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The conference will focus on shared challenges and the benefits of filmmaking in border states.

By Rebecca Ruiz-McGill, University Communications
March 13, 2008

Film industry professionals, U.S. and Mexican government officials, economic development experts, university faculty and students will gather in Tucson later this month for a two-day conference on issues related to filming in border states.

The group will convene to address intellectual property rights, economic development prospects and other issues surrounding the film industry in the U.S. and Mexico. The discussion will focus on the collaboration needed to address shared challenges and embrace the benefits of the film industry in the U.S. and Mexico.

Sponsored by The University of Arizona’s Jack and Vivian Hanson Arizona Film Institute, the conference, being held March 27-28, will include international leaders in the film industry including Panamax Films Head of Production Ben Odell, Motion Picture Association of America President Bob Pisano, and Eniac Martinez, who was the still photographer on the set of the award-winning film “Babel.” In addition to panels, the conference will include presentations by Odell and Martinez, a reception featuring Pisano and a premiere screening.

The conference is open to individuals or groups involved or interested in the film industry.

“Filmmaking from a U.S.-Mexico perspective is not only an economic activity with great potential, but also an extremely powerful tool for better awareness, understanding and respect among the many cultures in our region,” said Francisco Marmolejo, executive director of the Consortium for North American Higher Education Collaboration and assistant vice president for Western Hemispheric Programs at the UA. “For the UA, this is a unique opportunity to host this important event, since it reinforces our vocation as a key leading higher education institution in the U.S.-Mexico border region,” Marmolejo added.

According to the conference organizers, the benefits of on-location production in the U.S. include job creation and tax revenue that contribute an estimated $200,000 per day in economic activity from film sites.

“The cultural and economic benefits provided by a healthy film industry are something that both the U.S. and Mexico can benefit from for years to come,” Pisano said. “As you will hear from many of the people taking part in our conference, celebrating, protecting and growing the film industry are in all of our interests.”

The conference will also address the topic of intellectual property protection, which is of paramount concern for people in the film industry and those who wish to protect intellectual property.

Threats to the industry, organizers said, include digital and other types of film piracy in the form of illicit reproduction and distribution of copyrighted movies. Piracy has resulted in over $6 billion in annual losses in the U.S. and approximately $1.1 billion in Mexico.

“As Mexican and U.S. filmmakers alike continue to produce quality entertainment for consumers to enjoy, we must continue to look for ways to protect their valuable property from piracy,” said Kevin O’Shea, deputy director the National Law Center for Inter-American Free Trade at the UA.

The conference is being organized by various institutions, including the Hanson Film Institute, which offers programs for students, emerging filmmakers and media entrepreneurs who want to contribute significantly to the art and/or business of filmmaking and have an influential role in the film industry; the Motion Picture Association of America and its international counterpart, The Motion Picture Association, which serves as the voice and advocate of the American motion picture, home video and television industries; and the National Law Center for Inter-American Free Trade, a nonprofit research and educational institution affiliated with the UA's James E. Rogers College of Law, which is dedicated to developing the legal infrastructure to build trade capacity and promote economic development in the Americas.

The event is also supported by the Mexico Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the UA's College of Fine Arts, School of Media Arts, Office of Western Hemispheric Programs, and Center for Latin American Studies; and the Tucson Film Office.