Bosnia and Herzegovina Prepared to Meet the Requirements to Join Eurimages

Safet Halilovic, Minister of Civil Affairs of B&H, and Renate Roginas, the Executive Director of Eurimages, discussed in Sarajevo the requirements that Bosnia and Herzegovina should meet in order to become a member of this cinematographic assistance fund. Halilovic said that B&H is prepared to fulfill all conditions to join Eurimages. Safet Halilovic, Minister of Civil Affairs In order to start the process of accession to Eurimages, Bosnia and Herzegovina should first send a letter to the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, who will, in turn, inform the Board of Directors of Eurimages of its readiness to join the fund. Also, B&H should sign and ratify three international conventions and submit a report on the situation in national cinematography to the Board. It was mentioned at the meeting that a working body should be established, with representatives from the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the Sarajevo Film Festival and production companies from B&H, which will be charged with the preparation of the report. Roginas said that the procedure for accession may last from six months up to a year and that the doors of Eurimages remain open for B&H. She expressed her satisfaction with the readiness of the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the film authors in B&H to fulfill the requirements to access this fund. Ademir Kenovic, one of the most successful film producers and directors in B&H also participated in the meeting. Eurimages is the Council of Europe fund for the co-production, distribution and exhibition of European cinematographic works. Set up in 1988 as a Partial Agreement it currently has 30 Member States. Eurimages aims to promote the European film industry by encouraging the production and distribution of films and fostering co-operation between professionals.