The DigiDemo and CreaDemo grants awarded by AVEK to the creative industries will be cut by half in 2021. Distributed for almost 20 years, these grants are funded from a special appropriation granted by the Ministry of Education and Culture that comes from profits obtained from gaming operations. AVEK’s product development support has helped companies and products such as Supercell, Gigglebug Entertainment, Arilyn and Oikiat Design’s Vaatelaastari (FabPatch) get started. The drastic decrease in the amount of financial support is a new blow to the creative industries and threatens their reform and innovation.

“The beginning of new stories is in jeopardy,” writes Director of AVEK Ulla Simonen in her blog. The DigiDemo and CreaDemo grants distributed by AVEK will be cut by half in 2021, and the future of the appropriation is unknown.

Despite the coronavirus pandemic, grants have been awarded normally and the number of applications has increased by 17% compared with the previous year. The grant application process has been developed to be more interactive and equal.

At the autumn budget session, the Ministry of Finance cut 3.3 million euros from the appropriation intended for the operating expenses of the Finnish National Agency for Education, included in the proposal of the Ministry of Education and Culture. This cut will further weaken the operating conditions of the creative industries that are already facing challenges.

The 2020 AVEK Award has been awarded to internationally renowned artist Jenna Sutela (b. 1983), whose art studies artificial intelligence and interaction between species. She works diversely on audiovisual works, sculptures and performances.

A recipient of both the CreMa and CreaDemo grants, Arilyn creates emotionally engaging experiences with the help of augmented reality. The company’s CEO and co-founder Emmi Jouslehto explains the role that augmented reality can play in cultural experiences.

The goal of the guidebook is to promote a more environmentally friendly way of production.

The Aalto Studios Open Call project seeks audiovisual and gaming productions that create new and interesting content by utilising the specialised technologies of Aalto Studios.

AVEK distributed EUR 3.7 million in grants in 2019. During the year, 971 applications were processed, 439 of which received the grant. In the autumn of 2019, the decision-making process already took into account the principles of sustainable development, and this year the responsibility of the productions is also promoted through its own form of support.

The Finnish Parliament has decided to keep the compensation for private copying at the current level in the budget for 2019. A significant number of members of parliament from all parties were behind the cross-party advocacy work. The common goal is to prepare a reform of the current budget-based system during the government’s term in office that begins after the election.