MEDIA Mundus: Commission launches new fund at Berlin Film Festival

IP/11/143

Brussels, 10 February 2011

MEDIA Mundus: Commission launches new fund at Berlin Film Festival

The first 34 projects funded under the new MEDIA Mundus funding programme – a worldwide cooperation and exchange initiative for the film industry – will be announced today by Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou (see list below), at the opening of the 61st Berlin International Film Festival.

Commissioner Vassiliou, who is responsible for education and culture, said: "I'm delighted to officially launch the first MEDIA Mundus projects at the Berlinale. Our funding will encourage international co-productions, boost worldwide distribution and make the industry more competitive. This means that cinemas will be able to screen more diverse programmes and offer audiences more choice."

MEDIA Mundus has a budget of €15 million over 3 years (2011-13) and will fund projects aimed at encouraging mobility and exchanges between European film-makers and their counterparts around the world. The idea is to improve access to international markets and to strengthen the distribution of European films in non-European markets and vice versa.

The film landscape has changed significantly over the past two decades, notably due to the impact of technological developments such as multi-channel digital television, digital cinema projection and video on demand. In some markets - Latin America for instance - this has generated strong financial growth which in turn triggers more demand.

The 34 projects selected for support from MEDIA Mundus will help to overcome structural weaknesses including under-investment and market fragmentation which has hampered the distribution of European films.

Among the 34 projects which have received funding are:

• The PUENTES project, which will strengthen artistic and commercial cooperation between Europe and Latin America. Workshops will be organised to encourage European and South-American producers to jointly develop film projects;

• The Festival Scope project involves a website (www.festivalscope.com) listing the programmes of film festivals worldwide. In collaboration with the website, this year's Melbourne International Film Festival (21 July-7 August) will for the first time feature a dedicated slot for European films.

• The TAP (Transatlantic partners) 2011 project is a training and networking programme for independent film producers from Europe, Canada and the US.

The European Commission will launch a second call for applications for funding under MEDIA Mundus before the summer.

The Berlin International Film festival (10-20 February) will feature 22 European films co-financed by the European Union's MEDIA programme. The films, including The King's Speech (which has received 12 Oscar nominations), have received a total of €1 million in support, mainly for film development and distribution throughout Europe (see annex II).

Commissioner Vassiliou will be welcomed to the festival this evening by State Minister Bernd Neumann, Representative of the Federal Government for Culture. She will attend a screening of True Grit by Joel and Ethan Coen.

The Commissioner will also meet film industry figures and visit the Commission's MEDIA stand in the European Film Market tomorrow morning.

Overall, the European Commission's MEDIA programme will contribute €755 million in support of Europe's film industry from 2007-2013, with a focus on improving the distribution and promotion of European films. Production companies selected for support typically receive grants of €50,000 on average.

To find out more:

About the MEDIA programme: http://ec.europa.eu/media

About the MEDIA Mundus programme: http://ec.europa.eu/culture/media/mundus

About the Berlin International Film Festival: http://www.berlinale.de/

Annex I: First projects funded under the MEDIA Mundus programme

Annex II : Films supported by the MEDIA programme in Berlin

COMPETITION

Mein bester Feind* (My Best Enemy) by Wolfgang Murnberger

pina* by Wim Wenders

PANORAMA

homo@lv by Kaspars Goba

Man at Sea by Constantine Giannaris

Rundskop (Bullhead) by Michaël R. Roskam

También la lluvia (Even the Rain) by Icíar Bollaín

The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975 by Göran Hugo Olsson

The Devil’s Double by Lee Tamahori

The Guard by John Michael McDonagh

FORUM

Brownian Movement by Nanouk Leopold

Dom (The House) by Zuzana Liová

Submarine by Richard Ayoade

Viva Riva! by Djo Tunda wa Munga

GENERATION

Street Kids United* by Tim Pritchard

Une vie de chat (A Cat in Paris) by Alain Gagnol /Jean-Loup Felicioli

West is West by Andy de Emmony

BERLINALE SPECIAL

Gianni e le donne (The Salt of Life) by Gianni Di Gregorio

Late Bloomers by Julie Gavras

The King’s Speech by Tom Hooper

CULINARY CINEMA

Le Quattro Volte by Michelangelo Frammartino

También la lluvia (Even the Rain) by Icíar Bollaín

Taste the Waste by Valentin Thurn

* out of competition