The Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation have signed their first government-level agreement on film co-production. The agreement was signed today, September 26, 2026, in St. Petersburg by Seyyed Abbas Salehi, Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Olga Lyubimova, Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation.
According to the Public Relations Department of the Iranian Cinema Organization, the agreement establishes, for the first time, a formal and operational framework for cinematographic co-production between the two countries. It was signed on the sidelines of the Joint Committee for Iran-Russia Cultural Cooperation.
Under the terms of the agreement, eligible co-production works will be recognized as national films in both countries. The document also provides mechanisms to support joint productions, facilitate the activities of film crews and the movement and use of equipment, and establish an Iranian-Russian Joint Commission on Film Production.
At the meeting, Raed Faridzadeh, president of the Iranian Cinema Organization, stressed the need to move swiftly toward the implementation of the agreed cooperation. He proposed that the Iranian-Russian Joint Commission on Film Production be activated by appointing its members and setting the date for its first meeting. He also called for the development of a roadmap, based on the agreement, to define the scope and types of co-production projects.
Faridzadeh also identified the expansion of the commercial distribution of Iranian films in Russia; the development of ties between educational and research institutions and the exchange of students and young filmmakers; specialized cooperation between film archives, particularly in the restoration and preservation of films; strengthening reciprocal participation in film festivals and markets; and establishing direct links between platforms in the two countries for the distribution of feature films, documentaries and animation as key areas for further cooperation.
He also emphasized the need to expand economic cooperation in the film industry and lay the groundwork for joint projects in the field of animation.
Cooperation in emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence, was another issue discussed at the meeting.
The agreement was signed during the participation of the Iranian cultural delegation in cultural programs in St. Petersburg and ahead of the Iranian Cultural Week and Iranian Cinema Week in Russia.
The agreement provides a foundation for moving cinematographic relations between the two countries beyond predominantly festival-based and event-oriented cooperation toward sustained collaboration in film production and commercial distribution. It could also serve as a basis for developing specific joint projects between Iranian and Russian institutions and professionals in the film industry in the coming years.