CLOSER CO-OPERATION

The goEast Film Festival’s Forum “German-Russian Co-productions” in Wiesbaden sets up an interest group on closer co-operation by producers from the two countries.

Russian and German film producers want to co-operate more closely in the future. This was the conclusion of the goEast-Forum “German-Russian Co-productions” that took place as part of the 7th Petersburger Dialogue in the German city of Wiesbaden. About 40 German and Russian producers, film makers and representatives of state film funding bodies took up an invitation by the goEast film festival and met in Hessen’s state capital, Wiesbaden, last Friday, October 12th. The delegates formed an interest group with six producers from each country. It aims to improve conditions for German-Russian co-productions and provide a point of contact for politicians. In the past ten years, there have been 13 German-Russian co-productions.
Together with Peter Dinges, CEO of the German Federal Film Board, goEast festival director and Forum founder Christine Kopf had the opportunity to introduce the results in the working group culture of the Petersburger Dialog. The group’s first meeting will be at the Berlin International Film Festival 2008. In addition, goEast - Festival of Central and Eastern European Film invited the group to another meeting at the eighth edition in Wiesbaden in April 2008.