The Ostend Film Festival (FFO) launched a new platform in 2023 for Dutch and Flemish film and television makers, producers and representatives of broadcasters and streamers.
For seven years now, the Ostend Film Festival has been working on the Netherlands Neighborhood project. Dutch films were given a platform and presentation moment during FFO and the festival collaborated with its Dutch colleagues to promote the screening of Flemish films at Dutch festivals. In this way, FFO has been building a Flemish-Dutch network in the audiovisual sector for some time.
Cross-border Netwerking is a new initiative within 'Nederland Buurland' through which we extend the network to creators of TV series and animation.
During the Borderless Networking event, we discuss the different possibilities of cooperation and obstacles that can arise. With television series, what are the success factors for a successful Flemish-Dutch co-production? What role do scenario, cast, financing and cooperation between broadcasters play? Can a balanced scenario together with a balanced cast avoid making remakes of each other's series and films? Is the legal framework for Flemish-Dutch cooperation well established or are there still bumps to be cleared? What incentives can further promote cooperation? What about working conditions: are they regulated in the same way, and why is the Dutch sector more advanced in terms of inclusion? How do we avoid typecasting, a regular problem in animation?
