EIB gives Italian cinema cash boost

Date: 23/05/02

THE European Investment Bank (EIB) has launched another effort to boost the EU's film industry with a €100 million infusion to cash-strapped Italian production companies and to revamp the country's network of flea-pit cinemas.

The new money, a response to stinging criticism of the bank for failing to support the audiovisual sector, comes from the EIB's €15 billion 'Innovation 2000 Initiative' for media and information society projects. EIB Italy desk officer Daniela Sacchi said it will go to the film and theatre credit department of Italy's Banca Nationale del Lavoro - which will re-lend it to the Italian industry. She added most of the cash is likely to go to production for films and documentaries - destined for both the big screen and TV.

Italy was one of the few member states in which film production actually declined last year - with only 90 films made compared with 96 in 2000. Part of the drop was due to a freeze in pay-TV investment.

Sacchi said the cash would also help refurbish the country's under-funded cinemas. Customer facilities in many remote sites will be upgraded, whilst many cinemas will also get new high-tech digital technology that would allow them to download films electronically rather than use traditional hard copies on spools.