The Council of the Czech Film Fund has announced that it will provide grants to all six film offices that applied for such support for their activities in 2020 in a recently closed tender. A total of just over CZK 1.1 million was awarded. In a statement, the Fund Council said: “Film offices continue to be a natural part of the film environment around the world. They work on a non-profit basis, providing their services to both domestic and international filmmakers free of charge. Their main task is to promote the Czech Republic based on detailed knowledge of the region, to attract the attention of filmmakers, and, with the help of long-established networks of contacts, to connect the local environment to the broader process of audiovisual production.” The following film offices were awarded support for 2020:

• Zlín Film Office CZK 300,000
• Moravian-Silesian Film Office CZK 300,000
• Pilsen Region Film Office CZK 240,000
• Brno Film Office CZK 100,000
• East Bohemia Film Office CZK 105,000
• Vysočina Film Office CZK 63,000

“The Czech Film Commission currently works with eleven film offices. Unfortunately, due to their legal status or connection with public institutions, many cannot apply for grants from the Czech Film Fund, as it may contradict their permissible level of public support, as defined by the rules for granting aid by European Commission. Next year, the Fund will no longer announce this tender and needs to find another way to support their activities,” says Pavlína Žipková, head of the Czech Film Commission, one of the departments of the Czech Film Fund. The Council of the Czech Film Fund’s final decisions and evaluations can be found on the Czech Film Fund website (in Czech only).