India, Australia to sign film treaty

Context

The Union Cabinet has approved the signing of an Audio Visual Co-production Treaty between India and Australia, which is aimed at facilitating joint production of films between the two countries.

About Audio Visual Co-production Treaty

• Audio visual co-production treaties are enabling documents which facilitate co-production of films between both countries
• Under such umbrella agreements, private, quasi-government or governmental agencies enter into contracts to produce films together.
• India has so far signed 15 audio visual co-production treaties with other countries.
• According to the co-production treaty, the respective contributions of the producers of the two countries may vary from 20% to 80% of the final total cost of the jointly produced work.

Need of such treaty

• Australia has emerged as a preferred destination for shooting Indian films.
• India is fast emerging as a major content hub for film-makers looking for new projects.
• India has abundance of exotic locations, talent pool and relatively cheaper cost of production, making India a favoured destination of foreign film-makers.

Significance

• The proposed agreement will boost ties with Australia, lead to exchange of art and culture, and showcase the soft power of our country.
• This will generate employment among artistic, technical as well as non-technical personnel engaged in audio visual co-production, including production and post-production work.
• The use of Indian locations would increase the prospects of the country becoming a preferred film-shooting destination and also lead to inflow of foreign exchange.