BRINGING BOLLYWOOD DOWN UNDER

JOINT MEDIA RELEASE - SENATOR THE HON PENNY WONG & MINISTER BURKE

A slice of Bollywood in Brisbane or a splash of Melbourne in Mumbai is now on the cards for filmmakers thanks to a new agreement between Australia and India.

Australia’s film industry will benefit from an exciting new partnership with India – following the ratification of the Australia-India Audio-visual Co-production Agreement.

The treaty-level agreement will strengthen collaboration and creative exchange between Australia and India, allowing more films and television series to showcase the best of both cultures, landscapes and people.

The agreement will strengthen the existing ties between the Australian and Indian film industries, assist Australian producers reach new audiences, and Australian audiences to connect with new stories.

The agreement - announced by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in March - will also open up new avenues for industry investment and help distribution for Australian producers in one of the world’s largest and growing markets.

Projects in both countries will be able to access government funding including grants, loans and tax offsets under the agreement.

Since the inception of the co-production program in Australia almost 40 years ago, formal arrangements have been signed with 14 countries, leading to the creation of 214 official co-production titles with total budgets of more than $2 billion.

For more information about the International Co-production Program visit Screen Australia.

Quote attributable to Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator the Hon Penny Wong:

“I’m very excited to see yet another great outcome for the Australian film industry, and the Australia-India relationship.”

“Our two countries enjoy deep and enduring cultural ties. We’re proud to have a large and growing Indian community here in Australia and this agreement will only see our links strengthen further and bringing our people even closer together.”

Quote attributable to Minister for the Arts, Tony Burke MP:

“India is a global film powerhouse and this agreement is great news for the Australian screen industry.

“As a long-time Bollywood fan, I can’t wait to see how this plays out and know this will be a gamechanger for both Australian and Indian filmmakers.”

ENDS