The first 2026 window of Lazio Cinema International has been open since yesterday, March 12, until April 21; it is the program that supports the creation of international audiovisual works that choose Lazio as their production and filming location.
The total budget for the call is €5 million, aimed at Original Independent Producers operating as SMEs with an operational headquarters in Lazio and who meet the necessary requirements to access the tax credit for the production of cinematographic works, as provided for by Article 15 of the Cinema Law.
The initiative falls under Strategic Objective 1 – A more competitive and smarter Europe, with a particular focus on strengthening SMEs in the audiovisual sector.
Each beneficiary – understood as a single company or group – may obtain the grant for only one work, while multiple beneficiaries may be involved in the same project.
Requirements for eligible works
International audiovisual works are considered eligible, specifically:
- Cinematographic works produced as international co-productions that are recognized as having Italian nationality pursuant to Art. 3 of the Prime Ministerial Decree of July 11, 2017;
- Cinematographic works produced under international partnership regimes, or international television or web productions with Italian nationality recognized pursuant to Art. 4 of the Prime Ministerial Decree of July 11, 2017;
- Television or web works with Italian nationality pursuant to Art. 2 of the same decree, which have both a participation share from original independent Italian co-producers and a foreign share of 20% or more.
Furthermore, the works must be produced on the basis of a binding co-production agreement, which must be submitted at the application stage.
Minimum budget thresholds
The call for applications sets out specific economic requirements for project eligibility:
- A minimum production cost of €2,500,000 for cinematographic works;
- €1,250,000 for first or second works, or works by young authors;
- €1,250,000 for television or web works;
- €400,000 for documentaries, regardless of format.
The works must also have a duration of more than 52 minutes and filming must not have started before the application is submitted.
Mandatory tax credit
Fundamental requirements include access to the production tax credit provided for by Article 15 of the Cinema Law.
By the date the application is submitted, at least the request for tax credit eligibility must have been filed. The preliminary request must be submitted within 4 months of the grant being awarded, while the final request must be attached to the request for the final payment.
The latter must be submitted within 12 months of the grant date, a deadline that increases to 24 months for works with a duration of more than 220 minutes or for animated works.
