Step 1: Shift Your Mindset from Reactive to Proactive

Most acquisition executives are reactive. They wait for sales agents to pitch them a finished or nearly-finished product. By then, you’re just one of a dozen bidders. The game-changer is to get involved earlier—at the script, financing, or even pre-production stage. This is where the real opportunity lies.

Why? Because at this stage, the project needs you as much as you need it. Producers are looking for financing, distribution partners, and market validation. By entering the conversation early, you can:

• Secure better terms: Lock in favorable distribution rights or lower minimum guarantees.
• Influence the project: Have a say in casting or creative direction to better suit your audience.
• Build powerful relationships: Become a go-to partner for promising producers.

Stop thinking like a buyer and start thinking like a partner. Your goal isn’t just to acquire content; it’s to identify and nurture potential hits from the ground up.

Step 2: Identify High-Potential Projects in Early Development

So, how do you find projects that aren’t being shopped around yet?

You need to dig deeper. Forget waiting for MIPCOM or AFM announcements. The gold is hidden in plain sight, if you know where to look.

Where to Find Early-Stage Projects:

• Development Slates: Keep tabs on the announced development slates of successful production companies. What genres are they exploring? Which scripts have they optioned?
• Film Commissions & Funds: Public film funds and commissions often announce which projects are receiving grants or tax credits. These are often high-quality projects that are actively seeking further financing and partners.
• Co-Production Markets: Events like Berlinale Co-Production Market or Sheffield Doc/Fest MeetMarket are treasure troves of curated projects looking for partners.

The key is to monitor these sources systematically. A one-off search won’t cut it. You need a consistent process for tracking new announcements and identifying projects that align with your content strategy. A tool that aggregates this information is no longer a luxury—it’s a necessity.

Step 3: Track the People, Not Just the Projects

A great idea is one thing, but a great team is what gets a project made. The most reliable indicator of a future hit is the track record of the people behind it. Who is consistently producing, directing, or financing successful content in your niche?

Start tracking these key players:

• Producers & Production Companies: Look at the companies behind recent breakout hits. What are they developing now? Use a platform to follow their every move.
• Sales Agents & Financiers: Who are the power players funding and selling the type of content you want? Knowing their portfolio and current needs gives you a massive advantage.
• Talent (Directors & Writers): An up-and-coming director who just won an award at a smaller festival is likely to have a new project in the works. Get to them before the major studios do.

Don’t just track their past successes. You need real-time intelligence on what they are currently developing, financing, or looking to sell. This is how you connect the dots and find opportunities before they are publicly announced.

Step 4: Analyze Co-Production and Financing Gaps

Here’s a tactic the smartest acquisition execs use: they look for the money.

More specifically, they look for where the money is missing. Almost every independent project is a complex puzzle of financing from multiple sources.

When you see a promising project that has secured, say, 70% of its budget, that 30% gap is your golden ticket. By coming in as a pre-buy or co-production partner, you become essential to the project’s existence.

How to spot these gaps:

• Monitor funding announcements: Keep an eye on which projects have received partial funding.
• Track projects at markets: Pay attention to producers who are “still seeking financing partners.”
• Use a professional project tracker: The right platform, like Vitrina’s Project Tracker, can show you a project’s development stage and known partners, making it easier to identify these gaps.

This strategy positions you as a solution provider, not just a buyer. It gives you immense leverage in negotiations and builds your reputation as a key industry player.

Step 5: Centralize Your Intel and Act Fast

Okay, so you’re tracking producers, monitoring film funds, and looking for financing gaps. That’s a ton of data. If it’s all living in different spreadsheets, email chains, and sticky notes, you’re going to miss opportunities. Speed is everything.

You need a single source of truth. A centralized hub where you can:

• View all potential projects in one place.
• Track the status and key players for each project.
• See who your competitors are talking to.
• Get alerts when a new project matching your criteria appears.

This is where a dedicated platform becomes your unfair advantage. It automates the “discovery” so you can focus on the “deal.” Instead of spending 80% of your time searching and 20% negotiating, you can flip that ratio on its head.

How Vitrina Powers Your Pre-Buy & Pre-Sell Discovery

I’ve shown you the strategy, now let me show you the engine. Doing this manually is nearly impossible at scale.

That’s why we built Vitrina. Our platform is designed specifically for Pre-Buy & Pre-Sell Discovery, giving you a real-time, global view of the content landscape.

We track thousands of projects from the earliest stages of development, monitor the activities of over 50,000 companies, and provide the intel you need to find and close deals before anyone else. Instead of chasing opportunities, Vitrina brings them directly to you.