Ireland And South Africa Sign Movie Deal At Cannes Festival

Ireland and South Africa have signed a co-production treaty, aimed at boosting film-making links between the two countries.

The deal was struck at the Cannes International Film Festival in the south of France.

The two countries will benefit from joint access to local tax incentives, national film funding and broadcaster and regional subsidies.

It will also open up access to local markets and create the opportunity to pool industry resources.

"Co-production agreements matter because they open up new territories for film makers to explore and exploit," said Arts Minister Jimmy Deenihan.

He said the agreement aimed to allow Irish film makers and production companies to forge closer links with their South African counterparts.

His South African counterpart Minister Paul Mashatile said "The creative industry, which includes film, forms part of South Africa's drive to use the Arts to tell our own stories and more importantly create sustainable employment."

The Treaty signing was attended by a large number of Irish and South African producers who were attending the Cannes International Film Festival

Even before the signing of the treaty, there have been a number of Irish South African co-productions over the years including John Boorman's "Country of My Skull" which was produced by Merlin Films and starred Juliette Binoche and Samuel L Jackson and Gilles McKinnon's "Tara Road" which starred Andie McDowell and was produced by Ferndale Films.