19/08/2009

On August 12, around 200 Latvian film professionals carried out a unique support action defending the independent legal status of the National Film Centre of Latvia (NFC).

Latvian filmmakers want the film industry to remain independent from any political influence and protest against the government’s plan to reform the NFC and absorb it into a department of the Ministry of Culture.

For the first time in the independent Latvia, filmmakers working in different studios and usually competing for state funding showed a united front. Film personalities who took part in the action include Laila Pakalnina, Gints Berzins, Jurgis Krasons and Vladimir Leschiov.

After a formal meeting with film representatives of the protest movement, Latvia’s Minister of Culture Ints Dalderis said he was aware of the significant work done by the NFC for the development of the Latvian film industry. He proposed for NFC to continue to work as an independent institution, changing its legal status from the state agency to state budget institution.

During its reorganization, the NFC will have to cut down on several of its current areas of responsibilities, such as the Film Registry and Riga Film Museum, and revise its budget.

Several European film industry organizations, such as the EFAD (European Film Agency Directors), have expressed their support of the NFC and criticized plans to reduce the independence of the institution.