At this year’s Marché du Film, the industry’s ongoing conversation about equity in filmmaking took a practical turn. Presented as part of the impACT programme, EAVE’s 2025 Inclusive Co-Production Report was launched during a collaborative panel moderated by the writer of the report, Ethiopian-Canadian filmmaker Tamara Dawit.

Dawit opened by reframing co-production not only as a financial and logistical structure, but as a relationship, one that must be built on trust, aligned values and mutual understanding. Whether the collaboration is between producers from different continents, or between an emerging and an established producer in the same city, the message was the same: inclusion starts at the first conversation, not in the credits.

Lebanese producer Myriam Sassine (of the company Gaijin) likened co-production to a marriage. “You’re excited. You’re in love with the idea. But if you don’t talk about money, power and boundaries, problems will come.” She urged producers to have deep, honest discussions at the development stage about creative vision, community sensitivities and success metrics, and to document these in early agreements. “Red flags appear early. Put it all in writing.”

Dawit echoed the importance of documentation: “This report goes beyond ‘have a conversation’. It says: write it down. Include it in your contracts. Don’t rely on memory.” This clarity, she noted, is what transforms good intentions into functional partnerships.

For Greenlandic producer Emile Hertling Péronard (of Ánorâk Film), inclusion means dismantling extractive models of storytelling that have dominated the history of filmmaking in his homeland. “People used to come to Greenland, shoot and leave. Our actors weren’t even credited with their full names.” He now works from a position of self-determination, developing protocols that require cultural engagement, respect and reciprocity. “We don’t want people to stop coming; we want them to come correctly.” He described recent collaborations where visiting crews participated in cultural workshops, met families, and even learned songs. “We’re not just a location; we’re a people.” This ethos, inspired by indigenous protocols in Australia, Canada and Sápmi, is now codified in Greenland’s own approach to co-productions.

On the legal side, French producer and consultant Jennifer Sabbah-Immagine (of Big Sister) made a compelling case for rethinking contracts as tools for harmony, not just protection. “Ethics are part of professionalism,” she stated. “Negotiation isn’t war; it’s a meeting of the minds.” She advocated for including project history, cultural context and non-monetary contributions in contracts, from access to networks to time invested in development.

Canadian producer Daniela Mujica (Productions Ocho) emphasised the need to reevaluate how value is defined in budgets and recoupment structures. “We have assessors for catalogues, so why not for development work done over seven years?” She advocated for flexible revenue sharing models that reflect actual contributions, not just money amounts. “It’s about rebalancing the equation.”

Sassine returned to a key source of tension: cost inflation. When low-capacity countries are forced to shift services to higher-cost partners in order to meet treaty requirements, budgets balloon and ownership becomes distorted. “If I have to do post in Norway instead of Beirut, it triples my budget, but not the creative value.” The report recommends normalising budgets across one baseline currency and evaluating proportionality with care. As for being on set, the panellists stressed the importance of equity in practice. “Everyone eats the same food and stays in the same hotel,” said Dawit. Péronard shared that his crews now default to English, rather than Danish, on Greenlandic sets, to neutralise colonial dynamics.

The conversation then turned to post-production, a phase often overlooked in ethical planning. Sabbah-Immagine noted that directors are sometimes sent abroad to supervise edits in unfamiliar languages, isolated from their creative teams. “This affects dignity, workflow and content.” The report recommends designating cultural coordinators throughout the process to ensure narrative integrity and communication. Mujica emphasised the importance of post choices: editors, composers and sound designers all shape the final voice of a film. She gave the example of Kanaval [+leggi anche:
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Finally, the panel addressed what happens after the film is finished: its release. Sassine pointed out that, often, the originating producer from a low-capacity country is left struggling to attend the premiere, while their European co-producer walks the red carpet with institutional support. “It’s like a child’s graduation,” she said. “Both parents should be there.” The report encourages budgeting early for equitable travel and ensuring that screenings return to the communities represented on screen. Visibility matters beyond directors. “When our DoP from Costa Brava, Lebanon [+leggi anche:
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Across the board, the speakers urged producers to slow down, ask more questions and resist shortcuts. “Fairness doesn’t delay the project,” Dawit concluded. “It protects it.”

After the panel, EAVE CEO Kristina Trapp stated to Cineuropa: “The 2025 EAVE Impact Think Tank report is meant to be a guide for producers – both a practical resource and a call to action, offering producers of all backgrounds actionable strategies to foster more ethical, collaborative and impactful international co-productions. Our recommendations apply to any kind of co-production. And whilst not every recommendation will apply to every project, the underlying set of guiding principles and values, the shared commitment, is relevant for any collaboration.” You can read the full report in English and in French.