catalogue 2003 en .pdf - Festival international du documentaire de ...

Ed
JACQUES DELMOLYJEAN-CLAUDE GAUDIN
Head of Unit - MEDIA programmeMaire de Marseille
EditorialsEditorials
Film and television festivals are brief times for festivities and meetings, but they play an
extremely important role in the promotion of European films. They plan a considerable number
of works. They almost absolutely necessary for marketing films: without them, thousands of
boxes and cassettes would stay on the shelves and would not find buyers. The large
attendance that they attract – two million – gives them a real economic impact, not to mention
their cultural, social and educational work that directly and indirectly creates an increasing
number of jobs in Europe.
The MEDIA programme of the European Commission owes support for these events
throughout Europe, which work hard to improve the circulation and promotion of European films
and access for producers and distributors. For these purposes, it supports more than seventy
festivals, providing from 1.6 million euro financial aid. Every year, thanks to the work of these
festivals and to the Commission’s support, approximately 10,000 film, video and broadcasting
works are programmed, illustrating the wealth and variety of European film. Five new countries
– Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Bulgaria, and the Czech Republic – will join the MEDIA programme
in July 2002, to be followed by some others, and their arrival can only be fruitful for the
programme.
The Commission also widely supports networking of these festivals. In this context, the
activities of the European Coordination of Film Festivals promotes cooperation between these
events, strengthening their impact by the development of joint operations.
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