SAA - Society of Audiovisual Authors

Film and television series generate economic value across cinemas, broadcasters, platforms and territories, yet many screenwriters and directors receive little or no continuing share of the revenue their work creates across Europe. The gap is especially wide in parts of Southeast Europe, where legal recognition may exist on paper while enforcement, licensing and royalty collection remain weak or inconsistent.

Supporting the collective management organisations (CMOs) that defend audiovisual authors' rights, and that collect and distribute the royalties’ authors need to sustain a living, is a core aim of the SAA. Last years the SAA ran regional seminars with its members in Central and Easter Europe (in Belgrade 2023 and Skopje 2025). This year, we partnered with CineLink at the Sarajevo Film Festival for a panel on the topic.

SAA Secretary General Cécile Despringre moderated a conversation between two established CMOs, ZAPA (Poland) and AIPA (Slovenia), and two developing ones, UFR (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and AZAS (North Macedonia). Between them, the four organisations set out just how differently the same rights can play out depending on the strength of the legal and institutional framework behind them.

Blocked at the source

UFR was established 15 years ago and moved quickly: it signed agreements with retransmission operators, became operational, and began paying authors and producers. Ten years ago, however, its licence was revoked for political rather than substantive reasons. The royalties collected since have remained frozen, and no author or filmmaker has been paid in a decade. BiH has spent that time in court trying to recover its licence. "We're tired," said Melina Alagić, secretary general of UFR, the association of filmmakers.

AZAS has faced a similar administrative standstill for eight years, working to unblock the obstacles preventing North Macedonian authors from receiving the royalties they are owed. Secretary General Kiril Gjozev has taken the case to conferences and meetings with regional and international organisations, convinced that educating members, the public and decision-makers about why copyright remains essential. "We aren't giving up, especially as more North Macedonian films are getting recognition" he said. "Recognition and awards are one thing; the creators should also get remunerated."

Where the system works

ZAPA offers a picture of what a functioning system can deliver: it represents 7 000 filmmakers, holds 80 agreements, and collects €60 million a year, making it one of Europe's leading CMOs. Mandatory collective management is enshrined in Polish law for many modes of exploitation, and after more than a decade of advocacy the legislation was recently updated to cover video-on-demand. Poland has in fact had a remuneration right since 1994, but for its first six years the law placed the duty to pay on producers rather than users - an arrangement that proved unworkable and was later amended. Lidia Radlińska, ZAPA's Head of Legal and Public Affairs, credited part of the organisation's success to joining forces with young filmmakers, who helped build public and media pressure on government. Even so, she noted, the work continues: "We must understand that CMOs are dealing with big businesses; it requires serious financial, legal and IT expertise."

AIPA, marking its 15th anniversary last year, collects €8 million for authors, producers and actors. It once operated under a presumption that all rights transferred automatically to producers; the implementation of the EU's DSM Directive forced the sector to negotiate a different settlement. After eight months of talks, the three parties inside AIPA agreed that each group should receive its own remuneration rights, said Managing Director Gregor Štibernik. Actors played a visible role in the campaign, using their acting skills to carry the message to politicians. Public broadcasters in Slovenia now pay accordingly, though cinema operators still fall short. AIPA has also begun investing 1% of its collections in research and development, which Štibernik said has helped the sector be taken more seriously by policymakers.

The case for mandatory management

Despringre closed the discussion by underlining that mandatory collective management written into law delivers far more reliably for authors than voluntary systems, which are difficult to enforce. Every EU member state had to implement the 2019 DSM Directive, an opportunity also for national governments across the region to use to strengthen authors' rights at home.

Annica Ryng