ECA Executive Committee Meeting – Krems, Austria
At the invitation of, and in conjunction with the EU-XXL Film Festival and Forum, the Executive Committee held its latest meeting in Krems, Austria. The festival, held in the Danube University, took place at the end of February. The main topics of this year's EU-XXL Festival were creative content online and film music. The ECA Executive joined in the debates and film presentations and exchanged views with a large number of experienced and committed participants from the film and music sectors across Europe.
The EU-XXL Forum produced a resolution addressing three specific issues: the EC Communication on Creative Content Online, Music Rights and Collective Rights Management Online and Revision of the Electronic Communications Regulatory Frameworks.
For further information, see www.eu-xxl.at
ECA Comment on Creative Content Online
The Executive Committee drew on their involvement in the EU-XXL Film Forum when drafting its submission to the European Commission hearing on Creative Content Online:
The European Council of Artists (ECA), representing interdisciplinary artists' councils and organisations from 25 countries, would like to express its wish to see music and audiovisual works more widely available to diverse audiences.
Music is made to be heard.
Films are made to be seen.
Artists must be paid for their work.
Europe has a veritable treasure of film and music that can be made more available with new technologies. ECA welcomes the ongoing discussions to find a solution on multi-territorial licensing would be acceptable to all stakeholders. Only then will artists' continued involvement be assured and the interests and the voice of artists from smaller nations be safeguarded. ECA supports the observations made in the Lévai Report adopted by the European Parliament on 13 March 2007.
As there are clear financial incentives not only for artists and cultural industries but also for the telecom sector, ECA acknowledges the part to be played by DG-Trade, DG-Internal Market and DG-Information Society. We are concerned by the disconnection of the DG-Education, Audiovisual and Culture from any meaningful involvement in this policy development that clearly falls within its area of competence.
Artists' creative output must also be considered as expressions of the diverse cultures to which they belong. All European regulation in this area must therefore take into consideration the provisions of the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions.
The ECA Executive Committee attended the EU XXL Festival and Forum in Krems, Austria, was involved in the drafting and supports the EU XXL Resolution 2008.
Session on Video on Demand
Executive Committee member Irina Horea (Romania) attended the first session of the EU-XXL Dialogue on "Content Online" on February 28:
The topic of the panel discussion was Hope for the Small Players, Market for the Big Players? with Bo Ehrhardt, head of the Danish film company Nimbus as moderator and speaker. Andre Lange (Head of Department for Information on Markets and Financing, France) made the second contribution. The two ample contributions were followed by presentations of VoD (Video on Demand) platforms in Europe, particularly in Denmark, France, Austria, and Germany.
The new media offer new possibilities to watch/read/listen to films/books/music by downloading them directly from Internet sites but unlike buying tickets/books/CDs for a specified price that includes a fee for creators/producers; these new means for consuming art do not necessarily imply payment, which naturally deprives creators/producers of their rights.
This shortcoming of the downloading of online content (film/books/music) is increasingly criticized by artists/creators. The VoD system, with the whole structure it implies in the film industry/distribution, also includes a fee for creators, whether the films are rented or purchased.
On the other hand, the VoD system challenges the European film industry, as it…
…represents an attractive and legal offer fighting piracy
…influences the price of film distribution through VoD channel
…opens opportunities for selling films on a European or world-wide platform
This also implies the utilisation of some of the technical elements belonging to/used in the “traditional” film distribution such as digitalisation, subtitling or the development of new techniques, such as interactive technology or creative technology.
It goes without saying that the VoD influences the DVD market, but not necessarily the film market. VoD operators or VoD agencies/companies hope to attract both producers and film distributors into this “market” – while also eager to make it exclusive – and address a whole range of consumers from all ages and professional groups with access to a computer and internet connection.
Not all consumers possess the requisite equipment to access VoD. The VoD operators/agents say it is necessary to change the analogue flow to a digital flow, and the PC system into the TV system. On the other hand, not all consumers favour the home cinema, which could mean the “death” of the movie theatre. Therefore, the VoD system will actually exist in parallel with the older distribution systems.
The questions raised by the audience addressed two aspects:
- How will the sums collected from the downloading payment be divided among all those who have contributed to the production of a certain movie?
- How will the various distribution systems (movie theatre, TV, DVD, VoD) co-exist on the market?
New ECA Member
The Executive Committee has welcomed the Croatian Freelance Artists' Association as a member. The Association with the abbreviation HSZU in Croatian was founded in 1965 and is made-up of 29 organisations covering audiovisual, music, literature, fine arts and dramatic arts including ballet and dancing. HSZU represents a total of 1,400 self-employed artists.
Cultural Sector Platforms
In order to involve the non-governmental sector in a dialogue on culture policy making, the EU Commission has invited the civil society to take part in 3 platforms: the already existing Civil Society Platform on Intercultural Dialogue (in which ECA already is taking part) and new platforms on Access to Culture and Cultural and Creative Industries. ECA expects to be represented in all 3 platforms and to disseminate the discussions to the membership.
