Theatrical Release Windows: A Playground for “Cultural Exception” Policies?

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54103/2036-461X/21515

Keywords:

Public Cinema Funding, Release Windows, Nationalism, Pandemic Crisis, Cultural Exception

Abstract

In recent years, cinema culture in Europe has undergone a substantial reorganization of production models and a profound change of public intervention in favor of the film industry. This article aims to reconstruct the different combinations between protectionist and liberalist policies through a comparative analysis of the contemporary European national cinema aids, identifying differences and shared trends and verifying the existence of a “continental” cinema support model. Therefore the article will analyze public support policies on cinema production, distribution, and exhibition in the EU and in several of its member states (including France, Germany, England, Spain, and Italy) from 2018 to 2022. Focusing on theatrical release windows, this essay will attempt to answer the following main questions: is there a “European” mark in policies in favor of cinema? Can we speak of a “European” model (even outside the European Union) of support for the cinema? What are the elements and actions that define it? What are the sectors of the industry in which it is most fully expressed (production, distribution, exhibition)? And what are the themes and areas in which, on the contrary, national differences (sometimes driven by resurgent nationalisms) are most marked?

Author Biographies

Mariagrazia Fanchi, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore

Mariagrazia Fanchi is Full Professor in Film and Media Studies at Università Cattolica in Milan. She is also the Head of ALMED - Alta Scuola in Media Comunicazione e Spettacolo. Since 2018 she has been the scientific director of Valutazione di impatto Legge Cinema on behalf of the Italian Ministry of Culture. Her field of research is focused on the role played by cinema and television in identity practices, involving topics such as Italian cinema and media audiences; movie theaters and movie-going in Italy; traditional and innovative features of the cinema and visual experiences; gender and generations; feminization of Italian screen industries. Her latest publications are: Crisis or Opportunity? Public Funding and Business Strategies of Italian Cinemas in the Face of Covid-19 Identities (with F. Piredda, forthcoming); Has Digital Transformation Impacted Gender Imbalance in Italian Cinema? (with M. Tarantino, 2021); L’anello forte. Il sistema dell’esercizio in Italia (with G. Amadori 2021); Andare al cinema a Milano. Fra trasformazioni nazionali e specificità locali (2020).

Massimo Locatelli, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore

Massimo Locatelli is Full Professor in Film and Media Studies at Università Cattolica in Milan, a founding member of NECS, European Network of Cinema and Media Studies, and co-editor of Comunicazioni Sociali. Journal of Media, Performing Arts and Cultural Studies and former co-editor of Bianco&Nero. He recently edited Artificial Lives: The Humanoid Robot in Contemporary Culture (2022) and Cantautore: the Songwriter in Culture and the Media (Comunicazioni Sociali, special issue, 3-2022).

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Published

2024-04-05

How to Cite

Fanchi, M., & Locatelli, M. (2024). Theatrical Release Windows: A Playground for “Cultural Exception” Policies?. Cinéma & Cie. Film and Media Studies Journal, 23(41), 41–55. https://doi.org/10.54103/2036-461X/21515

Issue

Vol. 23 No. 41 (2023): Cinematic Continuities, Changes and Challenges in Europe: Reflections on Recent Shifts in European Cinema

Section

Thematic issue / Section thématique

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Copyright (c) 2024 Massimo Locatelli, Mariagrazia Fanchi

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