Netflix Fallout, Italian Slump and €100M Fund Dom Rome's MIA Market

Italian production spend fell 7.4% to €2 billion ($2.24 billion) in 2025, its first drop since 2018, according to the TV producers' association APA. The figure landed at Rome's 12th MIA Market, which closed Friday amid industry anxieties over Netflix's layoff of 1,000 employees and a fresh €100 million ($112 million) Italian film fund.

Market head Gaia Tridente heralded "a stronger, renewed edition of MIA, with a more ambitious and expanded program." Guests included Banijay CEO Marco Bassetti, Studiocanal CEO Anna Marsh, Bad Wolf CEO Jane Tranter, and filmmakers Edward Berger ("All Quiet on the Western Front") and Asif Kapadia ("Amy").

How did MIA remake itself?

The market expanded beyond its Palazzo Barberini hub into new venues along Via Veneto, the street of "La Dolce Vita" fame. "We have completely reimagined the geography of the market, creating a new industry district in the heart of Rome," Tridente said. She called it "probably been one of the biggest transformations of MIA, and certainly one of the most challenging from an organizational perspective."

The edition also launched a gap-financing market for animation series and a new European Investment Hub. MIA shifted its dates to run alongside the Rome Film Festival and Alice nella Città — a bid, Tridente said, to strengthen "Rome's position as an international hub for the audiovisual industry."

What does the Netflix bloodbath mean?

MIA was the first industry gathering since Netflix axed roughly 6% of its workforce, including chief content officer Bela Bajaria and film head Dan Lin — announced Monday, hours before MIA's opening reception. Paramount Skydance's acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery added to the vertigo.

CAA's Roeg Sutherland, co-head of media finance, sees openings. "In my world, mergers represent opportunity. Contraction represents opportunity," he said. "Financiers see that as a moment where people will be opportunistic." Anna Marsh, also deputy CEO of Canal+, argued consolidation is survival: "The audience is so tough that we constantly need to be looking at ourselves in the mirror. Because the business is moving so fast."

Lorenzo De Maio, president of De Maio Entertainment, noted a producer upside when groups like Banijay, Mediawan and Vuelta buy aggressively: "In an ideal world, a group gives you business affairs, cash flow, finance."

Why are European producers fighting back?

Bassetti's keynote flagged the continent's core dispute: "recognizing and providing compensation for creativity." Producers want IP retention and quotas forcing streamers to invest revenues locally. "The reality is that we have no ownership, and it's extremely difficult to secure any, though things are starting to open up a bit," he said. "Ultimately, [the studios and the streamers] still have total control."

Potboiler Productions' Andrea Calderwood (“Die My Love”) counseled acceptance: "Sometimes the decision is made for you." Indiana Productions' Daniel Campos Pavoncelli urged finding the "one big selling point" and "leveraging relationships more than ever."

What is behind Italy's spending dip?

APA blamed uncertainty over the government's modifications to domestic tax credits, plus the linear-to-streaming transition. Scripted suffered most. The impasse did not affect international production rebates, which stayed in place.

Audiences remained loyal to local hits: Lux Vide's "Sandokan" and BiBiFilm's "La Preside" each drew over 4.6 million viewers per episode on linear TV. Netflix standout "The Monster of Florence," directed by Stefano Sollima, pulled 9.7 million global views in its first week in October 2025 after launching from Venice.

Where is the money now?

Media Capital Technologies and RP1 Holding launched a €100 million fund for Italian productions and distribution. "There's definitely more money in the marketplace than there ever has been in the 25 years I've been doing this," said Sutherland. CAA's co-head sees new formats and the creator economy as investor entry points.

Calderwood welcomed financing "beyond the main U.S. and U.K. gatekeepers." IPR.VC's Celine Dornier kept it simple: "Know who you are and what you want to do."

Is vertical content Europe's next bet?

A recent study projected vertical video (short-form, phone-native drama) will generate $150 billion outside China this year. Constantin Entertainment has entered the space. Sony's Andrew Plotkin asked: "Are we at an inflection point? I think the answer is yes." Shorties Studios founder Kelly Luegenbiehl, formerly of Netflix, called it "definitely the Wild West" — but added, "In the vertical space, I like to say we're in the business of yes."

Can Italian horror repeat its golden age?

Paolo Strippoli's "The Spiral," Italy's Oscar entry, anchored a buoyant horror panel. Shudder's Rachael Labes noted the boom is "broadening beyond the elevated, arthouse horror." TIFF's Peter Kuplowsky described a "gold rush" for online creators, and Signature Entertainment's Jonny Bunning said "TikTok's definitely driving a lot of the conversation." Labes delivered the verdict: "You can't acquire a trend; you can only acquire a specific film or a specific director." With new money, new formats and a horror revival, Rome's case for itself as an industry hub just got easier to argue.