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- Audience contact: Russia is preparing agreements on joint film production with seven countries
Audience contact: Russia is preparing agreements on joint film production with seven countries
The Ministry of Culture is preparing agreements on joint film production with seven countries, Izvestia has learned. Among them are Brazil, Vietnam, Cuba, Mexico, Turkey, South Africa and Serbia. There are already such projects on the Russian market as "Red Silk", "Balkan Wind", the comedy "Hotel Belgrade", "Crime and Punishment", "Serf. A magnificent century." An increase in their number will not only attract viewers and increase box office receipts, but also solve the issue of piracy, experts say.
Which countries are negotiating joint content
In the Russian Federation, cooperation in the field of cinematography with different countries is actively developing. Films produced in China, India, South Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, Brazil, Mexico and other countries were released in wide Russian distribution in 2024, the press service of the Ministry of Culture told Izvestia. Asian and Latin American films are available in domestic online cinemas and on television.
Russian films, TV series and animations are being purchased for screening not only in cinemas, but also on online platforms and TV channels in Southeast Asia and Latin America, they added.
— Currently agreements on cooperation in the field of joint film production with Brazil, Vietnam, Cuba, Mexico, Turkey, South Africa and Serbia are under development, the ministry said.
They noted that the signing of the agreements would serve as an additional impetus to the development of co-production with these countries.
There are already joint projects on the domestic market. For example, earlier National Media Group (NMG) announced the first co-production with China — the feature film "Red Silk" directed by Andrey Volgin has already been released on Russian screens. The plot is based on the history of two post-revolutionary states. The most anticipated premiere of the year took place on February 20th.
Serbian director Emir Kusturica also previously stated that Russian actor Yura Borisov will play in his new film, which is based on Fyodor Dostoevsky's novel Crime and Punishment. In addition, the films "The Balkan Wind" and the comedy "The Belgrade Hotel" are on the market in a joint production between Russia and Serbia. A Turkish adaptation of the Russian comedy "The Serf. Magnificent Century".
Shooting of the movie "The Belgrade Hotel"
The NMG press service told Izvestia that the holding is interested in the prospects of developing cooperation with friendly countries.
Gazprom-Media Holding is also negotiating and already implementing projects with several foreign partners for example, with India, China and the UAE. Significant interest in co-products is observed from companies from Brazil and Turkey, Alexander Zharov, CEO of the holding, told Izvestia. The audience will see the results of the collaboration this year.
What are the prospects for content producers
The Internet Video Association strongly welcomes any new contacts and initiatives at the level of governments and relevant ministries that can facilitate and simplify the joint production of content and its subsequent distribution, said the CEO Alexey Byrdin. He recalled that Russia has similar agreements with many states, including the CIS countries and China. Formally, there are agreements with many European countries, but since 2022 everything has stopped in this area, he explained.
The prospect of joint film production with Brazil, Vietnam, Cuba, Mexico, Turkey, South Africa and Serbia looks interesting and strategically important for the Russian film industry, says Yulia Zagitova, founder of the Breaking Trends agency and secretary of the Russian Union of Journalists. According to her, such a format of cooperation can bring several key advantages: entering new markets, strengthening international relations and sharing experience, additional financing and reducing risks.
In addition, collaborative films can combine different cultural traditions and storytelling styles, which will make the film market more diverse and interesting for both domestic and international audiences. The new agreements will also help resolve the issue of piracy in the market, the expert added.
— Legal distribution of films internationally can be an alternative to illegal content viewing. If such projects are actively promoted in official cinemas and streaming services of partner countries, viewers will have more legitimate ways to watch films," said Yulia Zagitova.
The main thing is to think over a competent marketing strategy so that each project really finds its audience and benefits all parties, the expert emphasized.
Shooting
New projects created in collaboration with foreign partners can attract viewers who are looking for something non-standard, new and out of the mainstream, added State Duma Deputy Anton Nemkin. In his opinion, this will potentially reduce dependence on pirated resources, which is still being intensively fought due to the fact that many users do not understand that they are paying for viewing not in rubles, but with their data, which then leaks to the black market.
The unique and diverse content increases interest not only from viewers, but also from investors and producers, which creates additional opportunities to improve product quality and expand the market, he concluded.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
