Many film industry professionals in Greece are concerned about the dysfunctional Hellenic Cinema and Audiovisual Centre (EKKOMED). This national institution, which administers the country’s cash rebate system, has not paid out anything since March 2024.
Nearly 2,000 members of the Greek audiovisual sector signed an open letter calling for reform and the payment of outstanding amounts.
The authors attribute these problems to EKKOMED’s joining the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) and its consequent restructuring, which, they say, has introduced excessive bureaucratic complexity and is incompatible with standard production practices. They cite the abolition of contingency funding, the lack of provisions for international co-productions and rigid milestone-based approval mechanisms which delay payments and discourage foreign investment.
In addition to administrative problems, the signatories criticise the low level of public subsidies for films. They say only €6.5 million is allocated annually through selective film production funding – one of the lowest figures in the European Union according to the authors.
In response the Hellenic Film and Audiovisual Centre issued a statement detailing the amounts it has allocated over the past ten months, totalling more than €50 million. Of this amount €18.7 million is still pending, following what the Centre calls a “brief three-month pause” caused by administrative adjustments related to its transition to ESI Funds.
Sources: Cineuropa, Film Industry Watch
