Russia and Spain's regional Catalan government have signed a two-year agreement to promote cultural interchange during the 23rd annual Moscow International Film Festival.

The first concrete plan to emerge is the organisation of a week of Catalan cinema and literature to be held in Moscow every April. A parallel week of Russian cinema is to be hosted annually in October by Barcelona's state-run Filmoteca.

The Catalan week's April date was chosen to coincide with the inauguration next spring in Moscow of Spanish cultural organisation, the Cervantes Institute.

The Russian-Catalan agreement could also help foster feature film and TV co-productions across borders. Russia's culture ministry has already promised support from the nation's public broadcaster.