Fire & Ice Media and Coccinelle Launch Philippine-Italian Sales Alliance

Fire & Ice Media and Italy's Coccinelle Film Sales unveiled a strategic sales alliance at Busan's Asian Contents & Film Market, aiming to place independent films with buyers across Asia, Europe and North America. The Philippine producer-sales agent and the Rome-based outfit will co-represent a handpicked slate, combining regional know-how and buyer contacts to land distribution deals beyond each film's home market. A first batch of titles has already been selected, though neither company has named the films yet.

Abell Diño-Cabrera, who heads Fire & Ice Media and runs its film and TV development, production, positioning and sales work, steers the alliance for the Philippine side. Francesca Breccia founded Coccinelle, which sells independent titles internationally and pairs rights holders with distributors across territories.

What do the two partners bring to the table?

Diño-Cabrera frames the deal as a matching exercise. "Every film has its own audience and its own potential in different markets. Our job is to understand where those opportunities are and work with the right people to make them happen," she said. "Partnering with Coccinelle allows us to strengthen our reach, share market knowledge, and create more possibilities for the filmmakers and producers who trust us to represent our work."

Coccinelle already runs sales alliances with Asian partners, notably in South Korea and Thailand. Breccia said she was delighted to add the Philippines to that network — and she pinpointed what drew her in. "Filipino cinema has a strong identity and remarkable creative energy, with stories and voices that deserve greater international exposure. I was particularly drawn to Fire & Ice Media's lineup, which combines a distinctive arthouse sensibility with strong commercial potential," Breccia said.

What films sit on the Fire & Ice slate?

The company brought a Filipino lineup to the Asian Contents & Film Market, including:

• Phil Giordano's "Bilyarista," a sports drama with a female lead
• Nigel Santos' queer ensemble piece "Open Endings"
• David R. Corpuz's "Only Known to Us"
• Law Fajardo's "The Hearing"
• "Crosspoint," a Philippines-Japan thriller from Donie Ordiales
• A selection of films by Brillante Mendoza

International co-productions and development projects are also in the works: Mendoza's "Aid," Ham Tran's supernatural thriller "Red Thread" and "Karaoke News," a crime thriller from John Paul Su aimed at the media.

What does this change for Filipino indies?

Parent company Fire & Ice Entertainment, co-founded by CEO Liza Diño and Ice Seguerra, spans film and TV production, international sales, music, live events and creative consultancy. Its Media arm has already co-produced international titles — Nicole Midori Woodford's "Last Shadow at First Light," which premiered at San Sebastián in 2023, and Matsubayashi Urara's "Blue Imagine," a 2024 Rotterdam premiere. The pipeline also includes Diño's scripted series "Never the Bride" and her feature "Funeral Flowers," plus Seguerra's music-driven road movie "Alex & Rio."

For Filipino filmmakers, the alliance adds a European sales channel to an operation that already co-produces with Singapore and Japan — effectively widening the route from festival premieres to international buyers.

Diño said the company has learned that a robust slate is merely the starting point. "Every market is different. Buyers have their own interests, audiences have different tastes, and sometimes a film finds its opportunity through a conversation with the right person who understands what it has to offer," she said. "We see this as the beginning of a meaningful long-term relationship."