31/01/2017 - The new version of the original 1992 convention opens it up to non-European countries

A picture taken at the signing of the new Convention on Cinematographic Co-production

Yesterday evening, the CineMart market at the 46^th International Film Festival Rotterdam hosted the signing of the revised Council of Europe Convention on Cinematographic Co-production. This is a new version of its 1992 predecessor, designed for the digital age through the provision of an updated legal and financial framework for producers from different countries wishing to co-operate on the production of a film.

Along with the work carried out by the Council of Europe’s Eurimages fund, the convention has, since 1992, been instrumental in making international co-production the core funding mechanism of Europe’s film industry. But the digital world we live in and the rapid changes in the industry have been a major driving force behind the updating process in order to “make it fit for the new opportunities and challenges before us”, as stated by Doreen Boonekamp, whose Netherlands Film Fund was one of the institutions present at the signing.

At a time when borders are being closed and walls are being built, the new convention takes a fresh step towards international cooperation by opening it up to non-European countries for the first time.

Created in 1989, Eurimages has contributed a total of around €540 million in financing to 1,810 European co-productions (encompassing fiction features, animations and documentaries). Over the past 27 years, nine Eurimages co-productions have won an Academy Award in the Best Foreign-language Film category, while eight titles have scooped the coveted Cannes Palme d’Or.