The reports of the death of the American Film Market have been greatly exaggerated. After years of turbulence — from the double blow of the pandemic and the Hollywood strikes to a pair of ill-advised venue shifts, including last year’s misfire in Las Vegas — the world’s leading indie movie bazaar looks set for a surprising comeback. Relocated to the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles this year’s AFM arrives amid rising confidence that the independent business still has plenty of fight left in it.

“I thought no one would be coming to AFM but everyone’s coming,” says Jonathan Kier, co-CEO of production and international sales group Upgrade Production. “My schedule is packed — packed .”

“We’ve been surprised by the fact that during the pandemic and the strikes and the contraction of a

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