Chris Hainsworth

As the Head of Finance & Business Affairs at AV Pictures, Chris Hainsworth is responsible for coordinating corporate and production finance. He studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics before working for an Oxford-based economics consultancy and subsequently training as a Chartered Accountant. Mr. Hainsworth is a member of the Corporate Finance faculty of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, and of the Media & Entertainment and Valuations special interest groups. His experience in the film industry ranges from four years at the UK Film Council (UKFC) to two years at Capitol Films. At UKFC, he provided general financial support, control and advice across the organisation, while gaining an overview of the international film industry and an appreciation of British film talent. At Capitol, he focused on corporate finance, acquisitions, digital strategy and gaining exposure to the US industry and investment banking community. Since the formation of AV Pictures, the company's role has expanded from international film sales agency to also incorporate co-financing and production. The company has a strong track record in creating value for its buyers by focusing on delivering commercial product across all genres and by championing break-through talent, such as Scott Mann ("The Tournament") and Neil Marshall ("Dog Soldiers"). »

Thierry Baujard

Thierry Baujard is the Founder and CEO of peacefulfish, a consulting firm specialising in the financing of film and multi-platform digital content in Europe and worldwide, especially with regard to subsidies, tax incentives, private equity, investment funds and co-production. He offers 15 years' experience in the entertainment industry. After graduating in Paris, Mr. Baujard worked in London, Milan and Germany for entertainment companies such as Vivendi and ARTE. He then completed an MBA from UCLA in Los Angeles with a specialisation in film financing, and went on to work for Mandalay Pictures and Studio Babelsberg in Berlin. Mr. Baujard focuses on developing financing strategies for producers and funds involving private and public investment in different regions of Europe. Moreover, he is involved in different financing models for digital cinema rollout in Europe through various projects for regions and the European commission. Mr. Baujard is also Chairman of a European media investment network, Media Deals, offering master classes to investors and pitching for mediatech companies. As a consultancy for financing the content industry, peacefulfish offers strategic consulting services to production and digital distribution companies as well as policy makers, financiers and brands in the content industry. The industry has huge growth potential, yet it is grossly uncapitalised. Entrepreneurs and investors have difficulties in agreeing on and often miss valuable investment opportunities. Peacefulfish helps clients from the content and financial worlds to communicate with each other and develop innovative financial solutions. »

Michael Auret

Starting out as a lawyer, Michael J. H. Auret has established and managed various successful media businesses including an ad agency, a TV production company doing commercials and commissioned documentaries, and a radio station. From 2001 to 2007, he was appointed CEO of the Sithengi Film and TV Market in Cape Town, which grew into the biggest "trade fair" event for film and TV professionals in all of Africa. During this time, Mr. Auret also established the Cape Town World Cinema Festival, through which a number of South African films were launched into the global market. Since 2007, Mr. Auret has taken over the running of Spier Films in London and, during this time, produced the feature films "Master Harold and the Boys" and "Black Butterflies," as well as the documentary "Who is Robert Mugabe." In 2008, he set up the sales side of Spier Films and launched such titles as "The Dead Girl's Feast" at Un Certain Regard, Cannes 2008, and "Kanchivaram" at Toronto 2008. He recently established the Spier Films production fund to finance films shot in South Africa and is involved in the financing and acquisition of documentaries. Spier Films operates in the world sales, production, financing and distribution sectors of the film industry. Its London-based boutique international sales arm represents high-quality commercial art-house titles at international film markets, complemented by the company's strong connections with distributors worldwide. Spier has produced the groundbreaking "U-Carmen eKayelitsha," Golden Bear winner at the 2005 Berlinale, and "Son of Man," official selection at Sundance 2006. The company offers development-stage projects financing possibilities from South Africa and Ireland. Moreover, Spier Films has the capacity to distribute within the UK. Michael Auret is also an independent, fee-only financial advisor, providing expert film finance advice and assistance. »

