Film Industry: £30m Culture Recovery Fund
The announcement of a £30m Culture Recovery Fund is another welcome boost for the film industry. This follows on from last week’s news, the introduction of an insurance fund to help independent TV and film production companies in the UK protect themselves from possible losses due to Covid-19.
The Culture Recovery fund, which comes from the Government’s £1.57billion support package for arts and culture, will be administered by the BFI and is open to applications Monday 10th August.
The funding is aimed at independent and non-profit cinema venues and there are two types of grant available:
- Safety grants – (capped at £10,000 per cinema) aimed at helping venues deal with the upfront health and safety costs of making venues compliant with government guidelines before re-opening
- Business sustainability grants (capped at £200,000 per organisation) to ensure companies are able to operate in the restricted conditions required by social distancing measures once they have re-opened
To be eligible for the funding, an organisation must demonstrate that it meets the following conditions:
- The venue must be involved in showcasing films all year round, which means festivals and other seasonal events are not eligible
- Venues must be building-based
- Applicants will be required to demonstrate a commitment to increasing their organisational diversity and the diversity of their audiences. As well as this, organisations must demonstrate that they are of cultural importance and actively engaged in their community. Special consideration is being given to venues which are involved in levelling up their region.
More details are available on the BFI website, which can be reached via the following link: www.bfi.org.uk/Culturerecoveryfund.
At a time when the easing of lockdown is difficult to navigate, this continued support is welcomed. We hope these initiatives will contribute to the long-term health and sustainability of the sector.
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