On April the 30th, the European Commission has launched a third public consultation for reviewing the state aid criteria it uses to assess national support schemes for films and other audiovisual works. After two years of discussion and tensed negotiations with stakeholders and Member states, this consultation is meant to be the last. Indeed, regarding the revised roadmap of the Commission, there is a pressing need for the definitive text to be adopted before the…
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FNE DISTRIBUTOR OF THE MONTH : HANS KÖNIG, POLYFILM, AUSTRIA
FNE together with Europa Distribution continues its Distributor of the Month series. In recognition of the hard work and excellence of European distributors and the common problems they face, especially in the transition to digitalization, we choose a distributor from each country covered by FNE each month. We look at the challenges and the successes faced by those distributors who are members of Europa Distribution with a special series of interviews that offer insights that other distributors…
EU/US Trade negotiations : The European film is at stake by Birgit Heidsiek
The digitization that leads to new distribution channels, business models and marketing strategies with own rules and restrictions is only one part of all the changes and challenges the European film industry is confronted with. While the green paper was promoting multi-territorial licensing and intended to leave no place for national theatrical distributors, the European Commission suggested for the new Cinema Communication to repeal the release windows that are contractual in the funding guidelines. Another…
Study case: “Ernest and Célestine”
by Marjolaine Bouvier, Laure Deschamps & Emma Vigand Ernest and Célestine is a movie based on the children books of the same name. This is the story of an unlikely friendship between a bear and a mouse in a world where these two species are supposed to be sworn enemies. Ernest and Célestine is the kind of movie that brings together children and parents as it makes laugh and smile both young and older ones. This…
FNE DISTRIBUTOR OF THE MONTH: JAKUB MROZ, POLAND
FNE together with Europa Distribution continues its Distributor of the Month series. In recognition of the hard work and excellence of European distributors and the common problems they face, especially in the transition to digitalization, we choose a distributor from each country covered by FNE each month. We look at the challenges and the successes faced by those distributors who are members of Europa Distribution with a special series of interviews that offer insights that other distributors…
Europa Distributions supports Alta Films – April 22 2013
We, Europa Cinemas, Europa Distribution and Europa International, representing together an important European audiovisual and cinematographic chain, would like to express our support to Alta Films. This very important independent Spanish film producer, distributor and exhibitor (200 screens, 530 employees) is forced to close down due to the current economic and political situation in Spain. We would like to underline once again the importance of independent films companies for the local and international distribution and…
Filmmakers’ Petition to Preserve Europe’s cultural exception in the EU/US trade negociations / April 22 2013
Eurocinema, Europacinema, EuropaDistribution, Europa International, FIAD, SAA and UNIC declare their support for a petition launched by European film-makers. The petition aims to exclude audiovisual and cinematographic services from the negotiation mandate of the European Commission for the trade negotiations between the USA and Europe. These organisations, standing alongside the film-makers who have already signed this petition, encourage the European Member States to make substantial amendments to the negotiation mandate proposed by the European Commission.…
2013 LUX Prize – chronicle #1 | “No matter the topic, as long as the film is good, it will create dialogue” by Claire La Combe
The 2013 edition of the LUX Prize has officially started. A month ago, the Committee on Culture and Education of the European Parliament has endorsed the 2013 Selection panel [a 17 person panel], but it is last Thursday, on March 21st, that the first panel meeting took place. Kick off meeting oblige and because film submissions are open until April 17th, serious selection discussions have not started yet. Nonetheless, the introduction time is now over.…
Day & Date article 3: 5 Challenges for a fruitful Day-and-Date Experience by Sarah Calderon
“People don’t go into a store because they need one of our drills. They go because they need a hole in the wall.” Black and Decker CEO. I was recently invited by our partner Europa Distribution to moderate a workshop about Day-and-Date, particularly focusing on new compromises and mutual benefits between simultaneous VOD and theatrical distribution. Two exhibitors where also invited so I prepared a whole arsenal of arguments to defend this model, in…
Day & Date article 2: Where there’s an advantage there’s a disadvantage too by Birgit Heidsiek
Feedback from Distributors and Exhibitors “I am interested in experimenting and gathering date from day-and-date experiments to see if VoD release affects theatrical releases at all”, says Jakub Duszyński, artistic director of Gutek Film that participates in the MEDIA-supported initiative EDAD (European Day-and-Date). “We are waiting for a first film to agree on.” According to the Polish distributor VoD is still small in terms of revenues in Poland. “Theatrical release is a major force behind…
