The San Sebastian Festival and Cinélatino, Rencontres de Toulouse created, in 2002, Films in Progress, a pioneer industry activity which has inspired similar formats at numerous international markets and festivals. It was born with the intention to back the production of Latin American cinema and to achieve the completion of films at the post-production stage.

This activity was held twice-yearly: the first coinciding with the dates of the Toulouse festival in March and the second, in San Sebastian, in September. From now on, the San Sebastian Festival will no longer form part of the Films in Progress structure, although the initiative will continue to run in Toulouse, revamped with new collaborations. In the changing context of production and distribution in the audiovisual market, the San Sebastian Festival has decided to promote a new work in progress focussed on Latin American cinema, the details of which will be announced in the coming weeks.

The Films in Progress success stories

Of the 209 films selected in these 18 years of the Films in Progress initiative, 95% have been completed. 114 have been screened at the San Sebastian Festival and 112 at Cinélatino. Following their completion, 106 have been selected for other prestigious international festivals, such as Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Sundance, Locarno and Rotterdam.

Among the films bearing the Films in Progress stamp are Historias mínimas (Intimate Stories) by Carlos Sorín, Special Jury Prize at the San Sebastian Festival; La sombra del caminante (The Wandering Shadows),by Ciro Guerra; Sangre (Blood), by Amat Escalante, screened in Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Festival; Tony Manero by Pablo Larraín, selected for the Directors' Fortnight; Gloria, by Sebastián Lelio, winner of the Silver Bear for best actress in Berlin; Pelo malo (Bad Hair) by Mariana Rondón, Golden Shell in San Sebastian; Ixcanul, the first film by Jayro Bustamante, Silver Bear for outstanding artistic contribution; and Rara, the debut by Pepa San Martín, Generation KPlus awardwinner, also in Berlin. More recently, El verano de los peces voladores and Los perros (The Summer of Flying Fish and The Dogs) by Marcela Said, selected respectively for the Directors' Fortnight and the Critics' Week in Cannes; Desde Allá (From Afar), by Lorenzo Vigas garnered the Golden Lion in Venice; Temporada de caza (Hunting Season), by Natalia Garagiola, People's Choice Awardwinner at the Critics' Week in Venice; Los Silencios, the debut by Beatriz Seigner, screened at the Quinzaine; Los Tiburones (The Sharks), first work by Lucía Garibaldi, best director award at the Sundance Festival; Ceniza negra (Land of Ashes) first work by Sofia Quiros Ubeda screened at the Critics' Week in Cannes, Blanco en blanco (White on White) by Théo Court, winner of the FIPRESCI Prize and best film in the Orizzonti section of the Venice Festival; Algunas bestias (Some Beasts) by Jorge Riquelme, New Directors Award in San Sebastian, and Sin señas particulares (Identifying Features), first work by Fernanda Valadez, winner of the audience and best screenplay awards at Sundance.

San Sebastián and Cinélatino will continue to support Latin American cinema with the same determination as they have shown throughout the 37 editions of Films In Progress, based on mutual friendship and collaboration, each one continuing to follow its own path. The two festivals would like to acknowledge the companies and institutions to have backed this programme over all these years and, particularly, in Spain, the companies Ad Hoc Studios, Deluxe, Dolby, Laserfilm Cine y Vídeo, Nephilim Producciones, No Problem Sonido y Wanda Visión, the Programa Ibermedia and Europa Creativa MEDIA and in France, the Centre National du Cinéma et de l'image animée (C.N.C) - Région Occitanie - Conseil Départemental de la Haute-Garonne - Mairie de Toulouse -  Activités Sociales de l'énergie (C.C.A.S) - CINÉ + - Eaux Vives Productions - Confédération Internationale des Cinémas d'Art et d'Essai (C.I.C.A.E) - Europa Distribution - French Kiss Studio-Saraband -  Studio Mactari - Titrafilm - Bureau des Tournages Toulouse: agence d'attractivité - La Cinéfondation – Gaumont Wilson - Producers Network (Festival de Cannes).