As part of a wider package of UK partnerships with India announced today, Pact has signed and committed to a new MoU with the Producers...
As part of a wider package of UK partnerships with India announced
today, Pact has signed and committed to a new MoU with the Producers Guild of
India.
Producers Guild of India President, Shibasish Sarkar, apprised UK Prime
Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, about the signing of the MoU in their interaction
at a meeting of the UK Prime Minister and the visiting UK delegation with the
Indian filmmaking community.
The MoU follows the cultural cooperation agreement signed by the
Minister for Culture, Media and Sport, Lisa Nandy in May this year, and intends
to lead to a more collaborative relationship between the UK and Indian
production sectors and for both countries to share best practice, projects and
ideas.
UK TV exports to India have remained consistent over the past five years
(£23m in 2023/24), but with these new agreements and the history between the
two countries, there is huge potential to increase both exports and
co-productions.
As part of the MoU, both countries have committed to an ‘education
piece’ about what each country has to offer, and to share best practices,
market intelligence, reports on tax credits, co-production information and
relevant organisations in each territory.
Pact has participated in a BFI (British Film Institute)-led webinar on
the UK for Indian producers, and will host a reverse session for UK producers.
These will be followed by co-development and co-production sessions, and
introducing UK and Indian companies to each other via online match-making and
in-person events in both countries, where possible.
A new MoU between the BFI, the lead organisation for film and the moving
image in the UK and its Indian equivalent the NFDC (National Film Development
Corporation) will establish a framework of close cooperation across film and
broader screen to boost co-production, greater access for audiences, cultural
exchange and support for film heritage.
Pact’s Head of International and Projects, Ross Lewis, said: “I’m
delighted to be able to renew Pact’s relationship with the Producers Guild of
India (PGI) with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). At a time
of increased political co-operation between the UK and India, and with our
shared history such a rich source of inspiring stories, it feels that the time
is right to do all we can to bring together our two world-leading production
sectors for even more successful collaborations.”
Producers Guild of India’s President Shibasish Sarkar said, “The United
Kingdom is already a popular destination for Indian filmmakers who choose to
film abroad, and the time is ripe now to take that engagement to the next level
by widening and deepening ties between the filmmaking communities of both
nations. I am confident that our relationship with Pact will act as a catalyst
in that process, and we look forward to working closely with our colleagues at
Pact to realise the immense potential of India-UK creative collaborations.”
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