Digital Content Creation is an International Endeavour

No Borders: Models for International Co-Production and Partnerships
Moderator: Charles Zamaria, Ryerson University
Panelist: Alexander Fernandez, Streamline Studios
Panelist: Mike Cowap, Australian Film Commission
Panelist: Arnie Zipursky, CCI Entertainment
Thursday, March 27 – 1:15pm

Co-production models in ‘traditional’ media have existed for quite some time. What about digital media? The No Borders panel aimed to address three core questions in their hour at ICE08:

• Why are there so few international co-production opportunities in digital media?
• What can we do to increase these opportunities?
• Are the models of international co-production that currently exist in traditional media replicable, or do we need to develop new strategies?

To start off, why international co-production? In the field of video game production, the obvious benefit is the offsetting of financial and technical risk. In addition, international connections also assists in finding highly-qualified and specialized personnel. In the field of film and television, international co-production is an important part of the financing model. In Canada, official treaties are being created in order to facilitate these kinds of co-productions — this way, the co-productions still retain the badge of being “Canadian content.”

Currently, the CRTC has no cultural control over the digital space, so the formal treaty system may not be necessary, but still worth looking at.

While informal agreements may be easier to create and manage — particularly in the digital space — there is, however, still a need for formal agreements. These kinds of treaties allow for easy access to public funding and tax credits, and also lend recognition to digital content creation as a cultural industry that needs to be fostered and supported.

Ideally, international co-productions in the digital content sphere would benefit from a mixed model of formal — leveraging the power of public funding and relationships — and informal — based on commercial terms eliminating bureaucracy — agreements.

Photos by Rannie Turingan.