Advocacy, Artistic Freedom, News
European filmmakers and screenwriters defend cultural diversity at Venice
1 September 2025
Mostra 2025 / Giornate Degli Autori: European Filmmakers and Screenwriters Stand in Solidarity
European filmmakers and screenwriters gathered in Venice for the third consecutive year to publicly discuss issues of freedom of expression and cultural sovereignty threatened by American political and commercial attacks.
We, authors and filmmakers, celebrate European cultural diversity which is under attack in the economic and cultural war currently underway.
We call on European institutions to redouble their efforts in defending the production and circulation of diverse works by supporting the independent sector, a pillar of our virtuous system. The European Commission’s presentation in July of the new Agora EU program concerns us: it mixes cinema with the press and video games, and risks separating audiovisual creation from its independent local cultural dimension.
We demand the reinforcing of specific funding support for the independent cinema and audiovisual sector, which has enabled the emergence of European creative talent in recent years, and continues to be an essential safeguard to ensure fair competition and cultural diversity in our sector.
Culture is not a commodity like any other. Its purpose is to bring nations together, not to set them against each other. European institutions must be the guarantors of this freedom of expression and creation. The plurality of perspectives, which only a rich and diverse independent creation can ensure, is also the safeguard of democratic life and of everyone’s access to emancipation through culture.