25/07/2005

There has been a considerable increase in the past few years in financing applications submitted by the new member states within the framework of the MEDIA programme of the EU. In some cases, the increase was three-fold. "The film industry in Central Europe has changed considerably these last few years and the number of admissions has doubled since 1996", declared Viviane Reding, member of the European Commission, in charge of information society and media. "The MEDIA programme contributed to that positive evolution, offering those countries aids and specific grants", added the commissioner.
Film production in the new member states increased slightly in 2004. It is interesting to observe that 21 local productions were made in the Czech Republic in 2004, seven more than in 2003. At the same time, the film production in Hungary and Poland remained stable.
Regarding admissions, 1 005 million tickets have been sold in the 25 EU countries in 2004, an increase of 55 millions compared to 2003 (950 millions admissions). The figures represent an increase of 6% in the number of moviegoers in the 25 member states as a whole. However, admission figures for the 10 new member states suggest an increase of 16%.
The European Commission proposed that the MEDIA budget be doubled in order to provide 1 billion euros for the 2007-2013 period, which would guarantee the necessary financial means to encourage film production in the new member states.