Europe's film and cultural organisations have mobilised against a proposed cut to AgoraEU, the European Union's planned programme for culture, media and democracy for 2028 to 2034. Under a negotiating proposal from the Irish Presidency, the programme's budget would fall to €6 billion, down from the €8.58 billion proposed by the European Commission, a reduction of around 30 percent.

Two open letters have drawn support from across the sector, one signed by 16 cinema and audiovisual organisations and another by 51 short film festivals and industry bodies. Both call on EU member states to reject the cut and restore the Commission's figure, warning that the reduction would damage independent production, cultural diversity and cross-border cooperation. The cut is far steeper than the roughly 8 percent adjustment envisaged for the EU budget as a whole, a disparity the campaigners have highlighted.

AgoraEU is designed to bring together the Culture and MEDIA strands of Creative Europe with the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme, while also supporting democracy and independent media. Critics of the cut argue that the programme would therefore be asked to do more than its predecessors with substantially less money, a combination that would fall hardest on smaller organisations and independent creators.

The dispute echoes an earlier fight over Creative Europe's 2027 budget, in which cultural bodies urged the Council to reject a €31.6 million reduction in the programme's final year. With the multiannual budget still under negotiation, the sector's hope is that sustained pressure from festivals, cinemas and cultural networks can persuade member states to treat culture as a strategic investment rather than a line item to trim.