MEDIA 2007 � DEVELOPMENT, DISTRIBUTION, PROMOTION AND TRAINING: Call for proposals � EACEA/14/12: Support for the digitisation of European cinemas

The global objectives of the MEDIA 2007 programme are to:
a) preserve and enhance European cultural and linguistic diversity and its cinematographic and audiovisual heritage, guarantee its accessibility to the public and promote intercultural dialogue;
b) increase the circulation and viewership of European audiovisual works inside and outside the European Union, including through greater cooperation between players;
c) strengthen the competitiveness of the European audiovisual sector in the framework of an open and competitive European market favourable to employment, including by promoting links between audiovisual professionals.

The aim of the ‘digitisation of cinemas’ scheme is to encourage cinemas showing a significant percentage of non-national European works to exploit the possibilities offered by digital.

This call for proposals aims to facilitate the digital transition of cinemas screening European films by supporting the side costs linked to the purchase of a digital projector.

It is aimed at European independent cinema operators whose principal activity is the screening of films and who are based in one of the following countries: the 27 EU Member States, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland, Croatia, or Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Applicant organisations must:
— be first run cinemas (programming European films in first run, within a maximum period of 12 months after the national release),
— have been open to the public for a minimum of three years,
— possess a ticketing and entry declaration system,
— have at least one screen and 70 seats,
— have presented 520 screening per year for permanent cinema (i.e. cinemas in operation for a period of at least six months per year), 300 screenings per year for single screen theatres (30 screenings per month) and at least 30 screenings per month for summer/open air cinemas (cinemas in operation for less than six months per year),
— have had at least 20,000 cinema admissions where a normal ticket price was actually paid in the previous year.

Applicants who have or will receive a projector from a third-party integrator as a result of signing a VPF deal will not be eligible for support.

To be considered as eligible, the cinemas must have screened in 2011 a minimum of 50% European films of which at least 30 % are European non-national. A film is considered as European if it complies with the following definition:
Any recent work of fiction (including animated films) or documentary, with a minimum duration of 60 minutes, complying with the following conditions:
— the work has been in majority produced by a producer or producers established in the countries participating in the MEDIA programme. To be considered as the actual producers, the production companies must be credited as such. Other elements such as creative control, ownership of exploitation rights and share of profits may also be taken into account to determine who the actual producer is,
and
— the work must be produced with the significant participation of professionals who are nationals/ residents of countries participating in the MEDIA programme.

Films consisting of advertising, pornographic or racist material or advocating violence are not considered as eligible films.

Funding is available to support the side costs linked to the purchase of digital projectors meeting the content security requirements for Digital Cinema Initiative (DCI) compliance to be installed in a cinema complying with all the eligibility criteria. Support can be requested for only one projector per screen and for a maximum of three screens per cinema. The projector must be bought between the date of submission and 31 December 2013.

The annual budget earmarked for the co-financing of projects is estimated at €2 million. The financial contribution awarded is a subsidy and takes the form of a maximum lump sum of €20,000 per screen. The subsidy covers any costs related to the digital transition of European theatres, to the exclusion of the cost of the digital projector and server.

The deadline for submission of applications is 31 July 2012.

Full details are available on the MEDIA website

Reference: 2012/C 150/04

(Added 2012-05-26)