This year, the L.A. Screenings will take place May 14-23, and there will be lots of changes this time around. Fox Studios is no longer around after being absorbed by Disney. There will be a reduced number of screening days. There will also be fewer studios screening, just three studio parties, and more exhibitors than last year at the unofficial event headquarters, the InterContinental Hotel in Century City, Los Angeles.
Despite the changing business environment, the event is still expected to attract a record number of participants from all over the world, making it a memorable affair, indeed.
In terms of participating distributors reflected by the exhibitors housed in the suites and tables at the InterContinenal (including indies and studios), there will be 79 companies (with eight first-time exhibitors) — up from 73 last year. Plus, many of the non-returning exhibitors will still be on hand, with plans to “park” themselves in the lobby of the InterContinental.
In addition, there will be at least 10 distribution companies that won’t be exhibiting at the InterContinental, but will be bussing buyers to their local offices. Plus, it is expected that the distributors who’ll be “lounging” at the hotel will still be buying the $50 name badges introduced for the first time last year when NATPE teamed up with Isabella Marquez’s Events, which has for years purchased a block of room at the InterContinental in order to provide exhibitors with rate discounts and suite numbers in advance.
In terms of recreational activities, there will be seven invitation-only events from the independents (including ones hosted by Viacom, Telefilms, HBO, and Lionsgate), and three from the studios (Sony, MGM, and Paramount).
Missing this year will be the opening and closing parties from Disney and Twentieth Century Fox, Fox’s screenings (as it is now part of Disney), and Sony Pictures’ screenings (since it will only have a presentation).
This year, CBS and Paramount plan to share the Paramount Theater on Paramount’s lot, with the former screening in the morning, and the latter taking over in the afternoon.
The indie portion of the L.A. Screenings will end on Saturday, May 18, when CBS screens for the LATAM contingent. An earlier portion of the indie section will be shared by Paramount on May 16 and Viacom on May 17. For the studios, the screenings will end on May 23, a day earlier than previous years.
Because of the changes, some studio screenings are changing dates. For example, Disney LATAM, which traditionally screened on Wednesdays in years past, will this year screen on a Tuesday. In the past, this day was reserved for Sony’s LATAM contingent, but the studio is not screening this year (just giving a presentation followed by an evening reception).
On the other hand, Paramount is increasing its screening days to four, and taking Fox’s former day (Thursday, May 16) for the LATAM contingent.
In terms of pilots, some 64 have already been ordered for the 2019-2020 season by the major linear TV networks. This compares to 74 that had been commissioned last year by this time.
A full L.A. Screenings report will be featured in VideoAge‘s LATAM (May) edition. Also, L.A. Screenings enthusiasts can find regular updates at:
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