Co-production Program

Why Make a Co-production?

An Official Co-production gives you access to a wider range of resources by automatically accessing two markets in terms of creativity, talent, finance and audience reach.

An Official Co-production is treated as a ‘national’ production in each partner country and can access the same benefits available to domestic projects. In Australia, this means an approved Co-production:

may allow the Australian producer to access the Producer Offset (bypassing the significant Australian content test) under Division 376 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997
may apply for direct content funding from Screen Australia and other government agencies (note, however, that approval as a Co-production doesn’t mean that funding is automatic; rather, it means you are eligible to apply for support for your project)
is considered ‘Australian content’ for the purposes of content quotas applying to Australian broadcasters.

Co-productions are also eligible for any support provided to national productions of the other co-producing partner country.

First Principles and Eligibility

Under each Arrangement, Co-productions are jointly granted approval by the Competent Authority in each country. Each country nominates a Competent Authority to administer the Co-production Program. Screen Australia is Australia’s Competent Authority. Approval cannot be given until all Competent Authorities agree that their respective application is in accordance with the relevant Arrangements and their policies and guidelines.

The basic requirement of each Arrangement is that each co-producer must bring a minimum percentage of the financial and creative contribution to the project, and, further, these two elements need to be ‘reasonably in proportion’. For example, if you demonstrate a 40% creative contribution to the project, you would also have to contribute around 40% of the finance.

Each Arrangement specifies a number of terms which must be met. These include:

minimum financial and creative contributions
personnel
screenwriters and underlying works
location of production
co-producers’ agreement.

Co-production Guidelines Co-production Arrangement Tool

Step-by-Step – Provisional Approval

Producers are encouraged to contact the Producer Offset and Co-production Unit (POCU) to discuss their project prior to submitting a Provisional Co-production Approval application.

A Step-by-step Guide outlining the Co-production Provisional Approval process is available at the link below.

Co-production Provisional process

Step-by-step – Final Approval

After the project is completed and the expenditure statements have been audited, the Australian Producer applies for Final Co-production Approval.

Producers are encouraged to contact the Producer Offset and Co-production Unit (POCU) to discuss their project prior to submitting a Final Co-production Approval application.

A Step-by-step Guide outlining the Co-production Final Approval process is available at the link below.

Co-production Final Approval process