Annual animation brainstorming event Animar_BCN has just wrapped up, and its 90-plus attendees—representing 60 European broadcasters, funding bodies and studios—concluded that the animation industry needs stronger systems supporting European co-productions and green production standards. 

Animar_BCN’s third edition took place in Barcelona from November 26 to 28, bringing together businesses and organizations including the BBC, the European Commission and Barcelona funding body ICEC (Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies) to develop recommendations designed to improve the animation industry. Animation in Europe, which represents producer associations from 22 countries, will now present these proposals to various oversight bodies. 

The biggest concern expressed by attendees this year is the global decline in available financing for kids content, says Philippe Alessandri, president of Animation in Europe and founder of Watch Next Media. 

A few proposals that came out of this week’s event are directly tied to this challenge. Attendees would like to see funding bodies and broadcasters engaging in more collaboration to better support the development of new projects. And they noted the need for additional tax credits, especially ones linked to IPs that are owned by European companies and that tell European stories. They also proposed having the EU-wide Audiovisual Media Services Directive, which already aims to create a level playing field between European TV channels and streamers, also apply to social media platforms such as TikTok. 

Additionally, participants pointed to an “urgent need” for tools that companies can use to produce content in more sustainable ways, the goal being to create continent-wide standards. 

And the last major proposal calls for the European industry to develop a best-practices guide for the legal, ethical and sustainable use of AI tools. Animation in Europe also recommends access to training programs and AI experts to help the industry gain skills for using this technology in ways that enhance creative operations and productivity. 

Looking to the future, Animar is planning a March event in Slovenia that will focus on sustainability and green production, as well as spin-off events at Annecy in 2026 and 2027 to explore content distribution, says Alessandri. 

Image of this year’s Animar_BCN courtesy of A. Rodero via Animation in Europe.