At this year’s American Film Market, “under construction” feels like an appropriate unofficial theme.
Outside the hosting Fairmont Century Plaza, construction makes navigating the perimeter an unexpected part of the experience. Learn the shortcuts early, or risk adding a 15-minute detour between meetings. Inside, the independent film business is navigating some reconstruction of its own.
Running November 10–15 in Century City, “AFM” brings together filmmakers, sales agents, distributors and financiers to develop projects, negotiate financing and license films for audiences around the world. Completed features share the marketplace with scripts and packages still assembling their funding. For filmmakers, it offers a concentrated look at what buyers believe they can sell.
From my perspective on the ground, the first day and a half felt relatively quiet, but activity has started picking up. That early pace should not be mistaken for a final verdict on attendance or business; with much of the market still ahead, there is time for the hallways and meeting rooms to get busier.
The official theme, “The New Global Screen Economy,” captures the broader conversation. How films get financed, produced, and discovered is changing, and AFM is making room for businesses that stretch beyond the traditional feature sales model. On top of that, short-form content, vertical micro-dramas and AI are taking a big bite out of the global box office and are redefining the future of media.
The most visible addition this year is the AFM House. Although the walk from the Fairmont can feel longer than its across-the-street location suggests, the indoor and outdoor spaces provide a welcome gathering place. The new venue adds 15,000 square feet and houses the Innovation Hub, presented with Cannes Next, alongside the Cinemas Club’s programming about theatrical exhibition.
That combination is revealing: emerging production technology and the future of movie theaters are sharing the same address. Programming includes discussions about audience communities, event cinema, repertory screenings and AI tools for cinema programming and marketing. For working filmmakers, those conversations connect creative decisions to the increasingly complicated task of finding an audience.
There are recognizable names on the sales front, too. Screen International’s North American market selection includes The Brand, starring Nicolas Cage, Alexander Ludwig and Gabriel Basso, about a prisoner’s involvement with the Aryan Brotherhood, and Dominion, a science-fiction adventure starring Aaron Eckhart as a mechanic stranded on an alien world.
Meanwhile, vertical content and AI seem especially prominent in this year’s conversations. The interest in vertical storytelling has a business rationale: Reuters reported in August that Omdia projected U.S. microdrama revenue of $1.5 billion for 2026. These short, phone-oriented serials are creating another production market for crews, performers and filmmakers.
For ProVideo Coalition readers, the practical questions extend beyond which camera or software makes the work possible. What format serves the story? What production model can sustain the crew? And where will the finished work find paying viewers?
AFM offers a place to test those questions against the people buying and financing content. This year, the construction outside feels like a fitting backdrop: the routes are changing, everyone is looking for an opening, and the work continues.