Jasper van Hecke

Jasper van Hecke attended film school in Boston and Amsterdam. Since his graduation (BA in Fiction Direction), he has emerged both as a director and creative producer. He started out in TV commercials and has directed various national and international campaigns for clients including McDonald's, Coca-Cola, Sultana, Neckermann, Chipknip, Holland Casino, Internaxx and Chello. Mr. van Hecke gradually moved into film and TV production, working as a creative producer and script supervisor for production companies like Trigger Media, TGVS and the Media Talent Company. Subsequently, he served as Producer and Head of Development at Corrino Films and as Producer at MTV Networks. He was also part of Marc Samuelson's PTP, supported by the UK Film Council, and trained with various companies including Disney, Capitol Films, Olswang Solicitors, Allied Irish Banks, Focus Features and Momentum Pictures. Thereafter, Mr. van Hecke acted as Head of Development & Production for Sprout Pictures, the London-based film and TV production company headed by Stephen Fry and producer Gina Carter ("24 Hour Party People"). In 2008, he transferred to Universal Pictures, where he is responsible for content acquisitions across all genres. His current employer creates and distributes a high-quality and diverse product mix of theatrical and non-theatrical filmed entertainment. Universal has achieved both popular success and critical acclaim with its recent Oscar winners "Atonement," "The Bourne Ultimatum," "King Kong," "Brokeback Mountain," "Ray," "A Beautiful Mind," "The Pianist" and "Lost in Translation." The studio's classic, Academy Award-winning films include "All Quiet on the Western Front" (1930), "To Kill a Mockingbird" (1962), "The Deer Hunter" (1978) and "Schindler's List" (1993). »

Chris Hastings

Chris Hastings is the CEO of 1066 Productions, an independent film production company specialising in full feature development, production and co-production services (focusing on UK-Canadian co-productions) as well as feature packaging including casting (UK, Europe, US and Canada), script coverage and development. Mr. Hastings recently completed work on the Hungarian/Canadian co-production "The Maiden Danced to Death," starring Stephen McHattie ("300," "Watchmen," "2012," "A History of Violence"), Deborah Kara Unger ("Crash," "The Hurricane") and Gil Bellows ("The Shawshank Redemption," "The Weather Man") with Oscar winning cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond ("The Deer Hunter," "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," "Deliverance"). Prior to this, he was lead writer on the screenplay for the Introversion/Channel 4 interactive drama "Chronometer." An accomplished writer and producer, he has also recently worked on the financing of the action-thriller "Reflex Action" and the comedy-horror "Eddie," shot in Canada with Thure Lindhardt ("Into the Wild," "Angels & Demons") in the lead. Mr. Hastings seeks internationally accessible and commercial stories for theatrical release and worldwide sales. He and and his company have a presence at all major film markets and are happy to take meeting requests. With a background in theatre and over ten years in casting, 1066 Productions has taken great strides since working on its first feature, "The Devil's Curse," which was released through Lionsgate and starred Myanna Buring ("The Descent," "Doomsday"), Clayton Watson ("Matrix Revolutions," "Matrix Reloaded") and Colin Salmon ("Aliens vs. Predator," "Resident Evil"). The company's projects include the three-part TV series "Zero Tolerance," the US feature "Mean World Theory" (starring Lou Diamond Phillips and Deirdre Lovejoy), "The Odds" (starring Paul McGann), the UK-German co-production "Black Glass," the British comedy thriller "Krays!" and the World War II thriller "A Man of No Consequence." 1066 Productions uses its extensive industry contacts to develop a burgeoning slate of commercial features. Strong relationships with agents in the UK and US give the company an unrivalled access to high-profile talent. 1066 recently formed links with a Canadian partner to tie in with its growing ambitions in the international film market. »

Jezz Vernon

Jezz Vernon serves as Head of Distribution at Metrodome Group, an independent London-based publicly traded company that owns, manages and distributes film, TV and digital content. The company operates through two divisions, Metrodome Distribution, which covers film and home entertainment in the UK, and the newly acquired Target Entertainment, which manages and distributes TV content worldwide. Its library of rights includes 4,000 hours of TV programming and over 300 feature films. Metrodome has an excellent reputation in the industry and has become a specialist in releasing left-handed, independent, art house films. The company works with some of the biggest names in the business including Charlize Theron ("Monster"), Jake Gyllenhaal ("Donnie Darko"), Colin Firth ("Genova"), Maggie Gyllenhaal ("Sherrybaby"), Michael Caine and Demi Moore ("Flawless"), Jet Li ("The Warlords"), Kristin Scott-Thomas ("Leaving") and Tilda Swinton ("I Am Love"). After leaving film school in 1998, Mr. Vernon was a Magazine Editor on a music and lifestyle title before taking a marketing job at IPC Media, the UK's leading consumer magazine publisher with approx. 90 brands and selling 350 million magazines every year. After 18 months with IPC, he was promoted to Marketing Manager at Britain's oldest weekly music magazine, the NME, an IPC brand. In 2001, Mr. Vernon went back into the film industry, joining the fledging DVD distributor Revolver Entertainment. Amongst a variety of other projects, he was responsible for re-launching the bestselling stand-up work of Richard Pryor in the UK. During Mr. Vernon's tenure at Revolver, the company won five awards for its marketing campaigns. In 2005, he joined Metrodome Distribution and, in 2006, was promoted to Head of Marketing for both theatrical and home entertainment. Metrodome won the RAAM British Cinema Award for Best Film and Cinema Marketing Campaign of 2007 (tying with Disney's "Ratatouille") for its work on the Academy Award winning film "The Counterfeiters". In early 2010, Mr. Vernon was elevated to the position of Head of Distribution. Recent releases from Metrodome include "I Am Love," "Lebanon" and Oscar winner "The Secret in Their Eyes." The company has also ventured into co-production with "Age of Heroes" (Sean Bean, Danny Dyer) and "Age of Dragons" (Vinnie Jones, Danny Glover). »

