06/07/2007

The Irish Film Board (IFB) has announced a scheme wherein Irish producers will get to share revenues in film and television projects where the IFB has invested, while the board still continues to recoup its investment.

Operating under an “internal corridor” method, what this means in effect is that up to 50% of the money invested by the IFB is considered as money invested by the Irish producer. At the point of recouping, returns on investment will be shared equally between the IFB and the producer. When the IFB has recovered half its investment it is deemed to have recouped, the producer will then receive the other half.

The “internal corridor” scheme will however not apply to net profits. The IFB’s share of revenue will continue to be based on its entire investment. As with most funding arrangements, there are variations to these new rules depending on specific cases. Under these new arrangements, the producers will directly receive their share of the revenue with only in exceptional cases the IFB acting as a collector.

Also, under the IFB’s “external corridor” scheme, the board will facilitate producers in receiving a pro rata share of revenue when a producer has made a cash investment in the production or when the producers, production company and talent have made fee deferments.

The scheme came into effect on July 1, 2007 and the IFB reserves the right to review it in the next two years. Agreements signed before this date will not fall under the scheme’s purview.