FEST New Directors New Films Festival

Parallel to the film competition, there is Training Ground, an educational event for young filmmakers.

Among many other objectives was the will to promote already established names alongside new one, in order to open new paths for new talents to break through.

The year 2005 marked the beginning of the Film Students Encounter, the event that would later be developed and renamed Training Ground.

In that year Tom Stern (cinematographer of Million Dollar Baby and Gran Torino) and Álex Rodríguez (film editor of Y Tu Mamá También and Children of Men) were among the speakers.

[4] Since its beginning in 2009, Training Ground's speakers list has included: Melissa Leo (Frozen River, The Fighter), Peter Webber (Girl with a Pearl Earring, Hannibal Rising), Christian Berger (The Piano Teacher, The White Ribbon), Tariq Anwar (American Beauty, The King's Speech), Fernando Trueba (Belle Époque, Chico and Rita), Tom Stern (Million Dollar Baby, Gran Torino), Martin Walsh (Chicago, Wonder Woman), Laurence Bennett (Crash, The Artist), Eugenio Caballero (Pan's Labyrinth, The Impossible), Álex Rodríguez (Y Tu Mamá También, Children of Men), Larry Smith (Eyes Wide Shut, Only God Forgives), Kjartan Sveinsson (Vanilla Sky, 127 Hours), and David Macmillan (The Right Stuff, Apollo 13).