The Aftermath of Rome 1957. The International Cinematographic Industry Associations Facing the European Single Market

The Treaties of Rome of 1957 were a turning point in European history. Due to its characteristics, the movie industry oscillated between enthusiasm and panic in dealing with the new techno-normative scenario: on the one hand, the potential of greater cooperation, circulation, and financing; on the other on, the renunciation of protectionist policies. Given the importance recognized in the change of scenario and assumed the initial lack of understanding of the European institutions toward the film sector, the main national associations of the film industry had to consolidate and intensify their relationships. In particular, the Italian anica and the French fncf acted as driving forces for the establishment of new associations not only at the European level but also globally, to act as spokespersons for the needs of the industry. In a few years, the Comité des Industries Cinématographiques Européenees and the Bureau International du Cinéma were born. Both became collectors of multiple inner associations and, far from being empty shells, these organizations carried out assiduous techno-diplomatic efforts and established a constant dialogue with the European Parliamentary Group for Cinema, to achieve a balance between the directives of the Common Market and the needs of the sector. This contribution aims to reconstruct, also through detailed documentation from the Anica archives, the dawning phases of this decisive, but still largely unexplored, institutional turning point in the European media field and which constitutes the first important step toward the transnationalisation of the audiovisual industry.