenti University of Algebra Bernays moraju during study raditi na stvarnim projekteam, in kontaktu with industrijom, because samo tako stječu kompetencije kois andh čine konkurentnthere is. Onša misija nije samo obrazovati, nego i poticati research, kreativnost i hrabrost u stvaranju newh proizvoda visoke dodane vrijednosti.“ HER. William De Baets, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium expressed his delight that he had the opportunity for Belgium to be the partner country of the conference, because many of this year's speakers come from Belgium. Director of HAVC, Christopher P. Marcich he praised the Zagreb Film Office and Games Croatia that this year's Blend surpassed last year's program and emphasized that the cooperation between these two sectors is the future of the AV industry. Krešimir Partl, State Secretary of the Ministry of Culture and Media he emphasized the importance of continuous investment in the dynamic audiovisual sector. He emphasized that MKIM continuously works to improve the legal framework for finding new sources of financing and introducing new types of support. The recent amendments to the Law on AV Activities introduced a new incentive for the development and production of Croatian AV works by independent producers, and added that MKIM is actively advocating at the European level for the creation of a financing system in which video game distribution platforms, which generate significant revenue from sales on our market, would also contribute to the production of culturally relevant content by returning a certain portion of their revenue back to the AV industry.
First day: film, production and transmedia
The first day of the conference was opened by discussions on the legal position of producers and their role in the creation of audiovisual works, in which they participated Danilo Šerbedžija, director and president of DHFA, Hrvoje Osvadić, producer and president of HRUP, Miljenka Čogelja, producer, and Christopher P. Marcich, director of HAVC, with Miu Pećina Drašković as moderator and producer. It is important to emphasize that all participants agreed that the role of the producer has changed over the years and that certain producers certainly participate as authors in their projects, and that it is necessary to start as soon as possible with the working group that will agree on the amendment of the law.
This was followed by a panel on Croatian-Belgian co-productions, where they shared their experiences and challenges Xavier Rombaut, Belgian producer, Christopher P. Marcich, director of HAVC, Youri Loedts from the Belgian VAF fund and prof. Dries Derycker from Howest University, with the support of the Belgian ambassador in Croatia, HER. of Mr. William de Baets.
A panel on the advantages and disadvantages of filming on Croatian locations, where world-famous location managers shared their experiences, aroused great interest. John Rakich also the president of the LMGI world association (Canada, Shadowhunters, Twisted Metal), Enrico Latella (Italy, Mission Impossible 7, Tenet) and Sabine Schulmeyer (Germany, The Matrix Resurrections, Constellation).
They talked about transmedia worlds Albert Gajšak, CircuitMess, Damir Šlogar, game developer and collector and Ivan Kosovec, Magic Omens, emphasizing how film and video games complement each other and create new business opportunities in the global market where it doesn't matter which country the product comes from, and they provide great opportunities for Croatian products as well.
A particularly emotional moment was the panel about the Croatian candidate for the awards Goya i Oscar - to the movie Fiume o Morte! - in which the producers participated Vanja Jambrović i Tibor Kesser te Slobodanka Mišković head of Rijeka's Art Cinema and the Kvarner Film Commission, which was a great supporter of the film from the very beginning. This is the most watched Croatian documentary film in the last 30 years with an impressive 36 thousand viewers gathered exclusively in independent cinemas throughout Croatia! The production team emphasized several times that CineStar refused to show the film in its theaters, explaining that they do not show documentaries.
The day was concluded with two excellent keynote sessions. Thierry Van Gyseghem, the leading hit animator Baldur's Gate 3 i Divinity: Original Sin 2, spoke about the intersection of film language and interactive media, while Martins Inquiry, winner of the Oscar for animated film Flow, revealed to the audience the creative and technical processes of the creation of the film, which was followed by a screening of the award-winning work.
