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Current Situation in the Film Distribution and Cinema Industry
In 2002 the Austrian cinema industry screened a total of 259 new films in 199 Austrian theatres (564 auditoriums). They were seen by more than 19.3 million people.
The films shown in the movie theatres (as well as on TV) come predominantly (80%) from the USA, Germany and Great Britain, with almost 50% of all films originating in the USA. The ten most successful films shown in 2005 were – as in the years before – US productions. The countrywide turnover of movie theatres came to about 114.5 million Euro in 2002. The capitals of the federal provinces boast the highest audience numbers (about 2/3 of the total); about 1/3 of all reviewers (about 6.35 million) were recorded in Vienna.
Up to the late 1990s, the movie theatre market was basically divided up between two big movie theatre operators: “Constantin”, Austria’s biggest film distributor, majority-owned by a German enterprise since 1993, and “Kiba”, a company of Vienna Holding, which was majority-owned by the Municipality of Vienna. Since the bankruptcy of “Kiba” and the sale of some movie theatres to “Constantin” the movie theatre landscape has been dominated by one movie theatre chain. Repertory movie theatres with a programming not oriented towards USA blockbusters exist only in the large cities.
Repertory movie theatres face major competition from multiplex movie theatres. In the beginning these were built only on the outskirts of large cities, but lately multiplex movie theatres, also mushroomed in city centers, where they were integrated into large shopping malls. With their state-of-the-equipment, these movie theatres are highly popular above all with the target group aged between 14 and 29 years.
Film Subsidies
Without financial support from the state, independent filmmaking cannot survive in any European country, much less so in a small state. Therefore the federal governments, but also provincial governments, have set up film support schemes benefiting above all the production of films for movie theatres and television.
The Vienna-based Austrian Film Institute is endowed with an annual budget of about 9.63 million Euro (status 2002) from the federal government. The institution grants:
Film subsidies depending on a film’s success; success is assessed on the basis of artistic and/or financial parameters;
Project-related film subsidies (eligibility for support is assessed by a selection panel)
Promotion of young filmmakers
In 1981 an agreement has been reached between the Austrian Film Institute and the ORF (Film and Television Agreement) to promote Austrian cinematographic films, films made by young filmmakers, films with an innovative character, as well as short films and documentaries by means of a special fund.
The Federal Chancellery supports innovative Austrian debut films, documentary and experimental films. Moreover, it offers subsidies for a film production, script, release and exploitation, awards job grants, facilitates project development and supports participation in festivals and shows. Last but not least, repertory movie theatres also benefit from promotion.
All federal provinces grant financial aid to filmmaking; the two most important bodies are the Wiener Film Fonds (Vienna Film Fund) and Cine Tirol.
Moreover, under the Cultural Subsidies Act the cultural and economic departments of the other provincial governments grant subsidies for filmmaking as well.
Apart from the Austrian film subsidy schemes, EU programmes, notably the MEDIA programme, are also of relevance. The EU programme for the support of the audiovisual industry in Europe aims at improving the structure of the European film and television industry. MEDIA 1 covered the period 1991 to 1995, while MEDIA II ran from 1996 to 2000. The current MEDIA PLUS programme also has a programme period of five years (2001 to 2005) and disposes of total budget of 400 million Euro. The Council of Europe has set up a film subsidy fund as well.
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