The EU is actively engaging with third countries, building trust and mutual understanding through public diplomacy. Film festivals are seen as one of the most effective tools to reach out to local audiences and make Europe, its values and its stories known. They are currently organised by more than half of the 139 EU Delegations worldwide. For these festivals to reach their full potential in engaging with different audiences, the EU has launched a tender that has recently been awarded to a consortium consisting of the Goethe-Institut, the Institut Français and Cineuropa.

One of the core activities will consist of making a repository of carefully selected, high-quality films available for the EU Delegations, taking into consideration their specific needs. This includes securing screening rights for the selected movies and providing subtitles, as well as producing DCPs and Blu-ray discs for film screenings. Furthermore, the consortium will develop an EU film festival brand, thus providing marketing tools and promotional material with a common visual identity.

It will also organise webinars and create a do-it-yourself guide for EU Delegations that wish to organise film festivals and require training. Moreover, ten EU Delegations will receive additional, direct assistance with organising their festivals.

Another important task will consist of organising a variety of side events for a number of EU Delegations, and fostering exchanges with local audiences, professionals and stakeholders.