The National Film Board of Canada (NFB), which has produced its share of Oscar-winning animated shorts, today signed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK). Signed in Tokyo by NFB Commissioner Tom Perlmutter and NHK president Shigeo Fukuchi, the agreement builds on the successes of a 2003 MOU, which brought the organizations together to collaborate on socially relevant co-productions.
‘This MOU represents something radically new in the world of international co-productions and partnerships,’ says Perlmutter. ‘We are moving away from a traditional co-production model to one where we come together to establish a creative laboratory that can take the programming risks that are not possible in the normal course of business. We are extending the NFB model of prototyping and testing new ways of creation, often with new technologies, into the international sphere.’
The new MOU lays the foundation for the co-development of flagship projects, including high-definition and stereoscopic 3-D productions. The two public organizations will work together to explore themes of common interest, such as environmental and social issues, and how to tell those stories in new ways and working across multiple-platforms.
