IFFS Constitution

Article 1: Name
An international association has been set up in 1947 in Cannes (France) among
groups of film societies in countries throughout the world and this association shall be
called FEDERATION INTERNATIONALE DES CINE-CLUBS (F.I.C.C.), in the
English language the INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF FILM SOCIETIES
(I.F.F.S), and in Spanish FEDERACIóN INTERNACIONAL DE CINE CLUBES.

Article 2 : Duration, Office, Language and Signatory
The duration of the association is not limited to any period.
The office of the association is in Paris and it may vary upon deliberation of the
General Assembly.
The official languages of the association are English, French and Spanish. The
business year of the association is the Roman calendar year.
The President, the Secretary General and the treasurer are the official signatory of
the IFFS. In the absence of the President, the vice President is eligible to sign on
behalf of the IFFS.

Article 3: Objects
The aim of the association is to develop close co-operation between its members, to
maintain the presentation, distribution and study of films in the sense of culture, art
and social development.

Article 4: Membership
Members of the association are federations of film societies and non-profit cinemas in
one country consisting of a representative number of film societies/cinemas based on
regional, geographic, language or ethnic groupings.
The members shall be non-profit making and non-commercial and are concerned
with the development of the art of the film. Their membership shall be subject to the
approval of the general assembly.
In countries where no member federations of film societies exist, membership to a
single film society may be granted. A single organisation will not be eligible for
membership in the same country where a federative body already exists.
Membership of a single organisation will be automatically dissolved after approval of
a federation as the member in a same country.
All full members shall pay the same membership fee and receive the same services
from the association.

Article 5: Associate Membership
Non-profit Film Festivals, Film Academies, Film Institutions, Film Magazines and
individual film societies will be eligible for associate membership, subject to approval
by the general assembly. Associated members have no right to vote.

Article 6: Membership applications
Applications for membership of the association shall be submitted in writing, together
with the constitutions of the organisations concerned, to the Executive Committee.
Copies of the applications shall be provided for the subsequent General Assembly to
ratify.
The Executive Committee will approve the “Provisional Membership” and will
recommend for permanent membership (full or associate) to the General Assembly.
The provisional members will be eligible to take part at the activities of IFFS after the
payment of Membership Fees. But their voting right will be activated until after the
approval of the General Assembly.
Provisional Membership will be valid for the period of concern from the Executive
Committee Meeting to the next immediate General Assembly.
All applicants for membership must agree with the constitution of IFFS.

Article 7: Membership termination
Membership of the association may be forfeited by resignation, non payment of
membership fees for two or more consecutive years without having notified the
Executive Committee of the reason or expulsion. Resignations must be addressed to
the Executive Committee. Expulsions shall be decreed by the General Assembly.

Article 8: Composition
The association is composed of:
a) The General Assembly (GA)
b) The Executive Committee (EC)

Article 9: General Assembly
The General Assembly is the supreme authority of the Association. It shall be
composed of the members. It shall be held at least once every two years. The
Executive Committee may summon an extraordinary GA whenever it considers this
necessary, or if one-fifth of the members request this in writing to the President and
the Secretary General.

Article 10: Rules for the General Assembly
Notices convening meetings of the General Assembly should be given by the
Secretary General in consultation with the President at least three months before the
dates of the meetings.
The chair of the GA shall be taken by the president or a vice president of the IFFS or
any other member of the association appointed by the Executive Committee and
approved by the GA. Decisions shall be taken by a simple majority of the votes of the
members present or who have provided a written proxy prior to the meeting. Each
member present and entitled to vote may carry up to one proxy vote. For the
purposes of voting at the GA, provided the membership fees since the last GA have
been received, one vote shall be granted to each full member. The membership fee
for associate members does not grant voting rights at the GA.
New members will be eligible to vote immediate after approval of their membership
by the GA.

Article 11: Tasks of the General Assembly
The tasks of the General Assembly shall include:
a) Approval of Proxy Voters and Apologies for absence
b) Approval of the minutes of the previous General Assembly
c) Approval of the decision of the Executive Committee about membership.
d) Discussion and Approval of the organisational report by all members of the EC
e) Fixing the maximum amount of membership fees and approving the financial
report of income and expenditure accounts as audited.
f) Discussing and approving the programme of activities.
g) Approve the number and size of regional groups.
h) Election of the Main Office.
i) Appointment of the Special Duty Officers.
j) The number of Special Duty Officers will not exceed the number of Main Office
members and Group Secretaries.
k) Deciding on any alterations to the Constitution.

