On behalf of the Minister of Media and the Department of Culture, Youth, and Media, Mediapunt has analysed the financing of Flemish fiction series, documentaries, and films over the past decade. “This research highlights that Flemish fiction continues to shine thanks to a strong foundation of public support and local players. While international collaboration offers additional opportunities, it remains our responsibility to protect and enhance the unique strength of Flemish storytelling. Our fiction is truly world-class,” stated Flemish Minister of Media, Cieltje Van Achter. The study was conducted by imec-SMIT-VUB under the direction of Professor Tim Raats.
Key Findings
1. Record Number of Flemish Fiction Series in 2023
The launch of Streamz, competition from international players, and the growing popularity of fiction have led to an increase in the production of Flemish series, with 2023 marking a peak year. VRT remains the leading player, producing series for VRT 1, VRT Canvas, Ketnet, and VRT MAX ‘originals’. Meanwhile, private broadcasters face challenges in producing fiction. Streamz has emerged as the primary platform for fiction produced by these broadcasters.
2. International Streamers Transform the Flemish Fiction Market: Co-productions Become the Norm
International streaming platforms have reshaped the Flemish fiction market, offering a broader range of niche and short-format series targeting younger audiences. Since 2021, co-productions with Streamz, foreign broadcasters, and international platforms have become standard for larger Flemish series, resulting in increased budgets. Productions costing €5 million or more are now commonplace. However, investments in Flemish productions by major international streamers remain limited in terms of both the number of projects and financial contributions. Flemish productions remain heavily reliant on public funding, including tax shelters, the Flemish Audiovisual Fund (VAF), and local incentive schemes.
3. Limited Budget Growth Despite Rising Costs
While the average cost of fiction series with episodes of 40 minutes or more has increased, the overall budget growth is less than expected given inflation. Compared to a decade ago, achieving the same results requires more resources, leading to tensions regarding quality and working conditions. Documentaries and films have even lower budgets, lacking the support that television series receive from broadcasters or local streamers.
4. COVID-19 Temporarily Boosted Financial Support and Opportunities
The pandemic brought additional funding for delayed or halted productions, enabling some short-term projects and temporary budget increases. For films, support measures helped finance projects that incurred extra costs due to the pandemic.
Figures
- Total Investment (2014–2023): Investments in Flemish fiction series ranged between €33 million and €91 million, with 2023 setting a record.
- Average Budget for Long-Format Fiction Series: Rose to €4.8 million per series in 2023, with high-end fiction costing €837,902 per hour. The average budget increased by over €1 million between 2014 and 2023.
- Foreign Contributions: Since 2016, contributions from international partners have risen, reaching €15 million in 2023—accounting for 16% of Flemish fiction budgets.
- Film Budgets: Average feature film budgets in 2023 were €2.5 million (€2 million for auteur films, €3 million for mainstream films).
- Documentary Budgets: Average documentary series budgets in 2023 were €817,508 per series, with broadcaster investments averaging €183,437 between 2020 and 2022. Foreign contributions remained stable at 5–8%.*
*This is a machine translation. We apologise for any inaccuracies.