On Monday, the Luxembourg Film Fund hosted a press conference at which details of the new VOD.LU video-on-demand service were announced.

The service has been launched in English, French and German, and initially has a catalogue of over 750 films, of which 140 are Luxembourg productions and co-productions, as well as European and other international films. The catalogue spans different formats, including feature films, documentaries, animation and short films, and different genres - thriller, comedy, drama, action, cult, classic, etc. By the end of 2017 the catalogue expects to grow to between 2,500 and 3,000 by the end of 2017

Claude Waringo, of the Luxembourg Filmakademie introduced the project and explained that there are currently a range of different platforms available, including NetFlix and iTunes. The CEO of Film Fund Luxembourg, Guy Daleiden, explained that VOD.LU offers another avenue of promotion of Luxembourg cinema and film production. "VoD.lu is an important step for the promotion of Luxembourg cinema. The curate and editorialised nature of VoD.lu offers a unique platform through which Luxembourg audiences can really explore, discover and engage with the world of local/national and European film" he stated.

"We welcome the launch of a new VoD service, making available and showing prominently in Luxembourg the diversity of European films. It is one more step towards the enrichment of legal offers with the support of Creative Europe MEDIA" stated Lucia Recalde, Head of Unit at Creative Europe - Media Programme.

Maxime Lacour, CEO of UniversCiné Luxembourg, introduced the service and exolained how it would operate in practice. The films are available in SD and/or HD at a price point between €6.99 and €14.99 to buy, and between €0.99 and €3.99 to rent (for 48 hours). VoD.lu is available across platforms and devices (iOS and Android).

VOD.LU, the first independent video on demand platform in Luxembourg, is an initiative of UniversCité Luxembourg, D'Filmakademie and Film Fund Luxembourg, in partnership with the Chamber of Commerce Luxembourg, the European Commission's Creative Europe Programme, UniversCiné Belgium, universCiné France and EuroVoD.

Photo by Geoff Thompson (L-R): Guy Daleiden, Film Fund Luxembourg; Claude Waringo, FilmAkademie; Maxime Lacour, CEO UniversCité Luxembourg