Deputy CEO of Gazprom-Media Holding Lyudmila Smirnova and CEO of Central Partnership Vadim Vereshchagin participated in the session “Digital platforms, creative industries – new oil. Development and harmonization of intellectual property and personal data protection in the BRICS+ countries” as part of the BRICS+ New Economy Legal Forum. The event took place in Moscow on October 18.
Gazprom-Media Holding acted as the strategic partner of the forum. The holding actively cooperates with foreign colleagues, demonstrating the openness to the world that is inherent in the Russian mentality. Currently, the main foreign partners of Gazprom-Media Holding are the UAE, China, India, and Venezuela.
Lyudmila Smirnova noted that, for example, discussions are currently underway with specialists from Hong Kong on joint initiatives in the field of technological cooperation and partnership in the development of digital platforms, as well as exchange of experience in working with advertisers.
In addition to this partnership, collaborations or projects with BRICS representatives are implied, which can be jointly funded by several countries. However, the content is not yet universal due to different cultural codes, except in isolated cases. A good example is the Russian film Cheburashka, which been distributed to foreign markets, as the animated characters do not have specific national traits and may be in demand in other countries.
Vadim Vereshchagin, CEO of Central Partnership, added that in the Middle East, Cheburashka is still the highest-grossing Russian film in history. The speaker also announced the wide international distribution of the project The Wizard of the Emerald City, which will premiere in Russia on January 1, 2025. According to Vadim Vereshchagin, the film will be available in China, the Middle East, the USA, and Turkey. The distributor of both Cheburashka and The Wizard of the Emerald City is Central Partnership.
Vadim Vereshchagin also provided an example of adapting the Russian format to the mentality of other countries. Their vision of the Russian film The Peasant, also distributed by Central Partnership, will be shown in China and Turkey. However, according to the speaker, when co-producing films with Russia, and for example, China, the result is either Russian or Chinese content. As an alternative, Vadim Vereshchagin sees global projects where there is no clear attachment to any specific country.
Central Partnership is part of Gazprom-Media Holding.