Russia lost membership in «Eurimages».

In the European Fund for the Support of Co-production and Distribution of Cinematographic and Audiovisual Works "Eurimages," Russia has been deprived of participation. The decision was made and announced on March 23 on the Council of Europe's website.

"Eurimages" was created in 1998 with the aim of helping in the creation of film projects, supporting the showing of films in theaters, providing financial support for the translation of films into digital format, and promoting their distribution.

The "Eurimages" Fund fosters the development of independent filmmaking by financially supporting feature-length, animated, and documentary films produced together. The fund's annual budget is over 20 million euros, and its members include 40 countries.

As a result of the decision to exclude Russia from "Eurimages," it loses the following opportunities:

• to claim any rights or be associated with anything derived from the Statute of the Council of Europe;
• to have representations in the Committee of Ministers and the Parliamentary Assembly, as well as in any joint bodies;
• to be represented in the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities;
• to participate in events and programs organized by the Council of Europe, as well as conferences convened by the Council of Europe, etc.

Ukraine joined "Eurimages" in February 2020. The law on accession was signed by the Verkhovna Rada in December 2019.

With the support of "Eurimages," Oleg Sentsov's film "Rhino" was made, which was created in collaboration between Ukraine, Germany, and Poland.