Presented at the end of March 2021 by the President of the Government, PedroSánchez, the «Spain, Europe’s Audiovisual Hub» Plan seeks to promote the great moment of Spanish audiovisual production on a global level, based on three pillars: turning the country into a pole of attraction for production, improve the competitiveness of companies through new technologies and generate talent by reducing the gender gap.
This program mobilizes €1.6 billions in the five-year period 2021-2025, and its goal is to increase the audiovisual production made in Spain by 30% at the end of the period. The financial resources come from the General State Budget and from European Union funds, mainly from the Next Generation EU funds, and the Creative Europe Program for the period 2021-2027. A little over a year after that announcement, it is in full swing with several milestones that are being met.
Of the total budget for the period, €1,300 million are for fiscal support, €240 million destined to increase the internationalization of the country brand (promotion of content and attraction of investments through ICEX), €18 million for regulatory reform and € 15 million devoted to talent development, among others.
Prensariointerviewed Cristina Morales Puerta, Deputy Director General for the Organization of Audiovisual Communication Services at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation, to get a closer look at the status of the objectives and the time of application: ‘Spain is highly recognized in this valuable industry, both in feature films as well as series, animation, documentaries, video games, advertising films and services. Our role is to help this internationally valued ecosystem develop its potential and maximum expression. Undoubtedly, the main added value is talent,’ she began.
To underpin this very positive appreciation of the Iberian country in the global market, «Spain, Audiovisual Hub of Europe” seeks to generate a space for synergies between the public and private sectors that speeds up and improves the time needed for projects of this magnitude.
‘Dialogue is central in this context and for that we need to all be sitting at the same table. That is the main objective of the government plan: reduce bureaucratic processes and create a single point of information, as well as a single window for entry and resolution of issues, all coordinated with a common goal,’ she summarized.
This governance “table” is made up of two parts. First, the interministerial group coordinated by the Secretary of State for Telecommunications and Digital Infrastructures and made up of representatives of five ministerial houses: Culture, Finance, Foreign Affairs, Industry, Trade and Tourism, and Migration, which work together with the President’s Economic Office. And second, the Public-Private Collaboration Forum where more than 30 sector associations are integrated.
The Plan announced by Pedro Sánchez in March of last year, took shape four months later, July 2021. In what stage is it currently? Prensarioasked. ‘The most important thing is that there has been recognition from the Government declaring this strategic industry, together with the allocation of specific funds from the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan for the support and international promotion of the Spanish industry and the attraction of investments. The actors in the sector are very grateful for having created a «single head» with whom to dialogue,’ Morales Puerta explained.
From the 15 key points announced, the deputy director highlights five: first, the creation of a single window launched at the Malaga Festival 2022, SpainAudiovisualHub.mineco.gob.es, accompanied by a weekly newsletter with all the news and carried out collaboratively; second, to simplify and streamline visa services for international professionals, and work and stay permits (generating an important battery of ad hoc procedures); third, to increase the budget of the Reciprocal Guarantee Society, specialized in granting guarantees to companies in the audiovisual sector, CREA SRG, and the allocation of new funds to ICEX-Invest in Spain and Spain Film Commission.
Fourth, the regulatory framework and the application not only of the regulations of Spain Hub Audiovisual but, in parallel, the General Audiovisual Communication Law approved last June and which complements all State policy. And fifth, a single window to accompany the investor, Spain Audiovisual Hub Bureau.
One of the most emblematic actions of 2022 has been the organization of a mission to Spain in mid-May, organized by ICEX-Invest in Spain and Spain Film Comision, with almost fifty US executives who toured Madrid, Seville and the Canary Islands to learn about the installed infrastructure, locations and talents.