Photo: Tomislav Jeffrey Jemrić
Day two: artificial intelligence, the future of industry and sustainability
The second day of the conference was marked by a look into the future, with a special focus on artificial intelligence and its impact on creative industries. He opened the program doc.art. Predrag Šuka, Algebra Bernays University, who delighted attendees with a demonstration of how AI can shape the video creation process from script to finished product.
They participated in the panel on artificial intelligence in the film and gaming industry Damir Firšt, technology strategist and AI consultant, Vlaho Hrdalo, lawyer and partner at Hrdalo & Krnić, Angelo Jurkas, director and Ivan Murat, director of Nanobit, moderated by doc.art. Dear Šuka.
The keynote lectures attracted special attention. British director and producer Jorg Tittel (The Last Worker) talked about the future of video games and film beyond the content itself, while being a marketing visionary Fernando Machado, former CMO of Burger King and Activision Blizzard, two-time award winner Adweek Grand Brand Genius, held an inspiring panel on the role of creativity in shaping the world's video games and brands.
The panel on virtual production gathered Hrvoj Kordić, Digital Kinetics, Xavier Rombaut producer from Belgium, Basiu Karpinski, virtual production specialist, TVN XR Studio/Warner Bros. Discovery from Poland, Burić's mother, head of the virtual studio Antitalent i Josip Čajić, solution architect of stYpe company. While the debate on animation without Hollywood budgets brought together top authors and producers Martins Upitis, Dina Krpana and Draško Ivezić.
The transmedia conversation about video games based on series and movies: Moomin and Paws of Fury hosted top speakers who we believe inspired many future projects, Dimitrije Đokić, label producer, Raw Fury; Pontus Rundqvist, Senior brand manager from Sweden and Hrvoje Mitić, producer and games scout, with excellent Trojan quince, director of Broadcast.hr.
The second hall was dedicated to young AV authors and music for video games. On the panel And they are not even 30 yet! young AV professional directors presented themselves Karlo Vorih i Vida Žagar; videographers Filip Saric i Reina Krumm, producers Karlo Gagulić, Laura Pribanić and Patrik Burnić and game developers Tea Stepanić i Dominik Cvetkovski.
On the panel about music in video games, three generations of composers - Nikola Nikita Jeremic from Serbia (Aliens: Dark Descent, Warhammer 40k, Destiny 2, Cyberpunk 2077), Matija Malatestinić i Damjan Mravunac (Croteam, Serious Sam, Talos Principle) - shared their experiences in composing top-quality works just for video games.
The panel on green production, on which he was, gave special value Florisse Anu Kaaripuro, managing director of the newly opened HQ7 Studio in Vienna presented a change in thinking and productions after the introduction of a 5% additional state incentive for sustainability in the Austrian film industry, moderated by a producer Morane Ikić Komljenović.
The last panel in hall 2 was dedicated to the phenomenal success of the Croatian teen series SHAME. Producer Bruno Mustić he talked about the innovative strategies that allowed the series to become the most watched domestic teen content and a digital phenomenon that was watched around the world, which the producers never expected! This panel provided an insight into the successful promotion of the series which reached millions of views in the region and set new standards in digital distribution and audience engagement.
Workshops led by international and local experts such as by Thierry Van Gyseghem, Andrije Zorić, Ivan Šivak i Fernando Machado they gave the participants a practical insight into animation, game development and creative marketing. In addition to the professional program, visitors had the opportunity to enjoy accompanying content: screenings of student films of the Academy of Dramatic Art and the University of Vern', the showroom of Croatian gaming studios, a very popular activation Lend your voice for dubbing cartoons and popular Red Bull Tetris zone.
The first two-day edition of the Blend: Film & Games conference showed that Zagreb and Croatia have strong potential as a regional center of the film and gaming industry. The conference successfully connected creativity, technology and business opportunities, stimulating dialogue between domestic and international experts and laying solid foundations for future editions.
The conference was visited more than 600 participants, and we are very proud that, in addition to domestic and foreign experts, the conference attracted numerous high school students and their teachers. All lectures will soon be available on the conference website www.blendzagreb.eu.
