This year, five TIFF 2012 Studio participants are attending the Cannes Film Festival and market. Over the next few days, they will blog about their experiences and insights gained from conversations with international producers and industry execs, and navigating the festival market. In this installment, Scythia Films producer Daniel Bekerman discusses the art of the festival meeting schedule.

A strong wind was blowing in Cannes today. Hats were claimed by the ocean and my hair was ever so slightly mussed. Since my trip was planned last minute I also had the sense that I was flying somewhat randomly from meeting to meeting. It made me realize there are advantages and disadvantages to a highly choreographed festival schedule.

Efficiency is lost but unforeseen opportunities gained when you let the wind take you. Today I had three highly anticipated, productive meetings, all with German production companies that are prospective partners for a large new project I am embarking on. I also had several random meetings and I frankly can’t remember how they were booked in the first place, mostly with people who look under thirty who I’ll try to refrain from calling “kids.”

They ranged from worst — during which I mainly planned what I would write in this blog oo to best — where I was pitched projects that made my jaw drop. These are the projects that made me pine for my go-to, wished-for superpower: The power to increase the hours in the day from 24 to 48. My feeling is that at least one of them is worth pursuing.

I’ve been to several markets now and I think I’ve found my scheduling sweet spot. Focus on the big meetings, but don’t shun the randoms. It’s also a great lesson in what makes a good pitch. My general rule on both sides of the table is to avoid an overly linear “This happens then this happens” type of thing.

However, I’ve also noticed that when a story is extremely strong, I very much want to know the “this happens then this happens” of it all. So much of my passion for feature films is based on an addiction to the feeling of discovery, which I think might be best savoured when it’s unanticipated. As much as I resent the fact that there is indeed a generation younger than mine who now attends markets, it seems that many of these discoveries reside among them, the kids. Hats off to them.

The Studio program is TIFF Industry’s first year-round program, open to Ontario-based producers and aimed at developing next-level creative and business skills and knowledge of the global marketplace through panels, programs and seminars with Canadian and international film experts.