The Catalan Parliament in Spain approved the Cinema Law in July which will force all dubbed and subtitled films shown in Catalan cinemas to have half of the copies in Catalan. The measure has been fiercely criticized by the film industry.
The objectives of the law are to rationalise the allocation of public resources for the sector; stimulate the audiovisual sector; and promote Catalan language in production, distribution and exhibition.
The law requires 50% of all copies of films released in the region – with the exception of Spanish and European films with fewer than 16 copies - to be dubbed or subtitled into Catalan when they are released in Spanish. Distributors that fail to comply will be fined between € 1000 and € 5000 per copy that does not comply with the law.
The Catalonian government considers the law as a tool to protect the Catalan language. This does not convince major film studios who fear that agreeing to the Catalan measure would lead to a chain reaction in other parts of Europe.
The law also proposes the creation of a specific fund with five types of support schemes for the film sector (audiovisual production; independent distribution; exhibition; promotion; and competitiveness of companies). Managed by the Catalan institute for creative industries, the fund would dedicate at least 50% of its budget to audiovisual projects in Catalan language. The fund will also focus on new delivery channels.
Other initiatives foreseen by the law include the launch of a specific scheme to promote Catalan cinema abroad.
The Generalitat, Catalunia’s executive body, has calculated that the law would cost around 10 million EUR per year.
Catalonia has become a key locomotive in the Spanish industry, representing some 20% of Spain's film market for the past few years. In 2009, only 2.9% of films shown in Catalan cinemas were in the Catalan language.