This week on The Sideletters, hosts Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine, Fabian Massah and Joanna Szymanska tackle the question every producer wants answered: what actually makes film and TV attractive to private capital?

Sparked by Screen Scotland's new "Lights Camera Capital" initiative, pairing local producers with angel investors, the team digs into why equity money is suddenly flowing into an industry that's leaned on subsidies and pre-sales for decades. They unpack why vertical drama has become the hottest ticket for investors, how data access is de-risking the business for capital, and why producers may finally be learning to speak the investors' language, including a first look at how vertical drama's budget splits (development, production, marketing) are rewriting the producer's role.

Plus: Meta's record $18 billion settlement with 48 US states over child-addictive platform design. The hosts break down the new safety measures (screen-time limits, night mode, no notifications during school hours), ask whether this is the US finally catching up with Europe's Digital Services Act, and what it could mean for marketing family entertainment.

Links:

Meta settlement: Wall Street Journal

Screen Scotland: Screen Daily

👉 Connect with The Sideletters community on LinkedIn.

The Sideletters is a weekly European B2B conversation on film, tech & future business. New episodes every Wednesday.
Hosted by Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine (Paris), Joanna Szymanska (Warsaw) and Fabian Massah (Berlin/Hamburg).

Joanna Szymanska and Fabian Massah recap the standout moments from Sarajevo CineLink, including Celine Sciamma's Sister Sister Initiative, preview Oct. 1st Explorer Konferenz at the FilmFest Hamburg Industry Days, and sit down with Everbright Everready, founder of Tanzanian startup Bright and Ready Labs and winner of this year's EFM Startup Award.

Everbright walks us through Open Air Fest, her open-air cinema venture in Dar es Salaam that legalizes and monetizes East Africa's amazing VJ (video jockey) culture. We dig into her business model: mobile-money ticketing, revenue-sharing with filmmakers and VJs, brand sponsorships, and how she's building a loyal community from scratch with almost no starting capital.

Links:

🔗 Sister Sister (Cineuropa)

🔗 Bright & Ready Labs (Instagram)

🔗 Explorer Konferenz

👉 Connect with The Sideletters community on LinkedIn.

The Sideletters is a weekly European B2B conversation on film, tech & future business. New episodes every Wednesday.
Hosted by Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine (Paris), Joanna Szymanska (Warsaw) and Fabian Massah (Berlin/Hamburg).

Joanna Szymanska sits down live at CineLink Industry Days with Maša Marković, Head of Industry at the Sarajevo Film Festival. They dig into how CineLink builds a 20-year talent pipeline from film school to Cannes and back, why the industry needs better success metrics than box office numbers, the rise of microdramas as a format for public broadcasters, and why Southeast Europe's film industry might be "under-distributed" rather than oversaturated.
But before that:
Germany's biggest film funding schemes just ran dry, months earlier than expected. Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine and Fabian Massah unpack why the DFFF and GMPF incentives have already hit their cap, what it means for producers, crews and suppliers across the German film industry, and how France's "automatic funding" model offers a more predictable alternative.

And a discussion inspired by the Locarno Film Festival’s panel which asked whether classic film critics can still compete for attention against influencers and user-generated reviews - and why independent criticism still matters for how audiences discover films.

Links:

🔗 Acquired podcast Disney

🔗 Cinelink Magazine

🔗 Locarno’s Panel “A World WIthout Film Critics”

🔗 Germany’s Production Incentive at its limit (The Spot / German language)

👉 Connect with The Sideletters community on LinkedIn.

The Sideletters is a weekly European B2B conversation on film, tech & future business. New episodes every Wednesday.
Hosted by Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine (Paris), Joanna Szymanska (Warsaw) and Fabian Massah (Berlin/Hamburg).

Everyone's saying "cinema is back". But is it? In this episode of The Sideletters, Joanna Szymanska and Fabian Massah dig behind the headlines to find out what's really happening at the box office.

We open with a wrap-up on the Wim Wenders–Nastassja Kinski controversy, now resolved with a joint statement and an apology, before turning to the never-ending Warner Bros.–Paramount merger drama, complete with daily penalty fees running into the hundreds of millions and a trial now pushed to 2027. 

