SINGAPORE: United States President Donald Trump’s recent announcement that he intends to impose 100 per cent tariffs on movies produced outside America has sparked uncertainty in the global film industry.
But even as the White House remains unclear on how it will be implemented, Singaporean filmmakers and producers are intensifying efforts to strengthen cross-border collaborations.
Global partnerships are crucial for both production and distribution, they said, and are key to sustaining growth in the international movie landscape.
One such industry player is Ms Tan Si En, co-producer of A Useful Ghost – a supernatural black comedy romance film that was a collaboration between Singapore, Thailand and France.
The movie is scheduled to have its world premiere on Friday (May 17) at the world’s top film festival in Cannes.
Ms Tan told CNA that while it is too early to tell what impact the tariffs will have, it will “make the market much more difficult than it already is”.
“I imagine it will be complex – on one hand, maybe the tariffs will encourage more production within the US, but maybe on the other hand, it will make Asia a much more attractive place for production to take place, for stories from our part of the world to be made,” she said.
“As a producer, I hope the tariff will push us to rethink our global strategy. Maybe it will help us to emphasise marketing platforms like film festivals or film markets like the Cannes Film Festival.”
When Ms Tan heads to the French city this week, she expects to see the industry working together to figure out what is next. This includes how to get films out to different countries and audiences.
“I hope that through different sort of co-operations, maybe outside the US, people could think creatively,” she added.
“It could be an opportunity … for our films to reach different platforms, or for platforms to explore maybe territories that they have been neglecting outside of the US.”