Film institutes from 11 Balkan and Southeast European countries are banding together to launch a pan-regional promotional body, dubbed the Network of Southeastern European Cinema Institutions (NSECI).

The network was created during a meeting organised by the Greek Film Centre last weekend on the Greek island of Hydra. The meeting aimed to identify problems common to the film industries of all 11 countries and ways of working together to find solutions. NSECI is charged with implementing "a common framework for bilateral and multilateral collaborations in the areas of production, cultural and commercial promotion."

NSECI will operate out of the Greek Film Centre's Athens office at least until the network's second meeting at the 41st Thessaloniki International Film Festival in November. The moves marks the second attempt to create a Balkan film industry network following the collapse of the Balkan Film Board set up two years ago under the chairmanship of Emir Kusturica.