In a statement following the announcement, FNE General Director Anna Franklin made the following comments:
"We would like to thank all of you who contributed so much both financially and with your work and your time to make this possible. This is not just financial support but a mark of the recognition by the EU that FNE is fulfilling a vital role in providing a much needed service for the film community in Europe and specifically the countries of the new EU.
"Special thanks goes first of all the Polish Film Institute headed by Agnieszka Odorowicz who have been the major funding body behind the project during its first year of operations as well as providing counsel and advice without which the project would not have been possible and to the Polish Filmmakers Association headed by Jacek Bromski who have given FNE a home and extended valuable assistance to the project.
"The FNE board members that make up the FNE Association as well as being leaders of the film industry in their respective countries have been the initiators of the project and responsible for its launch from the very beginning and deserve full credit for the successful accomplishment of the mission of the organization. Their far-sighted vision has been what guided the project from its inception. FNE will continue to seek ways to build stronger ties between the organizations that its board members represent and consult with them on how FNE can bring greater value to the film industry in each country.
"Thanks also to our legal council in Prague Vladimir Kroupa who has given selflessly of his time and kept the project on track and to Salans in Poland especially Krzysztof Stefanowicz who has helped us navigate the Polish legal system which would have been impossible without their help.
"The honourary advisers to the project who have given their moral support have been an invaluable part of the project from its very beginning and FNE wants to thank them and to ensure that we continue to merit the support of such distinguished and highly respected individuals.
"The correspondents of FNE have provided the backbone of FNE over the past year helping not only with the stories they have written but with other advice and support in the respective countries and have made the project one that has become widely read throughout the film industry not only in central Europe but worldwide.
"Last but by no means least FNE wants to thank the European Union for its belief in our project and we want to assure you that your confidence will be rewarded with results that benefit all the filmmakers of the EU and that especially support the filmmakers of the new EU in a fully integrated EU audiovisual industry."
