Flanders Audiovisual Fund (VAF)

Overview

The Flanders Audiovisual Fund (Vlaams Audiovisueel Fonds, VAF) is the government agency responsible for supporting the development, production, and promotion of Dutch-language Belgian audiovisual content. Founded in 2002, the VAF provides grants and investments for Flemish theatrical features, documentaries, short films, animation, and television drama produced in Flanders -- the Dutch-speaking northern region of Belgium. Belgium's linguistic division creates two parallel film funding systems: the VAF for Flemish (Dutch-language) production and the Centre du Cinéma et de l'Audiovisuel (CCA) for Wallonian (French-language) production.

Flemish cinema has produced internationally recognized directors including Felix Van Groeningen (The Broken Circle Breakdown, Beautiful Boy, The Eight Mountains) and Nathalie Alvarez Mesen, whose work has achieved major international distribution and festival recognition. The VAF's support has been instrumental in developing this talent and creating the conditions in which Flemish cinema can reach international audiences alongside its domestic constituency.

Belgian Tax Shelter

Belgium offers one of the most significant private film investment tax incentives in Europe through the Belgian Tax Shelter, which allows Belgian companies to reduce their corporate tax by investing in qualifying Belgian audiovisual works. The Tax Shelter generates substantial private investment in Belgian production each year and makes Belgium an attractive co-production destination for international producers whose projects can qualify as Belgian productions.

The VAF works alongside the Tax Shelter system -- which is administered separately by the Federal Ministry of Finance -- to provide a complete financing picture for productions with Flemish participation. The combination of VAF grants, Tax Shelter investment, broadcaster co-financing from VRT (the Flemish public broadcaster), and European co-production support through MEDIA creates the multi-source financing structures that fund most significant Flemish productions.

International Co-Production

Belgium's central location in Europe, its multilingual population, and its established production infrastructure make it an active international co-production partner. Flemish productions regularly co-produce with Dutch, French, German, and British partners. The VAF facilitates international co-productions with Flemish creative participation through its co-production support programs and through Belgium's bilateral treaty co-production relationships.

What Filmmakers Should Know

For international co-productions with Belgian partners, the VAF and the Belgian Tax Shelter together create compelling financial incentives. Belgium's position as a hub for European institutions (the EU, NATO) and its central location in Western Europe give it strong networks for accessing European co-production financing that smaller countries cannot match.

For Flemish filmmakers, the VAF is the primary public funding relationship for theatrical film careers. The Fund's development and production programs, and its relationship with VRT, provide the institutional infrastructure that supports Flemish film production from script through distribution.

See Also

For the French-language Belgian film funding equivalent, understanding that Belgium's CCA operates separately from the VAF for Wallonian production is important for international producers considering multi-regional Belgian co-production. For the European Film Academy context, see EFA in this directory.