French and Canadian production bodies are beginning a joint drama and docs co-production initiative at Series Mania.

A delegation comprising members of France’s Union Syndicale de la Production Audiovisuelle (USPA) and the Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) are here in Lille and will then travel on to Paris, where they will meet with potential collaborators, commissioners, studio execs and other industry figures.

The overarching aim of the initiative is to strengthen bilateral connections between French and Canadian producers, and help them develop English-language television series across genres.

The CMPA and USPA will also discuss the ongoing shared challenges faced by the independent production sectors in their respective countries.

“USPA is thrilled with the ongoing international cooperation fostered by its partnership with CMPA in Canada,” said Amanda Borghino, Deputy General Delegate of the USPA. “In the current international context, it is necessary to strengthen the links between our two countries, both operationally and politically. We look forward to continuing this collaboration and shaping together new paths for transatlantic content.”

“France has long been a valued production partner for Canada, and we are thrilled to collaborate with USPA on this initiative,” said Reynolds Mastin, President and CEO of the CMPA.

“Today, our two countries are leading global efforts to ensure foreign streaming services respect the right of national governments to require equitable contributions to domestic production, and opportunities for local producers to hold and exploit their own intellectual property. This is critical to the success of local independent production sectors, and to safeguarding individual countries’ national cultural sovereignty.”

Canadian participants are from the likes of Lionsgate, Ruby Line Productions, Peacock Alley Entertainment and Catapult Pictures, while the French delegation includes those from Quad Drama, Mediawan, Gaumont Televisions, Wildcat Productions, Morgane Production and Scriptline.

The initiative is being presented in collaboration with Telefilm Canada, the Canada Media Fund, CanExport for Associations (Global Affairs), the French Embassy in Canada and the Canadian Embassy in France.

The USPA represents the collective interests of more 200 French audiovisual production companies, while the CMPA advocates for Canada’s independent production base.