Finding help from any EU embassy while abroad, if your country is not represented there, and requesting a copy of all data that a business holds about you are just two rights most people might not be aware of.
Although many young people understand what the EU stands for, there is lack of knowledge about the more tangible benefits it offers on a daily basis. So the EU has released five short films to make Europe more accessible to millennials. Each directed by a prominent European filmmaker, the films aim to start a conversation about the EU’s daily impact on the lives of people aged 17 to 35.
The films were premiered in Malta at a special screening at the Centre for Creativity, St James Cavalier, but they are also available online on https://europa.eu/euandme/en/ an information hub that has been launched to support the shorts.
The featured benefits include support when starting a business, as in the film Party Animal, directed by Yorgos Zois, and the ability to order products online from anywhere in the EU, the theme of Tomasz Konecki’s The Loner. Dalibor Matanić’s Debut deals with the basic, fundamental rights enjoyed by everyone living in the EU.
Meanwhile, young people are also being given the opportunity to make their own films through a Young Directors’ Competition. To enter, participants are asked to submit a written synopsis of the plot, and a smartphone video of themselves explaining the rationale behind their film. Ten finalists will be selected by a jury of directors, and five winners will be picked by a public vote. The winners will receive a grant to make their film.
All 10 films –the five by professional directors and the five by young directors – will be supported by the same online information hub, which also provides facts and figures that show what the EU has achieved in the interest of young people.
EU in numbers
68 per cent of all internet users in the EU shopped online in 2017.
7 million is the number of EU citizens who live or travel in a country where their Member State does not have an embassy or consulate. This number is expected to rise to 10 million by 2020.
16 million EU citizens are living in a Member State outside their home country today.