Today, the German Government passed the draft budget for 2018. It provides for a substantial increase of the federal film subsidy scheme German Federal Film Fund (DFFF) from its current 50 million Euro to a total of 125 million Euro per year.
This is good news, in particular as the DFFF saw an initial increase earlier this year from 50 to 75 million Euro to specifically serve international and VFX-heavy productions in a separate fund under the DFFF becoming available in summer 2017. It is understood that the new increase from 75 to 125 million Euro will again be dedicated to that new fund of the DFFF. This would mean that a total of 75 million Euro would be earmarked for international and VFX-heavy projects from 2018 on.
Details remain to be determined as the responsible Commissioner for Culture and Media (BKM) will release further information upon short notice. Upcoming production projects currently looking at funding opportunities should certainly keep an eye out for further news and developments as the details of the increase materialize.
DFFF is a German federal film fund that has supported approximately 1100 productions, more than a third of which international co-productions, with almost EUR 600 million since its inception in 2007. Click here to view the brochure on DFFF and other German subsidy schemes for film production.