Rendez-vous with European Cinema: Exclusive Screening of "Mr Nobody Against Putin"

On 8 December 2025, in the framework of the Danish Presidency of the EU Council, the Danish Film Institute, the Danish Presidency of the Council of the European Union and the European Film Agency Directors (EFAD) hosted an exclusive screening of Mr Nobody Against Putin directed by Pasha Talankin and David Borenstein at Cinema Palace in Brussels. 

The evening opened with a welcome address and a panel discussion “When Regulation Enables Creation: Enforcing the AVMSD”, gathering European policymakers and industry representatives to discuss the role of efficnet regulation enforcement in safeguarding cultural diversity, promoting European works, and enhancing prominence of European content.

Introducing the event, Tine Fischer, CEO of the Danish Film Institute underlined how recent global developments in the audiovisual landscape showcase a trend towards stronger consolidation and dominance of content. This makes a robust European framework more essential than ever. She stressed that supporting European stories is fundamental for Europe’s culture and democracy, and that the European model, built on strong national frameworks, including the AVMSD and the Creative Europe MEDIA program, remains crucial for acheiveing freedom of expression and independent creation. “A film like Mr Nobody Against Putin would simply not have been possible without this framework,” she noted.

CSA - Superior Audiovisual Council of Belgium communicated in a statement the need for better data quality and traceability and announced plans to work with the European Audiovisual Observatory and EFAD to centralise data collection while ensuring confidentiality. They noted that improved data access is essential for regulators to effectively monitor compliance with European works obligations.

Mads Vigsø Bendsen, Culture & Media Attaché, Permanent Representation of Denmark in the EU underlined that the Danish Presidency placed a strong emphasis on democratic media, protection of minors and platform responsibility, while noting that access to European content and European works remains a challenge despite solid EU frameworks. He stressed that quotas alone are insufficient and highlighted the need for stronger common standards, better KPIs, exchange of best practices and effective enforcement on prominence.

Julie-Jeanne Regnault, Managing Director, European Producers Club reminded participants that independent production remains central to media pluralism, originality and competitiveness in Europe. She called for closer scrutiny of the 30% quota and its diversity and underlined the need for evidence-based prominence policies built on reliable consumption data. She highlighted the importance of MEDIA programme support to stimulate the visibility of European works online.

Marta Sanagustin, Head of Sector for AV and Media Policy, European Commission emphasised that prominence of media services of general interest and European works, will be a key focus of the upcoming AVMSD evaluation. She also highlighted the importance of robust and reliable data, noting that the European Audiovisual Observatory’s database on VOD availability should be further developed with the support of regulators and industry.