Programa IBERMEDIA

Overview

Programa IBERMEDIA is an intergovernmental film fund created in October 1995 at the Ibero-American Summit of Heads of State and Government in Bariloche, Argentina. It provides financial support to film and audiovisual projects across Ibero-America - the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries of Latin America, Spain, and Portugal. The program is part of the audiovisual policy of the Conference of Audiovisual and Cinematographic Authorities of Ibero-America (CAACI) and is one of the oldest multilateral co-production support mechanisms in the world dedicated to a specific linguistic and cultural region.

The fund is ratified by 21 member countries that finance it through annual contributions and loan repayments: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Spain, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Uruguay, and Venezuela. An Intergovernmental Committee meets once a year to select projects and determine funding amounts. The Technical Unit of IBERMEDIA (UTI), based in Madrid, handles day-to-day operations.

The 2026 call received 539 project submissions across six funding modalities - the highest number in the program's history. Spain (77 projects), Argentina (67), and Brazil (64) led submissions, followed by Colombia (46), Mexico (43), and Chile (40).

What It Funds: Six Modalities

IBERMEDIA operates through six distinct funding mechanisms. All financial support is provided as conditionally repayable, interest-free loans (advances against profits), not grants.

A. Co-production Fund

The Co-production Fund supports feature-length fiction, documentary, and animation co-productions involving two or more Ibero-American countries. For the 2026 call, the maximum loan is US$150,000 for fiction features and US$100,000 for documentary features, not exceeding 50% of the total budget. (In 2025, the fiction cap was US$200,000; it was reduced to US$150,000 for 2026.)

The loan is allocated to each co-producer based on their participation in the co-production. IBERMEDIA may assign the loan non-proportionally to the co-producers' participation shares, but no single co-producer can receive less than 10% or more than 50% of the total IBERMEDIA loan. Repayment is based on each co-producer's participation percentage.

At least 50% of each co-producing country's financing must be confirmed through formal commitments (contracts, memoranda of understanding, confirmed public funding, or bank statements) at the time of application. A bank statement alone does not satisfy this requirement. Eligible confirmed financing sources include equity contributions (up to 5% for overheads, up to 5% for executive producer fee capitalization) and in-kind service contributions (up to 5%).

The 2026 call received 219 co-production submissions.

B. Distribution and Circulation Fund

Supports the distribution and circulation of Ibero-American films across participating countries, helping films produced within the region reach audiences in other member nations. The 2026 call received 21 distribution submissions.

C. Co-development Fund

Supports the co-development of feature film projects (fiction, documentary, animation) and series projects before they enter co-production. This modality funds script development, packaging, and the preparation of co-production materials. Projects supported at the development stage become stronger candidates for subsequent co-production funding. The 2026 call received 166 feature film co-development submissions and 25 series co-development submissions.

D. Training Programs

Supports professional development initiatives for audiovisual professionals from across the Ibero-American region, with eligibility requirements around multi-country participation. The 2026 call received 45 training program submissions.

E. Complementary Aids for the Audiovisual Industry (New in 2026)

A new modality introduced in the 2026 call, supporting singular, high-impact initiatives that, due to their innovative character, scope, or intervention model, cannot be addressed by the program's ordinary calls. This modality promotes strategic actions oriented toward strengthening and sustainably developing the Ibero-American film industry. The 2026 call received 63 submissions for this new line.

2026 Application Timeline

• January 30, 2026: Call opens
• March 30, 2026: Call closes at 11:59 AM (noon), according to the time zone of the headquarters of the majority applying production company
• October 2026: Intergovernmental Committee meeting to select projects (held in Bogota)

Application forms and guidelines for each modality are available on the IBERMEDIA website under the "Nuestras Convocatorias" section.

Eligibility

Country requirements: Projects must involve co-producers or applicants from at least two of the 21 member countries. The full list of participating countries is maintained on the IBERMEDIA website and is subject to change as countries join, renew, or pause their participation.

Co-production fund: Requires confirmed partners in at least two participating countries, with at least 50% of each country's financing confirmed at the time of application.

Co-development fund: Can originate from a single country but requires a co-development partner in a second Ibero-American country.

Format eligibility: Fiction, documentary, and animation features are eligible across the co-production and co-development modalities. Series projects are eligible for the co-development modality.

Financial structure: The IBERMEDIA loan is conditionally repayable. Repayment is based on revenues generated by the project, meaning the loan functions as an advance against profits. If the project does not generate revenue, repayment is not required.

How IBERMEDIA Differs from Grant Funds

IBERMEDIA is a loan fund, not a grant fund. The financial support is provided as an interest-free, conditionally repayable loan. This means the money must be repaid if the project generates revenue. The repayment terms are based on each co-producer's participation percentage and are tied to the project's actual income performance. Filmmakers should factor this repayment obligation into their financial projections and recoupment schedule.

This structure distinguishes IBERMEDIA from outright grant programs like the Sundance Institute Documentary Fund or the Catapult Film Fund, which do not require repayment. The loan model allows IBERMEDIA to recycle its capital: repaid loans replenish the fund and finance future cycles, which is how the program has sustained operations for nearly three decades on member-state contributions.

Why IBERMEDIA Matters for Ibero-American Cinema

IBERMEDIA addresses a structural challenge for Ibero-American cinema. The individual markets in the region are often too small to support the full costs of ambitious independent productions. A Mexican independent film targeting only the domestic Mexican market may struggle to recoup its budget. But a Mexico-Spain-Argentina co-production can access three theatrical markets, three sets of public funding, and a combined audience of over 200 million Spanish speakers. IBERMEDIA provides the financial bridge that makes these cross-border co-productions viable.

The program has supported films that have premiered at Berlin, Cannes, Rotterdam, Sundance, and San Sebastian, among other major festivals. By requiring confirmed co-production partners and verified financing, IBERMEDIA ensures that supported projects have genuine cross-border creative collaboration rather than purely financial arrangements.

Who Should Apply

Fiction, documentary, and animation filmmakers from any of the 21 member countries with a project that has co-production potential across the region. The co-production fund requires confirmed partners in at least two member countries and at least 50% confirmed financing per country. Development-stage filmmakers who want to prepare for co-production should apply to the co-development track first. Filmmakers with series projects can apply to the series co-development modality. Producers should review the specific guidelines for each modality on the IBERMEDIA website before applying, as requirements and maximum loan amounts vary by track and year.

See Also

For building an Ibero-American co-production financing strategy, see Documentary Financing: Building Your Stack. For the Creative Europe MEDIA Programme as a parallel co-production structure for European projects, see the Creative Europe MEDIA Programme entry. For modeling recoupment schedules that account for IBERMEDIA's repayable loan structure, use the Revenue Forecast Calculator. For the full 2026 co-production guidelines (PDF, in Spanish), visit the IBERMEDIA guidelines page.