Fox International Productions (FIP), a division of 20th Century Fox, has entered into an exclusive first look pact for Russian-language films with Paul Heth and Michael Schlicht.

FIP President Tomas Jegeus and Twentieth Century Fox EMEA Executive Vice President Paul Higginson, along with Heth and Schlicht, made the announcement Wednesday.

Heth and Schlicht are longtime producing partners. Heth is a Moscow-based media entrepreneur, who is widely credited with the revitalization of the Russian theatrical exhibition sector. He also is an owner, and serves as CEO of Karo, one of Russia’s leading cinema companies.

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Schlicht is one of Russia’s most accomplished film executives, having overseen the release of five of the top 10 grossing local language films of the modern Russian film era, including Irony of Fate 2 and the Night Watch franchise.

Russian Films

The arrangement encompasses both co-productions and acquisitions of Russian-language films and is supplemental to Fox’s continuing co-production and acquisitions relationships and activities in Russia and CIS.

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Heth and Schlicht will work closely with 20th Century Fox International’s Managing Director for Russia, Vadim Smirnov.

Heth and Schlicht’s previous producing credits include such films as Stalingrad (the highest grossing film in Russian box office history), the Very Best Movie comedy franchise, Vysotsky: Thank God I am Alive, and Battalion.

Russia is currently one of the world’s top ten cinema markets. In 2014 Russian box office was $1.247 billion, with locally produced films accounting for $215 million of the total.