If you didn’t have to do them, you likely wouldn’t, but coproductions have become a fact of life for an ever-expanding array of independent film and television producers across the map. Finding the right partner remains one of the most vital parts of the process.

‘You should choose people you want to live with because a partnership can be as complicated as a marriage,’ says Simon Nasht, director of coproductions at London, Eng.-based Cafe Productions.

‘Don’t do it just for the money. It’s so difficult to get right and it will only work when everyone is driven toward the production’s needs, which usually happens when there’s an intrinsic reason like access to talent, the story relating to both countries or a shared editorial passion.’

Cafe does roughly six coprods a year and Nasht says he likes to partner with Canadian producers because they share a non-American sensibility and the country has a strong independent film industry with a reasonably good bureaucracy. ‘In Canada you get a `no’ relatively quick – one of the two answers you’re generally waiting for’ – which is why Nasht’s second rule of thumb is, ‘Find a country smaller than yours.’

However, when it comes to financing, he says the u.k. and u.s. win out. ‘Canada is complicated by funding systems, France is a nightmare because all decisions are made by the broadcasters, and Germany is not coproduction friendly – along with Japan, it is the last of the self-sufficient tv producers.’

Ton Okkerse, president of European Media Support of Hilversum, Holland, agrees that the u.s. offers the best financing incentives, but says, ‘the u.k. is very hard for us to crack as continental producers. There are many strong documentary producers in the u.k. and output deals with major broadcasters make it difficult for independent producers to get in.’

He prefers to make deals with local producers who have strong names in their communities and to pre-version specific programs so it’s easier to qualify for financing.

Okkerse, who’s been producing shows for u.s. Discovery Channel for 10 years, feels most confident with Canadian partners because of cultural similarities. ‘You need to have common ground to ensure that the outcome of your product really does fit,’ he says, explaining that because Canada and Holland have relatively small local markets, producers have been forced to look outside their home territories for funding, making the two countries more globally friendly. ‘We have a shared vision with Canada.’

The Canada/Netherlands coproduction treaty is also a strong incentive for Okkerse. However, in the u.s., he says, ‘a program can be pitched and turned into a contract in four to six weeks, very often the deals are limited to a licence fee only, it’s more a prebuy or cofinance process, and decision making is simpler and faster. Public funding often delays the financing process.’

Okkerse cites Germany as the second best for financing incentives. But u.k. producer Sally Hibbin of London-based Parallax Pictures says Germany’s subsidy system is definitely number one. ‘It allows us to spend money in various parts of Germany and receive money back into the film as a result of that; for every deutsch mark they give you, you have to spend one-and-a-half in their region. And German coproducers take care of organizing funding and broadcast deals.’

For these reasons, it has not only made sense for Hibbin to partner with Germany, but to shoot there as well. ‘One of the problems with making coproductions in Britain is that it is very hard to get money for anything that isn’t British or American,’ says Hibbin, whose company only does European coproductions.

For her, an ideal partner is someone with a genuine relationship to the project and a shared reason for doing it. For instance, in looking for a coproducer for Ken Loach’s The Land of Freedom, a film set in the Spanish Civil War, going to Spain was the obvious choice.

‘We spent a lot of time talking to people there and trying to find the company that felt right for us, that was of similar size, similar level of expertise, similar outlook, who equally understood what we were after, so we wouldn’t go down the route of `Well we’ve got someone from Spain, so how many Spanish characters do we have in it?’ And that’s precisely what we avoided doing,’ Hibbin explains.

Jens Meurer, founder of Germany’s Egoli Films, says he prefers to partner with Scandinavians because they are ‘cultured, interested and reliable,’ and France because ‘they believe in film and have money.’

A seasoned coproducer, Berlin-based Meurer says, ‘A good coproducer is one with whom you have survived five failed projects – and then you get going.’

On a similar note, Garfield Kennedy, ceo of Gosh! Films in Glasgow, Scotland, advises against coproducing with anyone who hasn’t done it before. ‘It will cost you money and precious resources.’

Coprods must deliver advantages and Garfield has found that coproducing with major broadcasters like the bbc, itn, NBC News, pbs and Fuji tv in Japan can be highly beneficial. ‘It gives us the clout of a large organization married up to our expertise and specific project knowledge.’

As far as producers go, Garfield prefers to partner with France and Australia. ‘In Australia, they need you more than you need them, so there’s a willingness,’ he says, which brings us back to Nasht’s rule of thumb: ‘Find a country smaller than yours.’

Snorri Thorisson, founder of Iceland’s Pegassus Pictures, says financing is particularly important in Iceland, where resources are limited. Nonetheless, he’s not willing to jump at whatever coprod offer comes his way. In fact, Thorisson feels so strongly about ‘knowing who you’re dealing with,’ he asks for references.