Interview with José Jaime Linares

The name changed because we realised that the situation is changing, therefore, producing did not only mean making films. Watching TV, series, advertising or other formats was becoming a bit more usual. That was when we realised that it was more adequate to change the name to “Audiovisual Production Professionals”.

This change was successful, since we were more open to more audiovisual sectors, as mentioned above, the advertising, TV series or other platforms. We grew up because we became more open.

The main goals of the Association are overall: the professionalization of the sector, offering tools, formation, research, work and studies to the employees of the production sector. Thus, they would work better, with more information and they would be more prepared and informed about everything that is coming.

Being part of the “Association of Audiovisual Production Professionals” means learning. Any person that works in the Association is willing to learn and improve.

Absolutely. Working with the APPA means being completely informed about the latest news, and not only about what is happening in your region or country, but also worldwide. Our news are normally related to the national territory but sometimes, we include everything that we might consider important, even if it’s at a global level. Instead of searching information everywhere and not being aware of many events, working with APPA means being informed, about all that is interesting and can help.

• What does the APPA offer that makes it different from other existing associations of the sector?

Yes, sure. We have nice relation with Spain Film Commission. We both prepare trips to those locations that we are interested in and might be future locations for the shooting. We also work with AEC, which is the Spanish Association of Directors of Photography. Furthermore, we are 20 associations across the country which are developing a federation of coaches, since there isn’t one in Spain.

Promptly, we gather with the Institute of Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts (ICAA), of the Ministry of Culture. We have a nice and fluent relation, and we talk about topics in which we can help. For example, one of the latest and most important topics that has been talked about jointly is the protocol or the good practice guidelines for the audiovisual sector, which has been mainly provided by APPA. Of course, this has been a joint work with the Government.

Not enough. The interest is relative, since the population enjoys the audiovisual productions at home with their tablets and in many platforms. Society lacks enough cultural education but itself is not the responsible for that, but we are; the associations, government and different ministries, which we should use to teach people the importance of culture and intellectual property, at home or at school. If this situation was different, there would be more respect for the productions, and they would be better understood. People don’t know how films or series are made, and all the work involved. It is easy to despise and think of them being insensitive, as it happens many times.

Related to this topic, during this confinement a lot of audiovisual content has been consumed and I have found people who criticise the culture of the audiovisual sector, and just when they arrive home, they watch TV series. These series are not created “magically” it is us who produce what you watch later at home.

In Spain there is little interest by the Government, only the enough I would say.

Spain is a country that needs to believe that culture is more important, and that depends a lot on both national and regional governments. It is true that we have something, but it is clear we are far from other countries which we see and know that are more involved, pay more attention, have more budget and respect for culture.

It is very necessary that the government understands that culture and those of us who make culture in all its variables are necessary for a country to be intelligent. Without culture we do not learn. Culture offers us a window to the outside world.

There are countries, like France, which is next to us, and it's a good example of what we should learn in that sense.

       ● How is it possible to raise and manage the financing of a project?

It is not easy to set up a project in this country because there is no aid available. We are very far from the help that other countries offer to set up a project. In Spain there are few television stations for such a project, and besides, we are too Anglo-Saxon in that sense. The audience always counts on American series before Spanish ones, and that makes it quite difficult.

• Are there enough aids for filming in Spain provided by the various, local, regional, state, international authorities, etc.? 

There is such aid in Spain, for example the Ministry of Culture invests 50 million euros per year in cinema. However, these 50 million are 5 chapters of  "Game of Thrones ”, and American films are four times this quantity. By this I mean that very little funding is provided to make a production. 

The Spanish average for a film is 3 or 5 million euros, so, with these 50 million euros, how much film funding are we talking about? 10 or 15 films a year? In Spain, almost 300 films are made a year, between different documentaries and films, so it is impossible to help all of them. Much more help is needed

      ●  Considering that only 8.17% of the actors in Spain can live on the profession Are the employees of the audiovisual sector in Spain suffering a big crisis? If the answer is yes, is it possible to overcome it? 

The audiovisual sector has been in crisis since I can remember. We have always been in crisis. When you work on this, it is because you really like it, not for any other reason.

We are always in crisis because we lack regularity; either we have four projects, and we can only choose one or do them at the same time, or we don't have any because we've dropped them all. We have always been in crisis, and we have always suffered, we are very used to this. 

