NPLD–Coppieters Campus 2025 highlights the vitality of audiovisual production in Europe’s regional and minority languages

The NPLD–Coppieters Campus 2025 took place in November, in Leeuwarden, hosted at the Post-Plaza Hotel and the Provincehuis of Fryslân. The event brought together representatives from regional governments, filmmakers, producers, and researchers from across Europe to exchange experiences and strategies for promoting audiovisual production in regional and minority languages.

Organised jointly by the Network to Promote Linguistic Diversity (NPLD), the Coppieters Foundation, the Noordelijk Film Festival (NoFF), and the Province of Fryslân, this sixth edition of the Campus focuses on “Audiovisual Production on Regional and Minority Languages”.

The opening session featured welcoming words from Anna Jungner-Nordgren, Chair of the NPLD; Iñaki Irazabalbeitia from the Coppieters Foundation; Eke Folkerts, Provincial Executive for the Frisian language; and representatives of the NoFF.

Throughout the morning of the first session, participants discussed the role of film and media in shaping visibility and pride for linguistic communities. Researchers from the University of Groningen, Deborah Castro and Kjelda Glimmerveen, explored the impact of regional film on tourism, followed by the official announcement of the first projects supported by the newly created Frisian Film Fund, which drew strong interest from local filmmakers.

The panel “Memmetaal in Europe” brought together experts and media professionals from a wide range of linguistic areas, including the Basque Country (Josu Amezaga), Ireland (Alan Esslemont, TG4), Sardinia (Tore Cubeddu), Limburg (Guido Franken, CineSud) and Wales (Heledd Wyn Hardy).

The final session of the day provided an overview of EU policies in the audiovisual field, with contributions from Andrea Posthuma (Creative Europe Desk NL), Craig Willis (European Centre for Minority Issues / Plurilingmedia) and Raquel García Hermida–Van der Walle, Member of the European Parliament.

The second day of the NPLD–Coppieters Campus 2025, held on Friday, 7, focused on the policy frameworks, market dynamics and creative practices that shape audiovisual production in regional and minority languages across Europe.

Moderated by Mariia Ponomarova, industry speaker and filmmaker based in Ukraine and the Netherlands, the morning opened with a round-table on public initiatives to stimulate audiovisual production. Speakers highlighted how regulatory authorities and public broadcasters can play a decisive role in sustaining linguistic diversity on screen.

Rónán Ó Domhnaill, Media Commissioner at Coimisiún na Meán (Ireland), underlined the importance of regulatory tools and public funding schemes to ensure linguistic plurality in audiovisual content. From the perspective of public broadcasting, Unai Iparragirre Torres, Director of EITB (Basque Country), and Ingrid Spijkers, Editor-in-Chief of Omrop Fryslân (The Netherlands), shared concrete examples of how regional broadcasters actively support production ecosystems in minority languages.

Following the coffee break, attention shifted to the global market with a best practices panel on streaming films in regional languages. Representatives from major platforms and distribution initiatives discussed opportunities and challenges for minority-language content in an increasingly competitive streaming environment. Contributions from Alessandro Pisu (MyCulture+), Kaja Wolffers (Amazon), Jasmijn Touw (Netflix) and Daphné De Weirt (Avila Film, Brussels) highlighted the growing interest of international platforms in diverse linguistic content, while also stressing the need for tailored strategies to reach both local and global audiences.

The final session of the day, dedicated to Memmetaal filmmakers, offered a more intimate look into the creative process behind minority-language cinema. Producers and directors Aislinn Clarke (Fréwaka, Ireland), Murk-Jaep van der Schaaf (In My Dreams I Hear You, Fryslân) and Marco Antonio Pani (Némos Andando Per Mare, Sardinia) shared personal reflections on developing, producing and directing films rooted in their linguistic and cultural communities. Their testimonies highlighted both the artistic richness and the structural challenges of working in non-dominant languages, while reaffirming the strong emotional and cultural value of telling stories in one’s own language.

Together, the discussions of the second day reinforced the Campus’ core message: that audiovisual production in regional and minority languages thrives at the intersection of public policy, market access and creative commitment, and remains a key pillar for linguistic diversity in Europe.

Background

The NPLD–Coppieters Campus is an annual event that provides a platform for policymakers, researchers, and practitioners to share knowledge and good practices in the field of language policy and cultural production.

Delegations attending the Campus include representatives from Catalonia, Navarre, Galicia, Wales, Galicia, the Basque Country, Trento, Ireland, Albania, Brittany, and other European regions. The event also features a strong presence of local Frisian filmmakers and producers, ensuring a lively exchange between institutional, academic, and creative perspectives