The country’s accession to the Council of Europe’s co-production fund should boost co-productions with the Nordic region.

Canada becomes the first state outside Europe to join the 37 European countries already participating in the Fund, which distributes €25 million annually to film co-production, distribution and exhibition.

In a recent interview (click here) Roberto Olla, Eurimages Executive Director noted that Canada’s entry represents ‘a huge change in the philosophy of the Fund’. “The initial concept of EU co-production was driven by geographical boundaries. Today, co-productions are driven more by the kind of films we want to make. Canada shares with us, Europeans, the point of view of the auteur. So why not collaborate with them multilaterally when so many countries already have bilateral co-production treaties with them? Hopefully after Canada, other countries signatories of bilateral co-production treaties in Europe, will also join us, such as Israel or Argentina," he said. 

Sweden was the first Nordic country to sign a bilateral co-production treaty with Canada in 1994, followed by Denmark (1997), Finland and Norway (1998) and finally Iceland (2003). In the last five years, Denmark and Finland have been the most active co-production partners to Canada with four co-productions each, including Per Fly’s Backstabbing for Beginners (set to open in Denmark this fall) and Mika Kaurismäki’s The Girl King, released in December 2015 in Finland.

Noemi Ferrer Schwenk, Head of International at the Danish Film Institute said: ”Denmark is delighted that Canada joins Eurimages and has actively supported the process of making this possible. We have over the past five years had an increased interest from our industry in co-producing with Canada. Per Fly’s Backstabbing for Beginners was shot in Canada last year, and Lone Scherfig’s new film Secrets from the Russian Tea Room is also heading there. We welcome the fact that co-producing with Canada will be made more attractive with the possibility of applying for Eurimages funding”.

At Eurimages’ last round of support, the Russian documentary Fatei and the Sea by Alina Rudniskaya was co-produced by Finland’s Illume and the Greek film The Miracle of the Sargasso Seas by Syllas Tzoumerkas was co-produced by Sweden’s Dragon Films.