Good practice:

Apulia Film Commission Foundation

Established by Regional Law 6/2004, the Apulia Film Commission Foundation was funded in 2007 with the objective to improve the region’s sector competitiveness, develop professional networks and attract national and international audio-visual productions in Puglia.
The commission does so by developing professional expertise and competences throughout the region, encouraging the development of audio-visual companies, promoting movies produced in Apulia as well as Apulian authors internationally, while coordinating the whole regional sector.
The main mission of the AFC is to help the Apulian audio-visual sector grow through various direct and indirect support tools. The main one is the Apulia Film Fund by AFC and Apulia Region, which intends to support the production of feature films, documentaries, short movies, etc. In addition to funding, AFC offers free production services such as the film location and production guide databases, with 331 companies and 3860 professionals registered. The Apulia Film Forum is another tool developed by the AFC. It provides producers, directors and audio-visual operators of the Mediterranean area a space to discuss and initiate cooperation in Apulia.
The AFC also promotes Apulian cinema through 11 cinema festivals taking place in key Apulian locations, as well as numerous film venues, including 4 Cine hubs (Foggia, Bari, Lecce and Taranto), a Mediatheque, the Interreg projects CIAK and CIRCE and the “Social Film Fund con il Sud" project.

Human resources required: about 20 employees
Financial resources required: about € 20 million per year (funded by Apulia Region and the partner municipalities)

Since its creation, the AFC has funded more than 570 audio-visual regional productions, for a total of more than €23 million. The benefits for the region’s economy are estimated to more than €100 million.
The support provided by the AFC has had also a positive effect on the region’s cultural influence, since the movies shot in Apulia have generated more than €150 million in box office revenues.

This practice is characterized by the presence of several elements that could be transferred and replicated. First, AFC represents a place of cinematographic experiences, which have created over time a strong network venue for policy makers and local audiovisual operators open to new initiatives, opportunities and relationships. This resulted in a constant growth of the regional audiovisual sector, with a significant impact on the visibility of Apulia region and its heritage. This model could be replicable. Secondly, another element is the cultural and social role that AFC plays on the territory, replicable as well. Thanks to events, workshops, seminars on topics such us cinema, innovations in the audio-visual sector, etc., the local community is directly involved, encouraging an exchange of ideas and projects as well as carrying out activities that stimulate social aggregation and cultural and intellectual growth.