” Dear MIPCOM,

Hey. How’s it going? I’ve been thinking about you lately.

I saw a photo of Caffé Roma the other day and I got a little verklempt.

This pandemic has given me time to think. Lots of time. Lots.

I realize now that I took you for granted all those years we were together. You and your big signs. Your dopey badges. Your canvas bags full of TV crap that I always left on the floor of my room at The Gray at check-out.

I guess I just always assumed you’d be there. Until you weren’t.

I know I wasn’t always an easy delegate. I complained about the price of water, about your insouciant French waiters, about the architecture in the Palais where every bathroom door opens directly into a wall.

Yes, there were many things about you that annoyed me. But they all seem so trivial now.

It’s not like I haven’t tried to get over you. I have. I even went online.

I attended some of those virtual conferences but they always seemed so, well, eager. I never wanted to open my camera. I never wanted to share my screen. I liked being on mute.

What can I say, they all just reminded me of you. But they weren’t you. Not even close.

They didn’t make me walk quickly and breathlessly to my 9am meetings. They didn’t have a background filled with actual ocean and boats. And they didn’t reek of garlic and butter.

What can I say, I miss you.

I miss your mini-croissants and your VAT. I miss going swimming between pitches. I miss hoarding chairs in the VIP lounge. I miss your 45 Euro breakfast buffets and your bipolar taxi drivers. I miss saving my receipts. I miss passing not one but two carousels on my way to work. I miss business cards. I miss your unique pairing of gold chrome and pink marble. I miss your old stone church where I used to go and pray that someone would pick up my preschool shows.

Yes, MIPCOM, I miss you, and I think we should get back together. There, I said it.

See you in October? Maybe? Table for 13,712?

Josh Selig “

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The letter to MIPCOM has been written by Josh Selig, Founder and President of China Bridge Content, former CEO of Little Airplane Productions, and Emmy-winning creator of many popular children’s shows.

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About Author

MIPTV and MIPCOM are the world’s most important global markets for the TV and digital media industry. They are the key events for buying and selling, financing and distributing programmes in all genres, on all platforms. Together, every 6 months, they form the annual landmark events of the entertainment calendar, attracting key industry executives, thought-leaders and creative talent from the entire content spectrum to negotiate deals, network and gain insight. MIPTV and MIPCOM respectively take place every Apriland October in Cannes, France.

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