TV Programming

The production and distribution of European television programmes with the potential to circulate within the European Union and beyond. 

The following overview is intended for guidance only. General information and specific guidelines can be found on the website of the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA), which manages Creative Europe.

Take a look at the Europe-wide results from 2019.

Applicant companies must:

• Be established in one of the countries participating in the MEDIA sub-programme and be majority owned by nationals from those countries
• Be independent – no more than 25% of the share capital can be held by a single broadcaster (50% when several broadcasters are involved)
• Have audiovisual production as their main business activity
• Own the majority of the rights to the project.

Programmes must be intended primarily for the purposes of television exploitation on both linear and non-linear services, and comply with the following minimum durations:

• Drama (one-off or series) - minimum 90 minutes
• Animation (one-off or series) - minimum 24 minutes
• Creative documentaries (one-off or series) - minimum 50 minutes

For drama series only, sequels or second or third seasons are eligible. Fourth and further seasons of an exisiting drama series are not eligible.

The programme must be majority produced by companies established in countries participating in the MEDIA sub-programme and with a significant number of cast and crew who are nationals and/or residents of those countries (see item 6.2 of the specific guidelines for an explanation of how this is calculated).

The exploitation rights licensed to the broadcaster have to revert to the producer after a maximum period of 7 years for a pre-sale or 10 years for a co-production.

The total budget for 2020 is estimated at €13.5 million across the two deadlines.

The non-repayable grants available depend on the type of production:

• Fiction or animation projects can apply for up to 12.5% of the production budget (capped at €500,000)
• Creative documentaries can apply for up to 20% (capped at €300,000).

Grants of €1 million (or 10% of eligible costs, whichever is lower) are available to projects that meet the following criteria:

• The first or second series of a TV drama series with a minimum duration of 6 x 45 minutes
• Co-produced between at least two production companies from different countries participating in the MEDIA sub-programme
• With a minimum eligible production budget of €10 million.

Applicants should have at least 50% of the estimated total financing of the production budget guaranteed from third party sources of finance (either through direct financing or by advance rights sales) at the time of submission.

50% of the total financing must come from European sources. 

A minimum of three broadcasting companies from three countries participating in the MEDIA sub-programme must be committed (although stronger applications will have more than this).

Applications can be submitted on the first day of principal photography at the latest.

The following documents must be attached to the e-Form:

• Annex 1 – Detailed project description in Word or PDF format (no template)
• Annex 2 – Declaration on the applicant's honour (using the template provided)
• Annex 3 – Estimated Production Budget and Financing Plan (using the template provided)
• Annex 4 – Proofs of financing (no template)
• Annex 5 – Track record of the company (using the template provided)

Together all attachments must not exceed 10MB.

More details can also be found in the Guide for Applicants document for this scheme.

Applications from across Europe are assessed centrally by the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) with assistance from industry experts working in a relevant field according to the following award criteria:

• European dimension of the financing of the project (20 points)
• Quality of the project and quality of the distribution and promotion strategies (55 points)
• Broadcaster’s involvement and potential for international circulation on both linear and non-linear services (20 points)
• Distribution of the roles and responsibilities of the production and creative team (5 points)

Projects specifically targeted at young audiences (under 16s) are also eligible for 5 additional automatic points.

Projects from applicants established in low or medium production capacity countries are also eligible for 5 additional automatic points.

The Guide for Experts offers a breakdown of how these points are awarded.