The Federation of Screenwriters in Europe (FSE) survey on screenwriters’ writing conditions and contractual practices in development phases has extended its deadline to 29th May 2026.

https://forms.gle/KhN96B6inpjJxGJ17

Background information

Why do we need a new survey?

At European as well as at national level, getting the politicians’ attention always requires backing our requests with data and numbers. The aim of this survey is not to discover something new, but to document, in a structured and European-wide way, practices that we strongly suspect from experience. The results will support the ongoing research and help strengthen our collective understanding and positioning on these issues.

What is the focus of the survey?

The main focus is on the conditions under which development, writing and rewriting take place, and how validation and payment mechanisms operate in practice. Most existing legal and academic analyses focus on issues once the work is completed, such as remuneration and exploitation. Our initiative aims to complement that perspective by looking at what happens upstream, during the development and writing phase.

What will be your contribution?

To do so, we need your support. We kindly ask each guild to circulate this survey to its individual members, so that we can gather a sufficiently broad and representative set of responses across Europe. We count on you to explain to your members how important it is to contribute to this collection of information and encourage them to participate.