ECA Partnership With ArtesNet Europe
ECA has entered a partnership with ArtesNet Europe – a Europe-wide ‘community of practice’, connecting practitioners from the creative/cultural sector, teaching staff from art schools, educators, and artistic researchers from almost all EU countries, Iceland, Norway, and Turkey. ArtesNet is the successor of the former thematic network inter}artes and continues to act as a reference for the Tuning Educational Structures in Europe Project. For the coming three years it has organised its work in three strands: creative partnerships, qualifications frameworks, and New Strategies, New Programmes.
Executive Committee member Annette Hollywood, who represents ECA in ArtesNet, reports from the first partners meeting ArtesNet – Kick-off, held on the 18th of January in Amsterdam:
Representatives from across Europe attended the meeting. Most were involved in third level education though there were a number of organisations such as ECA that attended due to specific interest or expertise. This mixture of people and the open system of ArtesNet is an important base of Strand 1 on Creative Partnerships, in which Annette Hollywood took part.
It was decided to explore co-operation between art schools and non-art school partners and look at the mutual benefit and innovative aspects of such co-operation. Annette Hollywood presented a report on "Reality Check - Who Is Afraid of Masters of Art", a project that is the result of co-operation between IGBK and The Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz.
It is important that art schools recognise that artist organisations are trustworthy and honest partners for co-operation because of their artistic potential, experience in culture politics and their view from outside the educational system, drawing directly from "real artist life“.
Reality Check - Who Is Afraid of Masters of Art?
As a contribution to the ArtesNet activity, ECA's German member IGBK (the International Association of Arts) has delivered an English translation of the summary description of their symposium Reality Check - Who Is Afraid of Masters of Art? which took place in 2006 and addressed the external demand of implementing the Bologna agreement in German Art Academies. The Summary can be seen on ECA's web-site www.eca.dk/debate. The complete report in German can be ordered from IGBK, phone +49-30-23457666, e-mail: art@igbk.de
Performing Artists in Spanish Schools
In response to a request by the Spanish Federation of Artists (FAEE) – an ECA member – the Executive Committee has prepared a resolution in support of FAEE's proposal of employing performing artists to teach performing arts in primary and secondary schools in order to improve the educational quality.
Visas and Work-Permits
FreeMuse - the World Forum on Music and Censorship has taken an initiative to address the difficulties experienced by artists from outside EU and the Schengen area in securing visas and work permits for European. ECA has joined this project along with the European Live Music Forum and the European Forum of Worldwide Music Festivals. The first step has been the issuing of a questionnaire to the cultural sector, concert organisers etc in order to quantify and document the problem. The answers are presently being processed by FreeMuse and a report will soon be published.
Swedish Supreme Court Rules on Commercial Breaks
On 18 March the Swedish Supreme Court ruled in the lawsuit concerning commercial breaks in films. The case had been taken by film directors Vilgot Sjöman and Claes Eriksson against Sweden’s TV-company TV4. The Supreme Court reaffirmed the judgements of the City Court of Stockholm and the Court of Appeal, which have both established that commercial breaks in films constitute a violation of the filmmakers’ moral rights. ECA’s Swedish member KLYS (the Swedish Joint Committee of Artistic and Literary Professionals) has supported the legal process of this case with legal assistance and its expertise in regard to filmmaking. For further information see www.klys.se
Legal Actions in Malta
In March 2007, the ECA Executive Committee met on the Mediterranean island of Malta. The meeting was made possible by the financial support of the Maltese Tourist Board. As part of its itinerary, the Executive Committee met with groups of visual artists, writers and composers & musicians. The position of composers & musicians in Malta outlined to the Executive Committee and to its General Secretary, Pia Raug was deplorable. While performers were usually (but not always) paid an appearance fee be it for television, radio or in a live setting, payment was not made in respect of authors or residual rights. Recordings played on national radio generated no payment for the author or the performer.
In recent months, and with the advice and encouragement of ECA Malta and ECA's vice-president, Narcy Calamatta, three legal cases have progressed through the Maltese courts. Singer/songwriters, supported by their union, whose music was used by a mobile telephone company without permission or payment, took two of the cases, which have since been settled out of court. The third case involves an airline showing the work of a filmmaker, again without permission or payment. The courts have found against the airline and in favour of the filmmaker David Kent Watson. The case will be finalised in June when the extent of settlement will be determined.
ECA Conference and General Assembly 2008 – Dublin, Ireland
It is hoped to hold the ECA Annual Conference and General Assembly in Dublin, Ireland on the 7th, 8th and 9th of November 2008. Due to the continuing limitations on ECA's finances, we are not yet in a position to confirm the event. ARTISTS' MOBILITY – aspiration or reality is the preliminary title for the conference
ECA Executive Committee:
Michael Burke, sculptor, Ireland, President
Narcy Calamatta, actor, Malta, Vice-President
Simon Pellar, literary translator, Czech Republic, Vice-President
Zuzana Brejcha, film director, Austria
Torben Heron, visual artist, Denmark
Annette Hollywood, visual artist, Germany
Irina Horea, literary translator, Romania
European Council of Artists, Borgergade 111, DK-1300 Copenhagen K, Denmark
phone: +45-35384401, fax: +45-35384417, email: eca@eca.dk, web: www.eca.dk
Pia Raug, Honorary General Secretary
Elisabet Diedrichs, Director