Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to identify the co-operative policy mechanisms of the European countries towards international film co-production. Over the years many countries in Europe have developed international policy frameworks for encouraging international film co-production in order to build and maintain vibrant film industries to compete against Hollywood products. The policy structures have been based upon many bilateral co-production treaties, the multilateral co-production convention titled the European Convention on Cinematographic Co-production and the supranational funding systems including the Eurimages and the MEDIA programme. In analyzing those policy initiatives in Europe, this paper also proposes some suggestions regarding what measures the Japanese government should take in terms of enhancing international competitiveness of the Japanese film industry through co-production with producers from the other Asian countries.
