Submissions open for TV & Online Content Funding Programme

This funding aims to strengthen the independence of producers in relation to broadcasters and digital platforms. It enhances collaboration between operators, including independent producers, broadcasters, digital platforms and sales agents. Particular attention will be given to projects presenting innovative aspects in the content and in the financing that show a clear link with the envisaged distribution strategies.

Objectives

• Within the specific objective of promoting competitiveness, scalability, cooperation, innovation and sustainability, including through mobility in the European audiovisual sector, one of the priorities of the MEDIA Strand is:
  • to nurture talents, competence and skills and to stimulate cross-border cooperation, mobility and innovation in the creation and production of European audiovisual works, encouraging collaboration across Member States with different audiovisual capacities.

Themes and Priorities

• The MEDIA Strand shall provide support for the following measures:
  • Production of innovative and quality TV content and serial storytelling, addressing diverse audiences, by European independent production companies.
• The objective of the support to TV and online content is to increase the capacity of audiovisual producers to develop and produce strong projects with significant potential to circulate throughout Europe and beyond, and to facilitate European and international co-productions within the television and online sector.
• The action aims to strengthen the independence of producers in relation to broadcasters and digital platforms, to enhance collaboration between operators, including independent producers, broadcasters, digital platforms and sales agents, from different countries participating in the MEDIA Strand, including from low capacity countries, in order to produce high quality programming aimed at wide international distribution and promoted to a wide audience including commercial exploitation in the multi-platform environment. Particular attention will be given to projects presenting innovative aspects in the content and in the financing that show a clear link with the envisaged distribution strategies.

Funding Information

• The estimated available call budget is EUR 20 000 000.

Duration

• Projects should not normally exceed 36 months.
• Extensions are possible, if duly justified and through an amendment.

Expected Impact

• Increased production of high quality European works for linear and non-linear broadcasting including on digital platforms, as well as an increase in the number of co-productions.
• Enhanced cooperation between operators from different countries participating in the MEDIA Strand, including between broadcasters and from low capacity countries.
• Increased audience for European works through linear and non-linear broadcasting including on digital platforms.

Activities that can be funded

• The TV and online content action supports works (drama films, animation and documentary) intended for linear and non-linear broadcasting, presenting:
• strong cooperation between operators from different countries participating in the MEDIA Strand, including between broadcasters;
• high creative/artistic value and wide cross-border exploitation potential able to reach audiences at European and international level;
• innovative aspects in terms of the content and the financing that show a clear link with the envisaged distribution strategies.
• Applications should present adequate strategies to ensure a more sustainable and more environmentally-respectful industry (in particular through the use of greening consultants allowing to reduce the environmental impact of productions and shootings) and to ensure gender balance, inclusion, diversity and representativeness.

Eligibility Criteria

• In order to be eligible, the applicants (beneficiaries and affiliated entities) must:
  • be legal entities (public or private bodies)
  • be established in one of the eligible countries, i.e.:
    • Creative Europe Participating Countries:
    • EU Member States (including overseas countries and territories (OCTs))
    • non-EU countries:
    • listed EEA countries and countries associated to the Creative Europe Programme or countries which are in ongoing negotiations for an association agreement and where the agreement enters into force before grant signature
  • be established in one of the countries participating fully in the MEDIA Strand of the Creative Europe Programme and owned directly or indirectly, wholly or by majority participation, by nationals from such countries. When a company is publicly listed, the location of the stock exchange will in principle determine its nationality
  • be independent European audiovisual production companies

Ineligible

• The following projects are ineligible:
  • live recordings, TV games, talk shows, cooking shows, magazines, tv-shows, reality shows, educational, teaching and “how to” programmes;
  • documentaries promoting tourism, “making-of”, reports, animal reportages, news programmes and “docu-soaps”;
  • projects including pornographic or racist material or advocating violence;
  • works of a promotional nature;
  • institutional productions to promote a specific organisation or its activities;
  • music videos and video-clips.

For more information, visit Creative Europe.