Fair remuneration for directors and screenwriters: an Italian case study

CISAC has partnered  the Society of Audiovisual Authors (SAA) and Writers and Directors Worldwide, to publish a case study on  the legal environment for audiovisual creators in Italy.

Italy is one of the countries to have implemented legislation granting unwaivable remuneration rights to audiovisual creators. As a result, these authors – screenwriters and directors who play a central role in audiovisual productions – benefit from a strong legal environment  that ensures fair remuneration for a wide range of exploitations of their works.  

Unwaivable remuneration rights were first introduced in Italy for both authors and performers in 1997. With this Legislative Decree no. 154/1997, Italy implemented the European Directive 93/98/EEC on the harmonization of the term of protection of copyright and related rights. 

The Italian regime has helped sustain jobs and a professional livelihood for many audiovisual creators, while at the same time nurturing a positive evolution of the national audiovisual production and its export abroad.

This paper follows a similar case study on Spain,  published by the three organisations in June 2021. Both reports analyse the legislative framework  and highlights key industry data illustrating the related growth of the audiovisual sector over recent years.

Download the case study here.