Summary
The field trip to a major European short film market and conference achieved significant progress in developing the Network Effects project's partner network. Through a combination of individual meetings and presentations to approximately 30 international festivals, we secured preliminary commitments from 20+ partner festivals across Europe and Asia. Discussions revealed strong sector interest in developing new approaches to measuring festival impact, particularly regarding talent development pathways.
Strategic Outcomes
The field trip achieved significant progress in developing the project's partner network, transforming initial exploratory meetings into concrete partnership opportunities. What began as a series of scheduled conversations evolved into widespread sector engagement, particularly following discussion of the project during a closed lobbying session at the conference. This organic expansion of interest demonstrates both the timeliness of the research and its potential to address crucial sector needs.
A key insight emerging from these discussions was the widespread recognition that while festivals see clear value in developing better impact measurement, they lack the internal capacity to undertake such research themselves. This validates the project's position as an external academic initiative and suggests strong potential for sustained engagement from partner festivals. The conversations also revealed opportunities to examine how different tiers of festivals - from major international events to regional specialists - contribute to talent development pathways.
The diversity of interested partners, spanning major European festivals, specialist events, and potential Asian collaborators, offers opportunities to examine how different types of festivals contribute to filmmaker development. This multi-tiered approach, incorporating both established international festivals and regional events, will enable comprehensive mapping of talent development pathways while strengthening the evidence base for festival impact.
Partnership Development
- Secured preliminary commitments from 20+ major European festivals.
- Potential East Asian festival consortium (approximately 5 additional festivals)
- Strong interest from a European short film festival audience award network
- Opportunities identified for UK short film festival consortium development
- Potential for inclusion of talent development labs within research scope
Network Expansion Opportunities
- Productive discussions with a national film funding body regarding evidence needs
- Interest from an international cultural organisation in Brexit impact analysis
- One national film agency willing to promote project within their network
Technical / Methodological Insights
Detailed discussions with festival partners revealed both practical challenges and innovative solutions for data collection and analysis. Through conversations with established festivals and emerging technical solutions from industry partners, a clear framework emerged for approaching data collection in stages. This tiered approach acknowledges varying levels of data sensitivity and availability while maximising the potential for meaningful analysis.
A significant insight from these discussions was the need to balance comprehensive data collection with practical implementation constraints. Conversations with one major European festival highlighted specific GDPR concerns, particularly regarding historical submission data, while discussions with another suggested potential solutions through carefully structured data-sharing agreements. The emergence of existing technical solutions, such as one partner's database tracking system (capturing over 2,400 festivals and 14,000 editions), demonstrates both the scale of available data and potential technical approaches for collection.
The field trip also revealed emerging opportunities to integrate innovative technical approaches, including blockchain and NFT technologies, into the research methodology. These discussions, combined with insights about existing database solutions, suggest potential for developing a robust technical infrastructure that could support both immediate research needs and longer-term sector development. However, careful consideration must be given to ensuring any technical solution remains accessible and practical for festivals of varying sizes and technical capabilities.
Data Collection Framework
Proposed three-tier approach emerged through partner discussions:
Technical Solutions
- Industry-standard database suggested as potential solution
- Existing work by an industry partner offers potential collaboration opportunity
- Need to consider blockchain/NFT integration possibilities
Regional Network Development
The field trip revealed significant opportunities for developing multi-layered regional networks that extend beyond traditional European festival circuits. A particularly promising development emerged through conversations with an East Asian festival, suggesting potential for establishing a regional consortium of approximately five festivals. This opportunity to examine how European festival networks influence and interact with Asian festivals could provide valuable insights into global talent development pathways.
Within Europe, discussions revealed a clear appetite for expanding research engagement beyond the established festival "clique". Several partners, including two notable Nordic festivals, emphasised the importance of including second-tier festivals to capture a more comprehensive picture of talent development pathways. This approach would enable examination of how different scales of festivals contribute to filmmaker progression while strengthening the overall evidence base.
The UK context presents unique opportunities for sector organisation, with several festivals expressing interest in establishing a more formal consortium or lobbying group. Conversations with major UK festivals suggest potential for using this research to strengthen the UK short film festival sector's collective voice, particularly valuable in the post-Brexit landscape. This could create opportunities for examining how UK festivals maintain European connections while developing distinct national approaches to talent development.
Key Questions and Considerations raised
Discussions with potential partners surfaced crucial questions about both methodological approach and strategic value. A particularly significant conversation with a national film agency highlighted the challenge of evidencing festival impact when much current understanding remains anecdotal. This led to important questions about how to create robust evidence while acknowledging the risk that systematic analysis might challenge existing assumptions about festival value. These discussions emphasised the importance of engaging funders and stakeholders early to ensure the research addresses their specific evidence needs.
Several methodological questions emerged through conversations with festival partners, particularly regarding the balance between breadth and depth in data collection. Partners raised important considerations about GDPR compliance and data anonymisation, while others questioned whether the research should prioritise geographic spread or depth within specific regions. The possibility of including additional elements like pitching sessions and work-in-progress screenings points to broader questions about defining the boundaries of festival impact.
The field trip also revealed critical questions about the project's potential legacy. Conversations with various stakeholders suggested opportunities for using the research to address specific policy questions, such as Brexit impact on UK films at European festivals. However, this raised further questions about how to structure data collection to ensure it can address both current policy concerns and future research needs. The potential for establishing more formal festival networks, particularly in the UK, also suggests a need to consider how the research might support longer-term sector development.
NEXT STEPS AND ACTIONS
The field trip has generated significant momentum for the Network Effects project, requiring careful prioritisation of next steps to maintain partner engagement while developing robust research frameworks. Immediate actions focus on converting preliminary interest into formal partnerships, while medium-term planning addresses technical infrastructure and methodology development. These actions deliberately balance maintaining partner momentum with establishing solid research foundations.
FINAL SUMMARY
The field trip has exceeded initial expectations, transforming exploratory conversations into concrete partnership opportunities with major international festivals. The enthusiasm encountered suggests both the timeliness of this research and its potential value to the sector. Particularly significant is the emergence of opportunities beyond traditional European networks, including potential Asian partnerships and UK sector development.
Three key achievements stand out:
The next phase of development will be crucial in converting this momentum into sustainable research partnerships. However, the field trip has provided both the practical insights and strategic relationships needed to move the project forward
All images courtesy of Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival 2025
Credits:
Text - Rich Warren, Bath Spa University, UK Images - Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival