FUS reinstated, ticket hike blocked
On March 23, as Sandro Bondi was readying to step down as Minister of Culture and his successor Giancarlo Galan to take over, the Italian entertainment industry celebrated an important victory. The government has reinstated the cuts to the FUS (Entertainment Industry Fund) of €149m, bringing its base budget up to €407m.
According to Gianni Letta, undersecretary to the Italian prime minister: “The Ministry has a further €26m that were not part of the frozen funds".
The FUS thus stands at an overall €433m.
Moreover, the €1 increase to movie theatre tickets (see news) has been blocked. That money, which also serves to finance the tax credit, will come from a new increase of the excise tax on petrol. Letta calls it "A small sacrifice of one or two cents, which all Italians will be happy to make".
The announcement came as a surprise yesterday at the end of the Council of Ministers, before Bondi’s official farewell, and a few days before the general strike announced by Italy's largest unions for Friday and the mobilization rallied for the weekend by the cultural associations (see news). All events have subsequently been canceled.
"Viva satisfaction!" said the association 100autori, which last October led the protest on the red carpet of the Rome International Film Festival (see news). "A serious reform of the audiovisual sector must therefore not be postponed. Which is why we are request a meeting with Minister Galan, certain that an accord between the parties is a positive practice that must be restored".
(Translated from Italian)
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