Calviño defends that Spain "can be one of the driving forces of Europe in the digital economy"

Reaffirms the Government's "firm support" for the Spanish audiovisual sector, which has "absolutely extraordinary driving capacity"

SAN SEBASTIÁN, September 24 (EUROPA PRESS) -

The first vice president and acting minister of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation, Nadia Calviño, has defended that Spain "can be one of the driving forces of Europe in this digital economy." "We are beginning to see the fruits and it is only the beginning," she said, while reaffirming the central government's "firm support" for the audiovisual sector, which has "an extraordinary driving capacity" in the economy.

Calviño opened this Sunday, within the framework of the San Sebastián Film Festival, a conference on consolidation, collaboration and investment in the construction of the European audiovisual ecosystem and its digital leadership. This meeting is organized by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation, through the Secretary of State for Telecommunications and Digital Infrastructure.

In her speech, the minister recalled that the Government has been developing the 'Spain, Audiovisual Hub of Europe' plan for five years, which is having "very positive results" and has reaffirmed the "firm support and commitment" of the Executive. central to the audiovisual sector.

After highlighting that the Spanish audiovisual sector is "very powerful" and has an "absolutely extraordinary capacity to influence the economy as a whole", he recalled that in this period of development of the plan there have been "determining circumstances" such as the pandemic, which led to much more audiovisual content being consumed and the digitalization of the economy accelerating.

The Minister of Economy has stressed that we must take into account that "new technologies and new forms of content emerge" because "it is no longer just about film and television", but there are new areas such as "games or immersive reality." ".

Given these "changes", he highlighted that Spain "is very well positioned" since it has "the best digital connectivity infrastructure in Europe" and with "a privileged environment to film in", as well as "an international prestige, a country brand ". "We are aware of the potential and we have to value these capabilities and put in the money."

The conference, of a professional nature, has focused on "key" aspects for the construction of a European audiovisual system that "is based on collaboration and economic sustainability with the support of the public and private sectors," the Ministry explained. .

The objective is to maintain within the framework of the Festival "a space for dialogue and growth in full development of the 'Spain, Audiovisual Hub of Europe' plan" with which the central government is investing in the sector to increase audiovisual productions by up to 30%. in Spain in 2025. To date, more than 1.2 billion of the 1.6 billion budgeted for the audiovisual sector until 2025 have been mobilized.

Nadia Calviño's intervention has given way to debate tables with the presence of top-level professionals from the Spanish and European audiovisual industry. Senior representatives of the state and European Public Administration have also taken part, addressing different aspects of business, creativity, collaboration between cultural industries and financing models.

The first analysis panel has addressed the 'Consolidation of business models of the European audiovisual sector' and will be moderated by Cristina Morales (Deputy Director General of Organization of Audiovisual Communication Services of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation).

Mario Gianani, CEO of Wildside, participates in it; José Antonio Antón, director of Contents Atresmedia Televisión; Jan Motjo, CEO of Beta Films; Domingo Corral, director of Fiction and Entertainment Content at Movistar Plus; and Pilar Benito, General Director of Morena Films.

Next, the second table deals with the adaptation of formats under the title of 'Promoting collaboration in various sectors and formats', moderated by Henar León, Project Manager of Podium Podcast.

Its writer, Javier Castillo, and the director of original content at Netflix in Spain, Verónica Fernández, have delved into 'The Snow Girl', and Daniel Sánchez, CEO of Gamera Nest, has delved into 'Tadeo Jones'; and Nico Matji, Co-Founder of Lightbox Studios. In the case of the production of 'The Three Musketeers', Yolanda del Val Guilabert, director of the Fiction department at DeAplaneta, participates; and Marie Laure Montironi, EVP International of Pathé Films.

The last table will revolve around 'Investment models in the European audiovisual sector', moderated by Alberto Sanz, director of financing and Investor Relations at ICEX-Invest in Spain. Nathalie Cholet, head of the Media Invest Fund at the European Investment Fund (EIF), will take part in it; Ramón Garnica Arocena, partner of Nazca Capital; Olivia Sleiter, head of Production Global Drama at Fremantle; and José Carlos García de Quevedo, president of the Official Credit Institute (ICO).

Also participating in the event were Ignasi Camós, general director of the Institute for Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts (ICAA) of the Ministry of Culture and Sports; Renate Nikolay, Deputy Director General of CNECT of the European Commission, and María González Veracruz, Acting Secretary of State for Telecommunications and Digital Infrastructures.