Beyond postsocialist and small: recent film production practices and state support for cinema in Czechia and Romania

Our study provides a comparison of recent Czech and Romanian production practices and state funding policies for film production, as well as, more broadly, of two film cultures that are less similar than research in the field has often assumed. The study presents the particularities of each national industry and shows how production practices and funding schemes influence each other. It also advances an idea to better understand the functioning of these two film cultures. It contends that, thirty years after 1989, they should be rather framed as European cinemas, and not only, as research has predominantly proposed, as Eastern European, small, or post-socialist.

Automated summary

Our study compares recent Czech and Romanian production practices and state funding policies for film production, as well as the two film cultures, which are less similar than previously assumed. The study explores the specificities of each national industry and demonstrates how production practices and funding schemes influence each other. It also suggests a new perspective, framing them as European cinemas rather than solely Eastern European, small, or post-socialist, as commonly proposed in existing research.