We also unpack the EU AI Act's new transparency rules, which came into force this August, and what they actually mean for filmmakers, podcasters, and anyone generating content with AI.

Then it's the big topic: Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Odyssey have pushed box office numbers to record highs, but ticket sales are still far below 2019 levels. We break down what's driving the "recovery": premium formats, a re-release boom, and a growing gap for mid-budget films. And we ask what this means for producers, marketing budgets, and the future of European cinema.

Links:

🔗 The Governance of Competitiveness in the European Film Industry (publication)  https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-032-14889-6_1

👉 Connect with The Sideletters community on LinkedIn.

The Sideletters is a weekly European B2B conversation on film, tech & future business. New episodes every Wednesday.
Hosted by Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine (Paris), Joanna Szymanska (Warsaw) and Fabian Massah (Berlin/Hamburg).

It's summer. This week we want to give you a one of our earlier episodes which is already a classic. We'll be back next week with a new recording. Enjoy!

In Episode #005 of The Sideletters, Joanna and Jennifer have a conversation with Kristina Trapp, CEO of EAVE (European Audiovisual Entrepreneurs), on 35 years of training international producers and why success isn't just about money. How EAVE's Impact Think Tank imagines a better industry through equity, inclusion, and social responsibility. Plus: an exclusive outlook on upcoming workshops, Creative Europe MEDIA's critical role, and why producers in war-torn countries without funding inspire her most.

Trapp's message: "You are not only working in this industry, you are the industry. You are agents of change."

Also in this episode:

Fabian's deep dive on the Great Consolidation (Paramount-Warner Bros, Showmax shutdown, Banijay-All3Media merger) and what previous consolidation eras teach independent producers about positioning for what comes after.

Hosted by Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine (Paris), Joanna Szymanska (Warsaw) and Fabian Massah (Berlin/Hamburg)

→ EAVE

👉 Connect with The Sideletters community on ⁠LinkedIn⁠.

The Sideletters is a weekly European B2B conversation on film, tech & future business. New episodes every Wednesday.

Fabian Massah sits down with Nairobi-based producer and entrepreneur Osoo Omondi. Ahead of the release of his groundbreaking book, "Film Business in Africa", Osoo challenges the outdated perceptions of the African market and explains why African stories are the ultimate unexploited, renewable resource in the global industry.

We explore the urgent need to build an architecture for local IP ownership and unpack the diverse regional markets across the continent, from the entrepreneurial engine of Nollywood to the technical infrastructure of East Africa to the regulatory frameworks in South Africa. Osoo also breaks down the "poverty porn trap" of NGO-funded cinema, reframes piracy as distorted market intelligence, and discusses how AI intersects with data ownership and cultural preservation.

Links:

🔗  Osoo Omondi (LinkedIn)

👉 Connect with The Sideletters community on LinkedIn.

The Sideletters is a weekly European B2B conversation on film, tech & future business. New episodes every Wednesday.
Hosted by Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine (Paris), Joanna Szymanska (Warsaw) and Fabian Massah (Berlin/Hamburg).

In this episode, Joanna Szymanska and Fabian Massah explore:

• Netflix's "What We Watched" Report (H1 2026): A deep dive into the latest engagement numbers. With more choices leading to "comfort food" viewing, has Netflix lost its curatorial edge? We discuss the platform's evolving DNA, the decline of the middle ground, and how Apple TV+ and Prime Video are stepping up to compete.

• Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey: The massive summer blockbuster is out and breaking box office records. We share our spoiler-free thoughts, discuss the eventification of cinema, and spark a debate: Could this film be a frontrunner for the European Film Awards?

• Gender Parity in the Film Industry: Despite the "50/50 by 2020" movement, recent data shows a concerning backward trend for female directors, particularly in high-budget categories. We are joined by special guest Lisa Herbert (Producer at JUNA Film and board member of WIFT Germany) to break down the systemic blockages, harmful stereotypes, and why giving women the reins on bigger budgets isn't just equitable, it’s better for business.

