A Season of Classic Films: an event supported by Creative Europe

This summer, European film classics will be screened in some of Europe’s most iconic cultural heritage venues. From the 29th June until the end of September, these films will be screened free of charge in 13 EU countries – from small towns to capital cities – highlighting Europe’s rich and diverse cultural heritage.

The classic films season starts at the Bologna Film Festival with a presentation of some of the restored films shot using Gaumont’s Chronochrome colour system, one of the earliest colour filming techniques. Within this project, Creative Europe MEDIA will also fund the restoration and digitisation of heritage films in order to ensure that the European culture is passed down to future generations.

Since 1991, the European Commission has been supporting Europe’s audiovisual sector, contributing to its competitiveness and to cultural diversity in Europe, through the MEDIA Programme. One of its most substantial actions is providing financial support to the distribution of European films outside their country of production. Every year, on average over 400 films are made available to audiences in another European country with MEDIA’s help.

In May 2018, the Commission proposed to increase the budget of the programme by almost 30% for the next EU long-term budget for 2021-2027.