The values of human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, rule of law, and respect for human rights - including those of minorities - are the foundation of European society. They also underpin the EU’s unique cultural model, which has long supported creativity and diversity in an evolving audiovisual sector. But in 2025, these values are under pressure from both inside and outside the Union. If Europe does not act, its cultural model risks being hollowed out. The European Parliament must stand firm

Representing a broad coalition of European and global authors, performers, publishers, producers and other rightsholder organisations, we wish to formally express our dissatisfaction with the published GPAI Code of Practice, the GPAI Guidelines, and the Template for disclosure of a sufficiently detailed summary of training data under Article 53 of the EU AI Act.

The SAA is one of the more than 70 associations that have signed a joint letter from the cultural and creative sectors calling for an increased Creative Europe budget. This comes ahead of the EU Commission’s unveiling of its proposal for the next Multiannual Financial Framework (2028–2034) and amid rumours of a potential cut to the Creative Europe budget.

The SAA have joined a broad coalition of organisations in Europe’s creative and cultural sector that are calling for transparency, consent, and remuneration to be at the heart of AI implementation. The coalition emphasised that AI and creativity can thrive together – if the rules respect the people whose work powers these technologies.

Representatives from the film and audiovisual sectors across the world have released a statement and launched a global petition. In it, they urge all governments to stand firm and safeguard the systems that support independent film and audiovisual creation so that culture, creativity, and democratic access to diverse stories for the screen can continue to flourish.

Organisations from across the Europe's film and audiovisual sector send a joint statement to EU Culture Ministers ahead of the Education, Youth, Culture and Sport Council on 12-13 May, calling for sector-specific effective EU funding programmes, to safeguard the long-term resilience, competitiveness and the vitality of Europe’s cultural and creative ecosystem.

On 15 April, a delegation from the SAA met with Glenn Micallef, EU Commissioner for Intergenerational Justice, Youth, Culture and Sport. SAA Patron Špela Čadež, a Slovenian animation writer and director, shared her testimony of a career with precarious and unstable income, difficult to reconcile with work-life balance. Her experience reinforced the SAA’s message to the Commissioner.

Filmmakers and copyright experts have gathered at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in Geneva to discuss the lack of fair remuneration for audiovisual creators, and the urgent need for a study on the global situation of remuneration for audiovisual authors worldwide. 

On 1 April, SAA General Assembly elected a new leadership; a Board of Directors that will guide the strategic direction of the organisation for 2025-2027 to address the challenges facing audiovisual authors in Europe, including the impact of generative AI, the uncertain regulatory environment and the challenging political climate.

On 25 February, the SAA submitted its response to the UK’s public consultation on copyright and artificial intelligence. The UK proposes to introduce an exception for AI training with the possibility of rights reservations, similar to the EU. We responded that an exception for AI training is far from helpful in achieving the UK’s (and the EU’s) objective of promoting innovation while protecting the creative sector. Collective licensing is the most acceptable solution.

Joint statement by a coalition of authors, performers and other rightsholders active across the EU’s cultural and creative sectors regarding the third draft of the EU AI Act’s GPAI Code of Practice: It undermines the objectives of the AI Act, contravenes EU law and ignores the intention of the EU legislator – we cannot support it.

Authors' and performers' representative organisations write to EU Vice-President Virkkunen and Commissioner Micallef to address the shortcomings of the AI Code of Practice to ensure that authors' and performers' rights and remuneration are respected.