2025 № 4 (55)

UDC 791 

BBC 85.373(3); 85.374.3(3)

DOI: 10.51678/2226-0072-2025-4-630-661

For cit.: Balandina N.P. The Phenomenon of Co-production. The Formation and Evolution of Franco-Italian Joint Film Production in the 1940s-1960s. Hudozhestvennaya kul’tura [Art & Culture Studies], 2025, no. 4, pp. 630-661. https://doi.org/10.51678/2226-0072-2025-4-630-661 (In Russian) 

Balandina Natalia P. 

PhD (in Art History), Senior Researcher, Contemporary Western Art Department, State Institute for Art Studies, 5 Kozitsky Lane, Moscow, 125375, Russia

https://orcid.org/0009-0000-8478-0216 

ResearcherID: IUQ-8031-2023

balannata@gmail.com

The Phenomenon of Co-production. The Formation and Evolution of Franco-Italian Joint Film Production in the 1940s-1960s

Abstract. This article examines the history of Franco-Italian cooperation in film production from the early years of cinema until the late 1960s. As early as the 1920s, the idea took hold within the global film community that cinematic collaboration was one of the best ways to overcome crises and attract a broad international audience. The silent film era, which erased linguistic boundaries and transformed major European capitals into cultural hubs and filming locations, provided a model for cinematic life in subsequent decades. The article explores various forms of joint film production of France and Italy which emerged through producers’ personal initiative or under temporary trade agreements in the 1930s. However, the primary focus is on the phenomenon of coproduction that appeared in the second half of the 1940s, when joint film production gained legal recognition and status. It is noteworthy that the first-ever official agreement on joint film production, or co-production, signed by France and Italy in October 1946, became an example soon followed by other countries.

The article demonstrates that the co-production model is built on the idea of balance, particularly between the contributions of two producers, each of whom must be a coowner of the film work. Ideally, balance needs to be found in every element of the film: scriptwriting, casting, financial and technical aspects. The article analyses the texts of various Franco-Italian Co-production Agreements of different years and describes how the model of Franco-Italian joint film production was refined and reformed over the two and a half decades following the signing of the first agreement. Various examples of the Franco-Italian films made in the 1940s-1960s are examined, reflecting the evolution of joint production. Finally, the key features of the ‘golden age’ of Franco-Italian co-production are revealed, highlighting key trends in the global film process. 

Keywords: co-production, France, Italy, film process, neorealism, dialogue, film noir, agreement, balance, René Clément, Jean Gabin, Giovannino Guareschi, ‘twin films’, dubbing 

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Received 11.08.2025

Accepted 22.09.2025