Mapping International Film Trade: Network Analysis of International Film Trade Between 1996 and 2004

The international flow of media products has long been 1-way but recent studies have reported a trend of increasing regional and cultural exchanges. This study explores structural changes and continuities in the international film trade during the past decade. It analyzes film trade data obtained from the United Nations database using network analysis. Results suggest that the structure of global film trade has become denser over time, especially due to the increase in film exchanges among English- and Spanish-speaking countries and among countries located in Asia and Europe. Although a few wealthy countries are still responsible for a large proportion of film trade, findings show that both geographical proximity and linguistic commonness are important determinants of international film trade.