● From July 14 to 18, BAM brought together 2,275 accredited participants, including 313 international attendees from 28 countries.

● More than 830 meetings organized by the market team helped strengthen connections between key players in the audiovisual industry, fostering potential co-productions with international stakeholders.

● Strong alliances made this edition possible, with a program that focused on convergent narratives, animation, financing, children's content, and much more through over 250 activities.

Bogotá, July 2025 – The 16th edition of the Bogotá Audiovisual Market – BAM concluded with a closing ceremony that awarded 50 prizes, worth over 750 million Colombian pesos, to support participating projects across various categories (BAMMERS, Stories, Film Projects, Series Projects, Animation, Film Screenings, and Rough Shorts). BAM is a promotional program for the audiovisual sector, organized by Proimágenes Colombia and the Bogotá Chamber of Commerce, with support from the Film Development Fund (FDC). The event gathered 2,275 accredited industry professionals who participated in more than 250 activities across different venues to promote business development for their projects.

As a new initiative, BAM 2025 opened part of its programming to the general public, offering special screenings of Colombian and internationally acclaimed films, fostering a closer relationship between the public and the national audiovisual ecosystem.

These screenings featured guest directors, including Argentine filmmaker Lucrecia Martel, who opened a retrospective of her work, and Chinese director Wang Bing, who participated with a special screening of Youth (Homecoming)—both held at the Bogotá Cinematheque. Meanwhile, Iranian director Sepideh Farsi presented La Sirène in a special screening at Cinema Paraíso, in collaboration with the French Embassy.

These events not only allowed non-industry audiences to access important contemporary films but also to engage in conversations about the challenges, particularities, and collaborations that shape filmmaking from the margins.

A renewed Latin American focus

In 2025, BAM continued the trajectory initiated in 2024, emphasizing a Latin American-centered approach to audiovisual production. This perspective recognizes and values the region’s cultural, political, and creative uniqueness, encouraging cross-country collaboration and critical reflection on regional storytelling.

Within this framework, initiatives like the Think Tank and Futures Program provided spaces for dialogue around key topics, such as the distribution of Latin American cinema. Participants included key figures like Víctor Guimarães, programmer for FICValdivia, and Vladimir Durán, Colombian director.

Delegations from several countries took part in spaces like Coproduce With, Meet the Industry, and over 830 one-on-one meetings managed by the market team, all designed to foster experience-sharing and develop joint strategies for a more collaborative regional audiovisual industry.

Institutions such as Spain’s ICAA, Cinema do Brasil, Spcine, Uruguay’s ACAU, the Dominican Republic’s DGCINE, Cinema Chile, and Mexico’s IMCINE shared their visions and experiences. Guests invited by SODEC and Telefilm Canada contributed insights on co-production mechanisms, reinforcing BAM’s spirit of international cooperation. Similarly, Unifrance, the organization that promotes French cinema abroad, was also part of this intercultural dialogue.

“It was very important for me to come for the first time to understand how the market works, take advantage of the opportunities to meet new people, and reconnect with Colombian professionals I already know—to get updates on the market from distributors, exhibitors, and producers. These networking spaces are so fluid and enriching.” — Delphyne Besse, Head of Latin American Territory at Unifrance

Organizations like the Ecuadorian Audiovisual Producers Corporation (COPAE) also participated in one of three international pitch sessions, presenting a total of 22 projects from Ecuador, Brazil, and Spain, all seeking co-production opportunities with Colombia and other regions.

Boosting Colombian content

As part of efforts to strengthen international collaboration, BAM hosted the formal signing of the Colombia–Spain Co-Production Agreement, a symbolic act marking a key step toward closer cooperation between the two national film industries.

The signing ceremony featured Colombia’s Minister of Culture, Arts, and Knowledge, Yannai Kadamani; Ignasi Camós, Director General of Spain’s ICAA; Diana Díaz Soto, Director of Audiovisual, Film, and Interactive Media (DACMI); and Claudia Triana Soto, Director of Proimágenes Colombia.

Also reinforcing international cooperation, Proimágenes Colombia signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Spcine, during a bilateral meeting with Brazil. The agreement aims to enhance the circulation of audiovisual content between the two countries.

“We believe this agreement is very valuable—it will enable our companies, professionals, and content to circulate between Brazil and Colombia. We share similar themes, stories, and aspirations. This will be key to co-productions and broader access to audiences in both territories.” — Lyara Oliveira, President of Spcine

At the national level, the strengthening of Colombian cinema was also evident. The National Council for Arts and Cinema (CNACC) announced the beneficiaries of the first phase of grants under the 2025 Film Development Fund (FDC) Call for Proposals during a key market event. They also opened the second phase, which includes over 16 billion pesos in funding across 17 categories to support new projects and continue growing Colombian cinema.

The Colombian Film Commission supported industry growth through CINA incentives, participating in two BAM Talks as part of its “Experiences That Shape” strategy. Topics included international game design in Colombia (FIFA and Rival Stars) and peace-building narratives (White, a film exploring spirituality and peace in Colombia).

Other CINA-supported productions showcased during BAM Talks included One Hundred Years of Solitude, Pedro Páramo, and the series Delirio. The latter was the focus of the session “The Meaning of Delirio: Between Writing, Image, and the Body,” featuring Laura Restrepo, Julio Jorquera, Estefanía Piñeres, and Verónica Triana, the screenwriter. Delirio premiered on Netflix on July 18 and is currently among the platform's most-watched titles.

Additionally, the Film Commission awarded two development grants of up to COP 60 million each to the series projects Gorgona and Deja de llorar. BAM also launched a strategic alliance with Variety, resulting in three special editions of the Variety Dailies, highlighting Colombia’s role on the global audiovisual stage.

Audiovisual Convergences

In partnership with Bogotá’s Secretariat of Culture, Recreation, and Sports (SCRD), the Gente Convergente program became one of BAM’s most ambitious initiatives to position the city as a digital creation hub, strengthening animation, video games, and immersive experiences (VR/XR). This edition saw 1,556 participants, showcasing both local and international talent.

Gente Convergente included two animation exhibitions, three immersive installations (two during the opening, one in the main tent), ten virtual reality projects (four French, five Colombian, one Colombian–New Zealander), and fourteen video games (thirteen Colombian, one Mexican) at the market’s experience venue.

Renowned international experts participated, including:

Jose Luis Farías, founder/director of Weird Market (Animation, Games & New Media),

Nicolás de Rosanbo, founder of Eddy Cinema,

Magdiela Duhamel, the first Latina producer at Pixar, recently Associate Producer on Inside Out 2,

Hugo Castro from BC Media Lab, a video game accelerator and producer in Mexico.

Gente Convergente at BAM functioned as a platform for visibility, promotion, and strategic connections between local creators, institutions, companies, and potential co-producers. Through this alliance, Bogotá reaffirms its leadership in the digital creative sector, strengthening its cultural industries as engines of economic development, identity formation, and social transformation.