The aims of the programme are to increase the competitiveness of the European audiovisual industry, to enable Europe to play its cultural and political role in the world more effectively and to increase consumer choice and cultural diversity. The programme will seek to improve access to third-country markets and to build trust and long-term working relationships.

Specific objective 1: Information exchange, training and market intelligence

1. Strengthen the skills of European and third-country professionals and improve their level of information and knowledge.

• Support the development and implementation of training modules including trainees and trainers from European and third countries, with a focus on the conditions of production, co-production, distribution, exhibition and dissemination of audiovisual works in the relevant international markets.
• Support the development and implementation of training modules including trainees and trainers from European and third countries, with a focus on the inclusion of new technologies for the production, post-production, distribution (including new distribution platforms such as VOD, IPTV, Web TV), marketing and archiving of audiovisual works.
• Encourage exchanges between the institutions and/or existing continuous training activities.
• Contribute to training for trainers.

Specific objective 2: Competitiveness and distribution

1. Facilitate the search for partners for co-productions.

• Support the organisation of forums for the development, financing, co-production and pre-sales of international co-productions, in particular co-production markets and partner search events (pitching), aiming at bringing together possible partners (e.g. script writers, directors, actors, producers and distributors).

2. Encourage international sales and promotion of audiovisual works.

• Encourage the conclusion of agreements between groupings of European and third-country rights-holders/sales agents/distributors to ensure the distribution (e.g. in cinemas, on TV, IPTV, Web TV and on VOD platforms) of their respective audiovisual works on the territory/territories of their partner(s).
• Raise public awareness, through reinforced promotion campaigns, of the release of films from European countries worldwide, and the release of third-country films in Europe.
• Support dubbing and subtitling for the distribution and dissemination through all available channels of European and third-country audiovisual works for the benefit of producers, distributors and broadcasters.
• Encourage the creation and consolidation of networks of artistic and industrial cooperation between European and third-country rights-holders/sales agents/distributors.

Specific objective 3: Circulation

1. Encourage cinema operators in European and third countries to reciprocally increase the programming and exhibition conditions of exclusive first releases of audiovisual works.

• Support projects presented by European and third-country cinema owners in programming a significant share respectively of European and third-country films in commercial cinemas for exclusive first release for a minimum defined duration. The support granted will, in particular, be determined according to the duration of, exposure and number of screenings made by these cinemas for third-country films (or European films in the case of third-country cinema owners) over a reference period.
• Support the creation and the consolidation of European and third-country cinema owners’ networks developing common actions for this type of programming.

2. Increase the supply of audiovisual content and improve broadcasting and distribution conditions for third countries’ audiovisual works on European distribution channels and European works on third countries’ distribution channels.

• Support partnerships between European and third-country broadcasters (or VOD platforms etc.) and rightsholders aiming at broadcasting a package of European and third countries’ works or at distributing a catalogue of European works and third countries’ works on VOD platforms.
• Build trust and long-term working relationships between European and third-country broadcasters, VOD platforms and rights-holders.

3. Facilitate the organisation of events and film literacy initiatives.

• Support networking of European and third-country film literacy initiatives, in particular those aimed at young audiences, to internationally promote the diversity of audiovisual works.
• Support partnerships between European and third-country broadcasters for the broadcasting of audiovisual works dedicated to young audiences.

The Community provisional funding available for the programme is:

• 15,00 Million EUR (Global Budget)