SAA has co-signed a joint letter with organisations representing Europe’s film and audiovisual sectors, urging the Council and Member States to reverse proposed cuts to Creative Europe in the 2027 EU budget. The Council’s position would remove €31.6 million in commitment appropriations from the programme, including €23.2 million from the MEDIA strand, along with a €10.53 million reduction in payments.

The SAA has joined 15 other organisations representing Europe’s cinema and audiovisual sectors in a joint letter urging EU Member States and the Irish Presidency to reject the proposed cuts to AgoraEU in the 2028–2034 Multiannual Financial Framework.

Generative AI, fair remuneration and artistic freedom topped the agenda when FERA, FSE and the SAA welcomed Members of the European Parliament to dinner in Strasbourg on 7 October 2026. Co-hosted by Sabine Verheyen, Vice-President of the European Parliament, and Emma Rafowicz, Vice-Chair of the CULT Committee, the evening brought MEPs together with European screenwriters, directors and their collective management organisations at a decisive moment: the Commission is reviewing the EU copyright framework,

The SAA has joined more than 200 cultural organisations across Europe in calling on EU Member States to reverse the proposed cuts to Creative Europe’s 2027 budget. An open letter was initiated and coordinated by Culture Action Europe.

At the Sarajevo Film Festival, the SAA co-organised a panel with CineLink Talks asking whether AI in film and the audiovisual sector is a threat or a tool. Panellists representing a CMO, an author, a film fund and a producer set out different perspectives, and the discussion drew a lively response from the audience.

At a panel co-organised by the SAA and CineLink at the Sarajevo Film Festival, representatives from four collective management organisations compared notes on collecting and distributing royalties for screenwriters and directors. Two established CMOs, ZAPA (Poland) and AIPA (Slovenia), described the systems now working in their favour, while two developing ones, UFR (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and AZAS (North Macedonia), described years spent fighting to get authors paid at all.

European organisations and networks from the film and audiovisual sector have come together to express their strong support for the Creative Europe MEDIA Programme and its continued role within the new AgoraEU framework.

Thousands of cinema professionals, including prominent directors, screenwriters, actors and industry leaders from across Europe and beyond, have united around one message: Europe needs cinema. Cinema needs Europe.

We, representatives of the European film and audiovisual sector and the press sector, welcome the European Commission’s ambition to strengthen support for culture, audiovisual, media and democratic values under the future AgoraEU programme.

We, the European organisations representing the entire European film and audiovisual sector, would like to highlight the pivotal role played by the Creative Europe – MEDIA Programme, which is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year. This milestone demonstrates the programme’s value and impact and makes it a true European success story.

“I wrote my first feature film ‘Girl’ together with Lukas Dhont, 12 years ago. It took us three years of work for which I received €12,500. At the time, we both had second jobs to be able to pay our bills. The film started its career in Cannes. Thanks to my authors’ rights, I could develop my next project and afford a living. However, I’m one of the privileged ones compared to many colleagues who struggle in a precarious system.”  said Belgian screenwriter Angelo Tijssens. This real-life example set

The Constitutional Court ruled largely in favour of streamers' contributions to audiovisual production and cultural diversity in Belgium. This decision constitutes an important and largely positive step for the future of audiovisual creation in French-speaking Belgium: the Court has rejected most of the criticisms raised by Netflix against the system of mandatory contributions to audiovisual production.