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Рy13 July 2018
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A draft law approved by the Parliament in the first reading on Friday, 13 July, provides that the state will cover part of the expenses for the production of films, documentaries and TV shows produced on the territory of the Republic of Moldova and on the basis of foreign investments. Professionals welcome the intention of the authorities, but express concerns about the way it will be implemented.
According to the provisions of the draft law, the state is going to fund 25% of eligible expenses for the production of films, series, cartoons, but also TV-shows, reality-shows, etc. The expenses for the productions that are going to promote geographical areas, localities or the Republic of Moldova as a whole, might be financed to an extent of 30%. The purpose of the investment scheme is to attract foreign productions to the Republic of Moldova.
To obtain this funding, producers will have to meet multiple requirements, including being a resident of the Republic of Moldova and having at least three years of experience. Also, there is a minimum quota that the beneficiaries should invest – from EUR 5,000 for an episode of a documentary series up to EUR 200,000 for an animated feature film.
Funding will be approved based on a application file that the beneficiary will have to submit to the Investment Agency, which will set up a committee of experts and after they decide on it, they will send a request to a financial support board.
The draft law was developed by the Media Legislation Improvement Working Group, which looked into the experience of several states, said the member of the group, Dumitru Tira. ‘The mechanism relies on the state support for this sector, where the main purpose is to attract investments, so that products would be made in the Republic of Moldova and in partnership with producers from the Republic of Moldova’ mentioned Dumitru Tira.
The Chairman of the Parliamentary Commission for Culture, Education, Research, Youth, Sports and Mass Media, Vladimir Hotineanu, claims that this mechanism also aims at stimulating domestic TV production, in order to help television channels to cover the required volume of broadcasting in line with the new draft Audiovisual Code.
‘We want Moldova to turn from a consumer of audiovisual production into a producer and to give up on re-broadcasting’, stated the MP Corneliu Mihalache, the one who presented the draft law in the Parliament.
On the other side, the socialist Eduard Smirnov believes that the Republic of Moldova has legislation designated to attract investments and that it can be applied in cinematography as well. ‘If foreign investment is needed, there is a law to stimulate them. We have all the mechanisms and levers to attract foreign investment. Then what’s the rationale behind this law?’, asked the PSRM Member of the Parliament.
However, subject-matter experts believe that such incentives are necessary for the development of this area. ‘It is a welcome initiative, because in this way we will manage to attract investments, but also experience andequipment’, General Director of OWH Studio, Virgiliu Margineanu, commented for Media-azi.md.
Still, in the filmmaker’s opinion, some provisions might obstruct the achievement of the purposes the authors stated. In particular, he made reference to the too broad range of products that can be financed by the state, believing that some of the items should not be included in the list. "I do not know if it's fair to measure everything by the same yardstick – films, music videos, and ads. Ads are purely commercial and I don’t think that the state should invest in their production. As I said earlier, it is a very good initiative, unless there is someone behind it trying to achieve their personal goals’, said Virgiliu Margineanu.
After the law is adopted, which is due to enter into force on 1 September, the Government will approve a regulation on its implementation, which will also set the amount of the annual financial resources that the state will allocate to fund cinematographic and audiovisual production.
According to the provisions of the draft law, the state is going to fund 25% of eligible expenses for the production of films, series, cartoons, but also TV-shows, reality-shows, etc. The expenses for the productions that are going to promote geographical areas, localities or the Republic of Moldova as a whole, might be financed to an extent of 30%. The purpose of the investment scheme is to attract foreign productions to the Republic of Moldova.
To obtain this funding, producers will have to meet multiple requirements, including being a resident of the Republic of Moldova and having at least three years of experience. Also, there is a minimum quota that the beneficiaries should invest – from EUR 5,000 for an episode of a documentary series up to EUR 200,000 for an animated feature film.
Funding will be approved based on a application file that the beneficiary will have to submit to the Investment Agency, which will set up a committee of experts and after they decide on it, they will send a request to a financial support board.
The draft law was developed by the Media Legislation Improvement Working Group, which looked into the experience of several states, said the member of the group, Dumitru Tira. ‘The mechanism relies on the state support for this sector, where the main purpose is to attract investments, so that products would be made in the Republic of Moldova and in partnership with producers from the Republic of Moldova’ mentioned Dumitru Tira.
The Chairman of the Parliamentary Commission for Culture, Education, Research, Youth, Sports and Mass Media, Vladimir Hotineanu, claims that this mechanism also aims at stimulating domestic TV production, in order to help television channels to cover the required volume of broadcasting in line with the new draft Audiovisual Code.
‘We want Moldova to turn from a consumer of audiovisual production into a producer and to give up on re-broadcasting’, stated the MP Corneliu Mihalache, the one who presented the draft law in the Parliament.
On the other side, the socialist Eduard Smirnov believes that the Republic of Moldova has legislation designated to attract investments and that it can be applied in cinematography as well. ‘If foreign investment is needed, there is a law to stimulate them. We have all the mechanisms and levers to attract foreign investment. Then what’s the rationale behind this law?’, asked the PSRM Member of the Parliament.
However, subject-matter experts believe that such incentives are necessary for the development of this area. ‘It is a welcome initiative, because in this way we will manage to attract investments, but also experience andequipment’, General Director of OWH Studio, Virgiliu Margineanu, commented for Media-azi.md.
Still, in the filmmaker’s opinion, some provisions might obstruct the achievement of the purposes the authors stated. In particular, he made reference to the too broad range of products that can be financed by the state, believing that some of the items should not be included in the list. "I do not know if it's fair to measure everything by the same yardstick – films, music videos, and ads. Ads are purely commercial and I don’t think that the state should invest in their production. As I said earlier, it is a very good initiative, unless there is someone behind it trying to achieve their personal goals’, said Virgiliu Margineanu.
After the law is adopted, which is due to enter into force on 1 September, the Government will approve a regulation on its implementation, which will also set the amount of the annual financial resources that the state will allocate to fund cinematographic and audiovisual production.
