Global film industry unites against Trump's tariff plan ahead of Cannes Film Festival

Over 100 global film organisations urge governments to safeguard independent film ecosystem.
Text: Óscar Ontañón Docal
Published 2025-05-12

Ahead of the Cannes Film Festival, more than 100 international film and TV groups have raised concerns about President Donald Trump's proposed tariffs on film imports, urging European Union and global governments to protect the independent film sector.

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The appeal (which you can check out here), backed by prominent organisations such as the European Producers Club and Canada's Alliance des producteurs francophones, warns that the proposed tariffs pose a significant threat to both cultural diversity and artistic freedom.

As United States studios push against these regulations, industry leaders strongly emphasise the need to preserve the systems that allow independent film to thrive, urging resistance to political or corporate efforts aimed at dismantling these vital safeguards.

Amid all this, the Cannes Film Festival, running from May 13 to 24.

LOS ANGELES, USA - MAY 22, 2017: street vendor trampling on the star of Donald Trump embedded in the terrazzo flooring of the Hollywood Boulevard Walk of Fame

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