Article 12: Composition of the Executive Committee
The Executive Committee will consist of “Main Office”, “Group Secretaries” and
“Special Duty Officers”.
Main Office: The Main Office will be constituted with 4 (Four) members. It is the
administrative body of the IFFS.
Members of Main Office are:
1. President – One Person
2. Vice President- One Person
3. Secretary General- One Person
4. Treasurer- One Person.
Group Secretaries: Each Group will elect one person as Group Secretary.
Special Duty Officers: The G. A will appoint (by electoral process) a number of
Special Duty Officers to assist the main office.
These duties are:
a) Communication
b) Archives
c) Training Coordinator
d) Juries and Don Quixote Award
The members of the Executive Committee, elected by the GA, are in charge for the
period between one General Assembly and the next, and are eligible for re-election.
The election of the Executive Committee will be through the ballot decided by the GA.

Article 13: Meetings and Quorum
The Secretary General will call the Executive Committee Meetings, General
Assembly and E-Meetings in consultation with the President.
The quorum for an EC meeting shall not be less than one-third of the total members,
provided always that two Main Office members should be present.
The quorum for a General Assembly shall not be less than one-quarter of the total
members.
The EC may hold Emergency Meetings through e-mail. This is called an “E-meeting”.
Each E-meeting will only discuss a single point. All E-meetings should be approved
at the following Executive Committee Meeting.

Article 14: Tasks of the Executive Committee
The tasks of the Executive Committee shall include:
a) Approval of the minutes of the previous meeting including E-meetings.
b) Administration of current business
c) Convening of General Assemblies
d) Implementation of decisions taken by the General Assembly
e) Presentation of a report on activities to the General Assembly
f) Authorisation of expenditure
g) Provisional admission and expulsion of members
h) Handling of appropriate business
i) Preparation and execution of budget schemes
j) Consideration of group reports and reports on special tasks
k) Drawing up a programme of activities
l) Presenting to the General Assembly amendments to the constitution proposed by
the members.

Article 15: Composition of Groups
The association may be organised in groups of members as deemed appropriate for
the efficient working of the members. Each member shall decide in which group it will
exercise its voting right but this shall not exclude its participation in the activities of
any other group.

Article 16: Group Secretariats
a) Each group will appoint one Group-Secretary and Deputy Group-Secretary for
approval by the General Assembly.
b) The Group Secretary will be the head of its Group.
c) The Vice-Group Secretary will assist the Group Secretary for the activities of the
Group, and can play proxy-attendance in an Executive Committee meeting in the
absence of the Group Secretary.

Article 17: Group functions
The functions of the group secretariats shall be:
a) To act as intermediary between the various members of the group and the
Executive Committee
b) To encourage and develop co-operation between the members of the group
c) To communicate to the group information from the IFFS and vice versa
e) To provide reports of group activity to the Executive Committee and General
Assembly

Article 18: Administration and Finance
a) The Secretary General is the Administrative Coordinator of IFFS, and will run the
administrative activities in consultation with President.
b) The treasurer is empowered to receive subscriptions and income from any source.
c) The Bank Account will be operated by the treasurer jointly with President or
Secretary General of IFFS.
d) The treasurer will keep all accounts of expenditure for auditing.
e) The treasurer will be responsible to present audited finance report at the General
Assembly.
f) The treasurer will disburse money according to the budget approved by the
Executive Committee.
g) One out of the President, Vice-President and treasurer are empowered to sign on
behalf of the association in matters concerning these funds upon unanimous
agreement in writing.
h) In the event of debts, only the funds of the association may be employed to offset
these. In no case shall the members of the association be held responsible for debts.
The treasurer shall not be held personally responsible for debts other than those
contracted as a result of exceeding the powers granted him.”

Article 19: Amendment of the Constitution and Winding-Up
The constitution shall not be amended and the association shall not be dissolved
except by a two-thirds majority of the members present or represented at the General
Assembly. No amendment of the constitution or proposal for a winding-up shall be
discussed unless it had been placed on the agenda and at least half of the members
are present at the meeting. Any request for an amendment of the constitution or for a
winding-up must be submitted to the Executive Committee at least three months
before the date fixed for the general assembly.

Article 20: Legal status of language
In the event of any legal dispute only the French text of the constitution will be
considered valid. The French text will be a translation from English, and approved by
the general assembly.

Article 21: Cultural President of the IFFS
a) The general assembly will nominate one film personality as the Cultural President
of IFFS.
b) The Cultural President will uphold the image and the ideals of IFFS in the field of
global culture.
Article 22: Archive
a) The IFFS keeps an archive about the International Film Societies movement.
b) The depository state of the IFFS archive is Switzerland; it may vary.
c) All member federations feed the IFFS archive annually.
d) The General Assembly will appoint a Special Duty Officer in charge of the IFFS
archive.
e) All details regarding the administration and running of the IFFS archive will be
outlined in a separate document called “Regulations for the IFFS Archive”.
f) The regulations regarding the archive are legally binding for all IFFS members.

Version as approved at General Assembly Loreto, December 2008