Links:

🔗  WIFT Germany

🔗  WIFT International

🔗  What We Watched 1H 2026 (Netflix)

🔗  What We Watched 1H 2025 (Netflix)

🔗  Podcast on The Odyssey (NYT)

🔗  Who Owns The Odyssey? (New Yorker)

🔗  Krnov 70mm Film Festival

👉 Connect with The Sideletters community on LinkedIn.

The Sideletters is a weekly European B2B conversation on film, tech & future business. New episodes every Wednesday.
Hosted by Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine (Paris), Joanna Szymanska (Warsaw) and Fabian Massah (Berlin/Hamburg).

This week, Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine and Fabian Massah break down the latest shifts in the audiovisual industry.

EAVE's New Era: Jennifer discusses her exciting new role taking over as Co-Head of Studies for the prestigious EAVE Producers Workshop, her vision for equitable co-productions, and empowering the next generation of independent producers.

Then it’s Netflix vs. YouTube: Netflix is pivoting strategy by adding short-form and lifestyle videos. Is this a genius move to capture attention, or a "cheap content" panic? And more importantly: Why is Europe still waiting for its own competitive, independent video platform?

Letterboxd for sale: With the independent film community Letterboxd in $250M sale talks with giants like Paramount and Netflix, we debate the future of independent film discovery. Will a corporate takeover ruin its editorial independence? We look at how monopolies shape content discovery and potential European alternatives.

Links:

🔗  Netflix going after YouTube (Matt Belloni / Puck)

🔗 Letterboxd for sale (Inidewire)

🔗  EAVE

👉 Connect with The Sideletters community on LinkedIn.

The Sideletters is a weekly European B2B conversation on film, tech & future business. New episodes every Wednesday.
Hosted by Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine (Paris), Joanna Szymanska (Warsaw) and Fabian Massah (Berlin/Hamburg).

Joanna Szymanska and Fabian Massah dive deep into the heated debate surrounding streamer investment obligations in Europe. With tech giants like Netflix and Amazon pushing back against regulations in Germany and France, what does this mean for the local creative economy? Is it an unfair tax on success, or a necessary contribution from an "extraction business" to fuel cultural diversity?

At the same time, there is an engagement problem especially with 2nd and 3rd seasons. We discuss why they are still producing them. And that actually leads to the question: How do streamers measure the economic value of their production in investments in their balance sheets?

Later in the episode, Joanna sits down with Hugo Rosák, Head of Industry at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF). They discuss the festival's ongoing mission to spotlight Central and Eastern European talent, foster cross-border co-productions, and the new "Book to Screen" initiative. Plus, they explore how independent producers can build resilience in an ever-shifting market.

Links:

🔗  Streamers engagement problem (Lucas Shaw - Bloomberg)

🔗  KVIFF Industry Programme

👉 Connect with The Sideletters community on LinkedIn.

The Sideletters is a weekly European B2B conversation on film, tech & future business. New episodes every Wednesday.
Hosted by Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine (Paris), Joanna Szymanska (Warsaw) and Fabian Massah (Berlin/Hamburg).

This week, we're starting with some exciting news close to home: our own Jennifer is taking over as co-head of studies at the prestigious EAVE Producers Workshop. 👏

Plus: We dive deep into A24's controversial $75M deal with Google’s DeepMind and what it tells us about Big Tech’s tightening grip on indie film. We also dissect Amazon MGM’s sudden cancellation of Luca Guadagnino’s Sam Altman movie and its move to Neon.

We cover the growing battle over digital services taxes between Europe and the US, Comcast's strategic split of NBCUniversal, and wrap up with a look at the unprecedented scale of the FIFA World Cup and why live sports remain the ultimate draw for streamers.

Links:

🔗 Comcast’s Split (Variety)

🔗 Luca Guadagnino on the Amazon MGM deal on his film (The Wrap)

🔗 Jennifer’s new role at EAVE (Screen)

🔗 Trump’s Tariff threats (The Guardian)

🔗 FIFA World Cup Numbers (Nielsen)

👉 Connect with The Sideletters community on LinkedIn.

The Sideletters is a weekly European B2B conversation on film, tech & future business. New episodes every Wednesday.
Hosted by Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine (Paris), Joanna Szymanska (Warsaw) and Fabian Massah (Berlin/Hamburg).