As ALICE’s exploration phase reaches the end, the project’s partners have prepared a practical guide of solutions and recommendations for building a strong, competitive and united European animation industry. This document is the result of ALICE’s two-year study of the European animation sector in close collaboration with stakeholders, producer associations, education and distribution experts, and specialised lawyers as well as funding and cultural bodies. ALICE’s “whitepaper” will provide European policy makers with implementable solutions and tools to support long-term growth of the animation industry in Europe through co-productions.
This publication will mark the end of the project’s exploration phase, and the start of a new one dedicated to disseminating information and implementing regional action plans. The objective of this new phase is to use the whitepaper to raise awareness about the project’s results and to initiate long-term policy improvement. Specially designed to adapt to the diverse European market environments and capacities, the proposals included in the document address the following four priority challenges: the need for a comprehensive review of the state of the animation industry in Europe; the urgent need to create a strong European industry network; building a favorable regulatory and funding system for European co-productions; and producing and maintaining competitive talent. The whitepaper highlights solutions and tools for these challenges including a methodology that maps and assesses key elements of the industry; concrete initiatives to connect European animation groups and facilitate collaboration; a new funding program to stimulate early-stage co-productions within Europe; and proposed education programs that fit the specific needs of the animation market.
A special event organised on 17 June 2021 at the Annecy International Film Festival’s MIFA demonstrated how relevant the ALICE project is to today’s creative priorities in Europe. In an interview conducted by lead ALICE partner Wallimage, Mrs. Recalde, Head of the unit in charge of the Europe Creative Media program, recognized the importance of the project and the relevance of its proposed actions. ALICE’s solutions to various industry challenges complement the direction and actions Creative Europe has planned for 2021-2027 towards greater trans-national collaboration, both across the value chain and across countries.
With this series of solutions and recommendations addressed to government policy makers, ALICE project partners hope to instill the will for change and to create conditions that are conducive to more co-productions. The partners believe that nurturing successful co-productions is the only way forward for Europe to meaningfully compete with US and Asian industry giants. In turn, a strengthened industry will be able to create more jobs, but also tackle the many other long-term challenges that still remain in the industry, particularly in the areas of growth and environmental sustainability, inclusiveness, creativity and digital innovation.
ALICE’s whitepaper will be published in fall 2021.
