Founded in 1982 by Jan Rofekamp, Films Transit International is one of the longest running, renowned and respected international sales agencies of quality documentaries.
Films Transit International has changed its course from a conventional Sales Agency into a Consulting and Producing partner. We will, albeit on a lesser scale, continue to sell documentaries, IF we really believe in them, and IF we find them relevant for today’s world. We remain interested in docs about stories on the following subjects:
ARTS & CULTURE and SOCIETY & (International) POLITICS
We strongly believe that major festival exposure adds prestige to a film’s international career. We therefore help our filmmakers secure a world festival premiere, plan an international festival career, and provide them with the right contacts and recommendations. Many of our films we were involved in premiered at the major film festivals (launch pads), such as Sundance, Berlin, Toronto, and IDFA, where many of them have won prestigious awards.
OUR INTEREST
Films Transit International is generally interested in two types of documentaries.
First there are the EPIC feature docs, generally with more cultural rather than social-political subjects. These are unique films on LARGE international subject matters and often have a strong auteur signature. They can be historical and contemporary and MUST have a very high-quality level of filmmaking, and tell a story that everyone in the world can relate to.
For each of our EPIC films we strive to help create a worldwide festival launch at a major international film festival. With the filmmaker we develop an international festival roadmap for about a year after its release before licensing them to the FIRST market for television. Some of these documentaries will also have a career in cinema theatres in selected countries.
Secondly, we are looking for what we refer to as URGENT docs. These are generally TV Hour length films on very strong, edgy, provocative, contemporary subject matters that we feel people MUST see because of their political and/or social relevance. Some of the urgent films we handle have strong current affairs value.
EXAMPLES OF FILMS WE RECENTLY RELEASED:
ESCHER- JOURNEY INTO INFINITY
JHERONIMUS BOSCH – TOUCHED BY THE DEVIL
RUMBLE, THE INDIANS WHO ROCKED THE WORLD
MUNCH IN HELL
ALL GOVERNMENTS LIE
DIVING INTO THE UNKNOWN
FUKUSHIMA – A NUCLEAR STORY
SOMETHING BETTER TO COME (Special Jury Award, IDFA 2014)
REQUIEM FOR THE AMERICAN DREAM
SUGAR COATED
THE MIRACLE OF THE LITTLE PRINCE
TWIN SISTERS (Audience Award, IDFA 2013)
SLEEPLESS IN NEW YORK
THE CORPORATE COUP D’ETAT
DOLPHIN MAN
SOME FILMS FROM THE PAST:
GOOGLE BABY (Emmy Award)
THE ART OF FAILURE: CHUCK CONNELLY, NOT FOR SALE (Emmy Award)
POSITION AMONG THE STARS (Best feature-length Doc Award & Best Dutch Doc Award, IDFA 2010)
GENIUS WITHIN: THE INNER LIFE OF GLENN GOULD
GARBAGE DREAMS
REEL INJUN: ON THE TRAIL OF THE HOLLYWOOD INDIAN
SPACE TOURISTS
STEAM OF LIFE (Finland’s official entry to the Oscars)
THE MOST DANGEROUS MAN IN AMERICA (Oscar Nomination, Peabody Award)
ABOUT FACE
BERT STERN, ORIGINAL MADMAN
EAMES, THE ARCHITECT AND THE PAINTER
FIRE IN THE BLOOD
GOOGLE AND THE WORLD BRAIN
WRONG TIME, WRONG PLACE
AND …SOME CLASSICS:
EL OLVIDO, IN THE COMPANY OF JFK: A PRESIDENT TO REMEMBER, STEALING KLIMT, WINGS OF DEFEAT, SHAKE HANDS WITH THE DEVIL, THE REAL DIRT ON FARMER JOHN, A PROMISE TO THE DEAD, SHAPE OF THE MOON, THE CORPORATION, MANUFACTURING CONSENT, WAR PHOTOGRAPHER, OUTFOXED, METALLICA: SOME KIND OF MONSTER, END OF THE CENTURY: THE STORY OF THE RAMONES, THE TIMES OF HARVEY MILK, GREY GARDENS, CRUMB, THE CELLULOID CLOSET and THE WONDERFUL, HORRIBLE LIFE OF LENI RIEFENSTAHL.
WE ARE NOT INTERESTED IN:
Pure science, pure sports, wildlife, factual entertainment, and programs with a very specific national or local content. We generally do NOT take on documentaries or documentary-series that are shorter than 45 minutes.
During the Hotdocs Documentary Festival in May 2010, Films Transit’s Owner and CEO, Jan Rofekamp, was awarded DOC MOGUL 2010, an award given once a year by Hotdocs to an individual for his/her extraordinary contribution to the documentary world during a life-time career.
The DOC MOGUL AWARD was bestowed upon Rudy Buttignol (TVO and Knowledge Network), Nick Fraser (BBC), Sheila Nevins (HBO), Diane Weyermann (Participant Productions), Ally Derks (IDFA) Deborah Zimmermann (Women Make Movies) Mette Hoffmann-Meyer (Danmark’s Radio), Takahiro Hamano (NHK) and recently Iikka Vehkalahti (ex-YLE)
Jan Rofekamp
Films Transit International 