Creative Europe MEDIA 2027: €90,000–€510,000 for production companies, deadline 1 December

On 30 September 2026, the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) opened the Creative Europe MEDIA call "European slate development" (CREA-MEDIA-2027-DEVSLATE), with an estimated budget of €22,374,320. Independent audiovisual production companies that already have internationally distributed works can request between €90,000 and €510,000 to develop a package of 3–5 films, series or documentaries. Applications must be submitted by 1 December 2026, 17:00 (Brussels time).

The "European co-development" call (CREA-MEDIA-2027-CODEV), worth €12.5 million, with a deadline of 2 March 2027, opened on the same day. This is the last year of calls under the current financial framework of the Creative Europe programme.

In brief

• Programme: Creative Europe, MEDIA strand – European slate development (CREA-MEDIA-2027-DEVSLATE)
• Authority: EACEA, on behalf of the European Commission
• Beneficiaries: independent European audiovisual production companies with recent experience of internationally distributed works
• Total budget: €22,374,320 (estimated, subject to the adoption of the 2027 EU budget)
• Value per project: €90,000–510,000, a grant in the form of lump sums for each work
• Submission period: 30 September – 1 December 2026, 17:00 CET
• Status: call open; results are announced for May 2027 and contracts for August 2027

Who can apply?

Only legal entities from a country that participates fully in the MEDIA strand (including Romania), majority-owned by nationals of those countries, can apply. The company must be an independent production company: no broadcaster or audiovisual media service provider may hold more than 25% of its capital (50% if there are several). The project is submitted by a single applicant; consortia are not permitted.

The condition that eliminates the most applicants is experience. You must prove two works produced since 2020, each with the following characteristics:

• animation, fiction or creative documentary of at least 24 minutes in total (no minimum duration for immersive projects);
• commercially released in cinemas, on television or on digital platforms in at least three countries other than the applicant's country, before the submission deadline; festival screenings do not count;
• the company was the sole producer, the majority co-producer or the delegated producer, or its managing director or a direct partner is credited in the credits as producer or delegated producer.

Companies that received a grant under the DEVSLATE 2026 or DEVMINISLATE 2026 calls cannot apply.

What is funded and how much do you receive?

The call funds the development of a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 5 works intended for commercial exploitation: fiction feature films, animation or documentaries of at least 60 minutes for cinema, then TV or platform fiction of at least 90 minutes, animation of at least 24 minutes, documentaries of at least 50 minutes, as well as interactive or immersive projects of any length. Principal photography of each work must be scheduled at least 10 months after the submission deadline.

Optionally, you can add the development and production of a short film of up to 20 minutes, directed by an emerging talent. The grant is calculated from fixed amounts per work:

• animation: €55,000 (single film) or €60,000 (series);
• creative documentary: €30,000 or €35,000;
• fiction, single film: €45,000 (production budget of up to €5 million) or €60,000 (over €5 million);
• fiction series: €55,000, €75,000 or €100,000, depending on the production budget;
• short film: €10,000.

Entertainment shows, reality shows, tourism promotion documentaries, corporate productions, music videos, video games and licensed films are not eligible.

How and by when do you apply?

The application is submitted exclusively electronically, through the Funding & Tenders Portal, by 1 December 2026, 17:00 CET (18:00 Romanian time). Besides the online forms, the file includes the creative dossier for each work, the extract from the Creative Europe MEDIA database, the option or rights assignment contracts (signed and dated no later than the deadline day), the available co-production and financing documents, the declaration of independence and European ownership, and the declaration on the language of the materials. Part B may not exceed 70 pages.

Evaluation is scored out of 100 points: relevance (35), quality of the works (30), development and financing strategy (20), marketing and distribution (15). The minimum threshold is 70 points. The project usually lasts a maximum of 36 months, and after the contract is signed a pre-financing payment of 70% of the grant is usually made.

What other MEDIA 2027 calls are open?

The "European co-development" call (CREA-MEDIA-2027-CODEV) also opened on 30 September 2026, has a budget of €12.5 million and a deadline of 2 March 2027, 17:00 CET. It is intended for collaboration between production companies from different countries that develop a project together. The Commission has announced that in 2027 the calls for mini-slate, TV and online content, video games and immersive content, distribution and Films on the Move will also continue. Their deadlines must be checked on each call's page in the portal.

Beware of a common rule: a company may be coordinator in only one application across co-development, slate, mini-slate and video games. If it submits several applications as coordinator, only the one with the earliest deadline is evaluated, and the others are declared ineligible. As a partner, the company may also take part in other co-development or video game applications.

What this means for your business

Our recommendation: before anything else, check the two reference works. You must have proof of commercial release in three foreign countries and the exact producer credit. If one of them does not meet the conditions, the application fails even if you have other suitable films. For smaller Romanian production companies that do not yet have such works, the co-development call, with a foreign partner, may be more realistic.

Choose strategically between the calls: a slate submitted on 1 December blocks you from submitting a co-development application as lead applicant on 2 March. Option contracts with authors must be signed now, not in the last week. The fixed amounts per work give you the value of the grant from the outset, so a package balanced between fiction and animation, with a debut short film, can come closer to the ceiling. You can also check other funding sources with the eligibility check.

Frequently asked questions

Can a PFA or a director as a natural person apply?

Natural persons are not eligible. The exception is independent professionals without a separate legal personality, but they too must meet all the conditions of an independent production company and the experience requirements with internationally distributed works.

Do I have to provide co-financing?

The grant is a lump sum set per type of work, not a percentage of costs. The Commission awards the fixed amount for each eligible work, between €90,000 and €510,000 per project. The company covers the remaining development costs, and the evaluators score the financing strategy.

Can I include a video game in the slate?

No. Video games are excluded from this call. There is a separate MEDIA call for video games and immersive content. However, immersive narrative projects, such as virtual reality, are eligible for slate.

When do I find out the result and when do I receive the money?

The indicative timetable provides for evaluation between December 2026 and April 2027, results in May 2027 and contract signature in August 2027. The pre-financing payment, usually 70% of the grant, is paid within 30 days of the contract entering into force.

Official sources

• Call document CREA-MEDIA-2027-DEVSLATE – European slate development (EACEA, v1.0, 30 September 2026)
• Call document CREA-MEDIA-2027-CODEV – European co-development (EACEA, v1.0, 30 September 2026)
• European Commission – Creative Europe in 2027: one last year before the new budget cycle

Information checked on 2 October 2026. Conditions may be changed by the managing authority — check the guide in force before you submit.