I think that now we are living some nice years, with the entrance of the platforms and the orders of the series that are coming, this has favoured the sector, without any doubt.

      ● With the emergence of digital platforms such as Netflix, HBO or Amazon Prime, the number of audiovisual productions is constantly increasing. Do you consider this is an advantage or disadvantage for job creation in the sector? Why?

Yes, without any doubt. The creation of these platforms has meant a greater need for employment. In fact, the ways of working have also changed a little.

However, I believe that we need to seek a balance. Sometimes I have the feeling that there is a lot of power in them and they are the ones who are setting the guidelines, and it should not be like that either, that one single platform marks a whole country, the how and when. I think it is necessary to seek that balance among the coaches.

I think it is okay that these platforms exist, because they create more work. Obviously, with the existence of these platforms there are more options, and overall, work has been decentralised and this is very important. Not everything can be shot in Madrid or Barcelona, so it is very important that people understand that there are other areas, such as Cantabria, the Basque Country or the Valencian Community. There are many places, very prepared and with very competitive people, and more and more series are becoming more open to this idea. Work needs to be decentralised, so that not everything goes to the same place

        ● Therefore, this centralisation of work that existed in the cities of Madrid and Barcelona, and now the digital platforms have come to put an end to it. Was this a factor that created unemployment in audiovisual work?

Yes, without any doubt, this centralisation has increased the number of employees here in Madrid, because that's where the studios are. But, at the same time, not everything can be on a set, you need to go somewhere else. This country is very rich in images and areas, so I invite people to look for and work on series and films beyond Madrid, there is a lot of Spain to shoot.

         ●  The COVID-19 situation meant a total halt in audiovisual production. How has this affected the sector? What problems have been encountered?

The COVID-19 situation has affected the sector like "an iron slab over the head", it has been very hard. I would say that it has been harder than the 2007 crisis, because it has been an absolute halt, a "slowdown" from day to morning. Little by little we all stopped, until the State of Alarm came in and we all had to stop, everything froze.

There have been many problems. On the one hand, the coaches, who are in the artists' regime, suffered the professional lack of the SEPE (State Employment Public Service) helping us to regularize our aid, since there are not enough people in the SEPE who know how to deal with the artists' regime. There are thousands of colleagues who have suffered delays or have not yet been able to be attended to, due to this lack of knowledge about how to attend to an artists' scheme.

On the other hand, we have suffered from the problem of the return of projects, since they come together, those that need to be resumed with those that are planned for now, and this has the effect of "overlapping projects", and is creating, right now, a very complicated situation. This situation has created an effect of a lack in many ways, coaches and actors who have dates committed to two films at once, one that has been delayed and is being resumed now, and another that was already committed for now, where does this actor go? What does he do? It's a very complicated situation and it's trying to be resolved.

However, for me there is an advantage in the audiovisual sector. As I said before, the audiovisual sector is used to being in crisis, used to always suffering with ups and downs, so it has never been comfortable to work in this sector. Therefore, we started working and we went out and shot. We love our work so much that even the COVID-19 can't cope with us. We will keep fighting and looking for ways to keep working.

         ● And finally, how do you see the future for audiovisual employees? Will they get out of this crisis that is crushing the sector so much?

I think that 2021 and 2022 will be two good years, if COVID-19 allows it. I have faith that before the end of this year, it will no longer be a problem. We could get rid of the fear, get those vaccines and be able to relax, and not be afraid that some member of the team will be infected and must stop filming.

I have a lot of faith that the next two years are going to be very fine, thanks to the new tax incentives, which already have competitive advantages worldwide. I clearly think that we have a very rich country, I know that many countries say so, but I am really sure that my country has some great locations, and I “would risk my neck” for all the coaches we have in the audiovisual sector, which are the most competitive, equal or more than others at least at an European level, and we can do great.

Therefore, if the business and financial side, and platforms and televisions, make a greater effort in their sales and bet more on Spanish films, instead of foreign ones, as other countries do, protecting both our sector and our culture, we will be able to have some fine years coming. On the other hand, if the state begins to train and inform educate students, children and young people, in a few years we will have a society that will grow up knowing that culture must be defended, as it is a heritage that we must always defend.