Los Angeles, CA – December 21, 2021 – The Independent Film & Television Alliance® (IFTA) announced today it has designated the International Centre for Dispute Resolution® (ICDR®), the international division of the American Arbitration Association® (AAA)®, as the new administering organization for arbitrations governed by the Rules for IFTA Arbitrations.  Since 1984, the well-known, long established IFTA Tribunal has resolved disputes among companies in the worldwide film and television production, distribution, financing, and sales industry.  As part of this new partnership, the ICDR will establish a specialized arbitrator panel for IFTA arbitrations that will incorporate IFTA’s Arbitrator Panel, consisting of attorneys with significant entertainment, intellectual property, copyright, and entertainment law expertise.  

Jean Prewitt, President and CEO, IFTA commented, “We are incredibly proud of this widely used, neutral arbitration service established over 35 years ago to ensure more timely and knowledgeable resolution of industry disputes. IFTA Arbitration has administered thousands of entertainment related arbitrations involving nearly US$1 Billion in claims. Partnering with AAA-IDCR offers incredible opportunities to grow and enhance this industry service and to give clients the benefit of the additional resources offered by ICDR-AAA.”

“We are honored that IFTA has designated and entrusted the ICDR to provide dispute resolution services to their international film and television industry constituents,” said Eric Tuchmann, SVP, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for the AAA-ICDR.  “IFTA’s highly regarded program has been instrumental to its industry for decades and we look forward to providing arbitration and mediation services to the independent film and television industry.”

IFTA and the ICDR worked together to promulgate new Rules for IFTA Arbitrations, tailored to resolve international disputes in the independent film and television industry and to allow a seamless transition for all industry stakeholders.

• Arbitrations filed under all versions of the IFTA Rules, including newly promulgated Rules effective January 1, 2022, will be administered by ICDR.
• IFTA will continue to administer cases until conclusion that were filed prior to January 1, 2022.

These rules integrate the best and most current international arbitration procedures and entertainment industry practices from ICDR and IFTA to deliver efficient, economic, and fair arbitration proceedings. In addition to arbitration services, the new Rules and the ICDR–AAA® provide opportunities for the parties to further agree to mediate or obtain emergency interim relief.

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About the Independent Film & Television Alliance
IFTA is the global trade association for independent film and television production, finance, distribution, and sales companies. The organization represents the independent sector before governments and international bodies and provides significant entertainment industry services to its member companies in 22 countries consisting of independent production and distribution companies, sales agents, and financial institutions engaged in production finance. 

Each November, it produces the annual American Film Market®, the world’s largest motion picture event, drawing more than 7,000 industry leaders from 70 countries and leading to more than $1 Billion in distribution and film financing deals. 

IFTA also develops and publishes the IFTA® Model Agreements which articulate the industry-wide standards and key definitions for licensing international rights in motion pictures and television programming and are reviewed and revised regularly to keep pace with the evolving worldwide film and television industry. For more information on IFTA, visit www.IFTA-online.org.

About the International Centre for Dispute Resolution
The International Centre for Dispute Resolution (ICDR) is the international division of the American Arbitration Association (AAA) and the largest international provider of dispute resolution services. Established in 1996, the ICDR serves parties from over 100 countries with multilingual staff experienced in international dispute resolution proceedings, and a roster of over 725 arbitrators and mediators. For more information, visit www.icdr.org.