Small European Film Markets: Portraits and Comparisons

The Portuguese film market is one of the smallest in Southern Europe. To some extent, the industry can be seen as a milieu: it is a tapestry of SMEs, cultural associations, institutions, and a few international players. The industry has been historically characterized by precariousness, rudimentary conditions, strangled circulation, and underdeveloped marketing. Apart from a few exceptions, film activity (especially feature films) relies almost entirely on state support (along all the steps of the value chain) provided by the Instituto do Cinema e Audiovisual (Portuguese Film Institute) (see: Public Funding). In general, Portugal records low levels of attendance for domestic productions (among the lowest in Europe). The audio-visual sector has seen continuous growth since the 1990s and has been key to co-productions and the professionalization of actors, technicians and other staff.