Creative Europe is a framework programme of the European Commission aimed at supporting and strengthening the competitiveness of the European cultural, creative, and audiovisual sectors, while also safeguarding, fostering, and promoting the cultural and linguistic diversity of European countries.
The total budget of the Programme for 2021–2027 amounts to €2.44 billion.
Objectives of the Creative Europe Programme:
To protect, develop, and promote European cultural and linguistic diversity, as well as heritage;
To enhance the competitiveness and economic potential of the cultural and creative industries, in particular the audiovisual sector.
Creative Europe consists of three strands:
Culture (33% of the budget) – promoting the cultural and creative sectors;
MEDIA (58% of the budget) – supporting the development and distribution of audiovisual works and film production;
Cross-sectoral cooperation (9% of the budget) – fostering collaboration across cultural and creative sectors, including support for the news media.
Horizontal calls covering all cultural and creative sectors: support for international cooperation projects, professional networks, platforms for promoting European artists and works, and an individual mobility scheme;
Support for specific sectors within the horizontal strand, including music, literature and publishing, cultural heritage, and architecture;
Special support in the form of awards in literature, music, architecture, and cultural heritage, as well as the European Capital of Culture title and the European Heritage Label.
Supporting cooperation along the value chain and at EU level to help scale up audiovisual companies and strengthen global distribution of European content;
Nurturing talent across countries, broadening participation and opportunities for collaboration with other states;
Promoting the use of new technologies to fully harness digital potential;
Supporting the sector’s transition towards sustainability while advancing social objectives such as gender balance and diversity.
Transnational strategic cooperation: raising awareness of Creative Europe and supporting dissemination of results;
Creative Innovation Labs: developing innovative approaches to content creation, access, distribution, and promotion across cultural and creative industries;
News media: promoting media literacy, high-quality journalism, media freedom, and pluralism.
The programme is implemented on behalf of the European Commission by the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA).
Ukraine joined Creative Europe in 2016. In December 2021, a new Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine was signed, granting participation in the programme for 2021–2027.
To ensure implementation of the Agreement and coordinate the involvement of Ukrainian participants, the Creative Europe National Bureau operates in Ukraine. The Bureau develops the Programme at the national level, facilitates information exchange and partner search, provides advisory support to applicants, and cooperates with Creative Europe Desks in other countries.
In response to Russia’s full-scale aggression against Ukraine, the European Commission has taken a number of measures, in particular:
In the Creative Europe Work Programme 2023–2024, support for Ukraine was identified as a cross-cutting priority, meaning that projects involving Ukrainian artists or supporting Ukraine receive preference in competitive selection.
In autumn 2022, a Special Call “Support for Ukrainian Displaced People and the Cultural and Creative Sectors of Ukraine” was launched, with a total budget of €5 million. The selected projects (to be implemented during 2023–2025) include three winning consortia involving Ukraine, which provide sub-grants to support Ukrainian artistic projects.
On 11 December 2024, in Brussels, Belgium, an Agreement between Ukraine and the European Union on Ukraine’s full participation in the Creative Europe Programme until 2027 was signed. The Agreement was signed by the Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration – Minister of Justice of Ukraine, Olha Stefanishyna, and the European Commission Executive Vice-President for Technology Sovereignty, Security, and Democracy, Henna Virkkunen.
Ukrainian organisations are now eligible to fully participate in all strands of Creative Europe, including MEDIA, which accounts for at least 58% of the Programme’s total budget.
Since obtaining EU candidate country status in June 2022, Ukraine has also become eligible to participate in the annual European Capital of Culture competition within Creative Europe. Starting in 2023, Ukrainian cities can compete for this title. A successful bid would accelerate cultural, social, and economic development, revitalise historical centres, implement creative projects, and attract tourism, thereby strengthening Ukraine’s European identity.