Ross McKenzie

Since entering the UK film industry in 2005, producer Ross McKenzie has worked for Pathé Films, international sales agency Capitol Films, Bard Entertainments, the UK Film Council, The Weinstein Company, Paramount Pictures and the British Film Institute (BFI). He has extensive production experience as an Assistant Coordinator, Coordinator and Post Production Coordinator, working on feature films for Bard Entertainments ("Sleep Furiously," "Skin"), CinemaNX ("Albatross") and Lionsgate Films ("Blitz"). In 2008, Mr. McKenzie was Line Producer on the short film "Baghdad Express" for Pulse Films and later that year also produced the short "DiD" for Pulse. In 2009, he produced the short "Ilk" and, in 2010, "Rite" for DigiCult and Film London. Mr. McKenzie then studied the MEGA Plus Masters in Audiovisual Management at the Media Business School in Spain, specialising in international co-production. Shortly after his return to London, "Rite" premiered at the BFI London Film Festival and was nominated for a BAFTA award for Best Short Film. At present, Mr. McKenzie is working on the Film London Production Finance Market (PFM), an annual two-day event taking place during the BFI London Film Festival that connects international producers and financiers to encourage new film financing relationships. He currently has a number of feature film and TV projects in development as both producer and writer. Mr. McKenzie graduated with a BA Honours degree in Film & Video from the Surrey Institute of Art & Design. »

Patrick Pinnock

Moderator

Patrick Pinnock runs the London chapter of the Institute for International Film Financing (IIFF) and organizes IIFF's monthly Film Financing Townhalls in the Greater London area. He is an entrepreneur across the retail, fashion, film and music fields. After leaving the University of Greenwich in 1990 studying IT and Business, Patrick moved to Hong Kong. There he worked first for Marks & Spencer and then for Fujitsu-ICL, where he was responsible for IT sales into major retail brands. After returning to the UK, Patrick worked as a consultant for music and entertainment retailer HMV. He also co-ordinated the 2002 London Chinese Film Festival. Patrick moved to Italy and then to Switzerland in 2003, where he worked on film projects and learned all about film finance using international co-production. He was also head of a Swiss non-profit organisation as well as IT and web consultant for a Swiss fashion label. Patrick runs his own artist management company and has managed Grammy nominated artists Inventing Eve. Whilst living in Switzerland, he produced a documentary film about a Switzerland based African American musician, which was broadcast on Swiss TV. Patrick is completing a Masters in Music Industry Management and Artist Development at Thames Valley University's London College of Music. »

Thomas Trenker

Founder

A Wall Street investment banker and Silicon Valley startup executive turned independent film financier, Thomas (LinkedIn profile | full bio) serves as Chairman of the Institute for International Film Financing (IIFF). An innovative and ambitious social-impact organization, IIFF endeavors to bridge the gap between the worlds of filmmaking and finance for the benefit of all stakeholders including the public at large. Founded in 2003 and headquartered in San Francisco, IIFF has active chapters in multiple cities across the U.S. and continues to expand.

In his role as Managing Director of FilmAngels, Thomas also runs the world's first professional angel investor group for film. FilmAngels has been modeled after the way successful angel networks function in Silicon Valley and adapted to the unique characteristics of the movie industry. It focuses exclusively on funding independent films and film-related ventures. FilmAngels address the unfilled need for a structured, highly efficient and ultimately more effective environment for the vetting and financing of high-risk film projects.

Don't hesitate to connect with Thomas on LinkedIn or at an upcoming IIFF meeting near you. »