Enforcement Guidelines Governing the Provision of Incentives and Guidance to the Motion Picture Industry and Industry Workers Participating in International Film Festivals
Promulgated in Letter No. 02281 on February 10, 1992.
First revision promulgated by the Government Information Office in Letter (82) Ciang Ying I No. 00056 on January 4, 1993.
Second revision promulgated by the Government Information Office in Letter (83) Ciang Ying I No. 14070 on August 6, 1994.
Third revision promulgated by the Government Information Office in Letter (84) Ciang Ying I No. 16085 on October 1, 1995.
Fourth revision promulgated by the Government Information Office in Letter (85) Ci Ying I No. 10888 on August 1, 1996.
Fifth revision promulgated by the Government Information Office in Letter (89) Jheng Ying I No. 16924 on November 10, 2000.
Sixth revision promulgated by the Government Information Office in Letter (90) Jheng Ying I No. 08630 on June 27, 2001.
Seventh revision promulgated by the Government Information Office in Letter Sin Ying II No. 0910521031 on September 11, 2002.
Eighth revision promulgated by the Government Information Office in Decree (94) Sin Ying II No. 0940520078Z on January 21, 2005.
Ninth revision promulgated by the Government Information Office in Decree Sin Ying II No. 0950521147Z on September 1, 2006.
Tenth revision promulgated by the Government Information Office in Decree Sin Ying II No. 0950521295Z on September 25, 2006.
1. These Guidelines have been formulated by the Government Information Office (hereinafter referred to as “the GIO”) to execute the provisions of Articles 3, 4, 8, 10, and 13 of the Regulations Governing the Provision of Incentives and Guidance to the Motion Picture Industry and Industry Workers, as well as other related items providing guidance to the motion picture industry and industry workers participating in international film festivals listed in the GIO’s budget proposal.
2. The four classes of international film festivals referred to in these Guidelines are as follows:
(1) Class A international film festivals: Cannes International Film Festival, Venice International Film Festival, Berlin International Film Festival, and the Academy Awards.
(2) Class B international film festivals: New York Film Festival, Sundance Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, International Film Festival Rotterdam, International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg, Locarno International Film Festival, Nantes Festival of the Three Continents, San Sebastian International Film Festival, Tokyo International Film Festival, Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival, Pusan International Film Festival, Chicago International Film Festival, and Annecy International Animated Film Festival.
(3) Class C international film festivals: San Francisco International Film Festival, Sydney Film Festival, Melbourne International Film Festival, Vancouver International Film Festival, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, Edinburgh International Film Festival, Turin International Film Festival, Montreal International Film Festival, London International Film Festival, Moscow International Film Festival, Sao Paulo International Film Festival, and International Film Festival of India.
(4) Class D international film festivals: Focus on Asia Fukuoka International Film Festival, The British Short Film Festival, Sydney Film Festival (documentaries), Margaret Mead Film and Video Festival, Seattle International Film Festival, Hawaii International Film Festival, San Francisco International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival, Brussels International Independent Film Festival, Filmfest Hamburg, Fribourg International Film Festival, Creteil International Festival of Women's Films, Vienna International Film Festival, Singapore International Film Festival, Asia Pacific Film Festival, Thessaloniki International Film Festival, Ghent International Flanders Film Festival, Chonju International Film Festival, American Film Institute Film Festival, Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival, and International Documentary Film Festival of Marseille.
3. For motion pictures participating in Class A international film festivals that have been produced by domestic enterprises, that represent the Republic of China (Taiwan) either independently or through selection of the GIO and that are shortlisted for or win an award, a cash prize shall be awarded in accordance with the following specifications:
(1) For motion pictures winning the following awards, a cash prize of NT$10 million each shall be awarded to the relevant Republic of China (ROC) production enterprise and director resident in the ROC and in possession of a valid ROC identification card and director registration certificate: the Golden Palm for best film at the Cannes International Film Festival, the Golden Lion for best film at the Venice International Film Festival, the Golden Bear for best motion picture at the Berlin International Film Festival, the Academy Award for best foreign film of the year or best motion picture of the year.
(2) For winners of the following awards, a cash prize of NT$10 million shall be awarded: the best director award in the competition sections for feature films at the Cannes International Film Festival, the Venice International Film Festival, the Berlin International Film Festival, and the Academy Awards.
(3) For winners of the following awards, a cash prize of NT$1.5 million shall be awarded: the Grand Prix at the Cannes International Film Festival, the Jury Special Prize at the Venice International Film Festival, and the Jury Grand Prix at the Berlin International Film Festival.
(4) For winners of the Prix du Jury at the Cannes International Film Festival, a cash prize of NT$1 million shall be awarded.
(5) For winners of the following awards, a cash prize of NT$1 million shall be awarded: the Golden Palm for best short film at the Cannes Film Festival, the Corto Cortissimo Lion for best short film at the Venice Film Festival, the Golden Bear for best short film at the Berlin Film Festival, the Academy Awards for best animated short film, best documentary short subject, and best live action short film.
(6) For films shortlisted for international competition sections, a cash prize of NT$300,000 shall be awarded.
(7) For films shortlisted for sections other than those related to directing, film industry workers, retrospectives and country-specific cinema, and which are acknowledged by the GIO, a cash prize of NT$100,000 shall be awarded.
(8) For winners of best actor, best actress and best screenplay awards a cash prize of NT$300,000 shall be awarded.
(9) For winners of best technical achievement awards, a cash prize of NT$200,000 shall be awarded.
With the exception of Subparagraph 5 of the preceding paragraph, the cash prize shall be reduced by half in the event that a motion picture is less than 60 minutes in length.
Technical achievements mentioned in Paragraph 1, Subparagraph 9, refer to the job titles listed in the artistic and technical categories in Article 24, Appendix V of the Enforcement Rules of the Motion Picture Act.
The cash prizes mentioned in Paragraph 1, subparagraphs 3 through 7 shall be awarded to applicants whose applications have been submitted according to Article 5, Paragraph 2 and approved by the GIO. The cash prizes mentioned in subparagraphs 2, 8, and 9 of the same paragraph shall be awarded to award winners resident in the ROC and in possession of a valid ROC identification card and the relevant ROC motion picture industry worker registration certificate.
In the event that more than one of the award winners mentioned in the preceding paragraph share the same award, they shall negotiate between themselves the ratios by which the cash prize is to be shared.
4. For motion pictures participating in Class B international film festivals that have been produced by domestic enterprises and that represent the ROC (Taiwan) either independently or through selection of the GIO, a cash prize shall be awarded in accordance with the following specifications:
(1) For winners of the following awards, a cash prize of NT$500,000 shall be awarded: the Joris Ivens Award for best feature-length documentary at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, the Main Award Mannheim-Heidelberg for best fiction feature film at the International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg, the Golden Leopard for best film at the Locarno International Film Festival, the Golden Montgolfier for best film at the Nantes Festival of the Three Continents, the Gold Shell for best film at the San Sebastian International Film Festival, the Tokyo Sakura Grand Prix at the Tokyo International Film Festival, the Grand Prize for best documentary film at the Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival, the Gold Hugo at the Chicago International Film Festival, the Cristal for best feature at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival.
(2) For winners of the following awards, a cash prize of NT$200,000 shall be awarded: the Tiger Award at the International Film Festival Rotterdam, the Rainer Werner Fassbinder Prize at the International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg, the Altadis-New Director Award at the San Sebastian International Film Festival, the Best Asian Film Award at the Tokyo International Film Festival, the Ogawa Shinsuke Prize at the Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival, the New Currents Award at the Pusan International Film Festival.
(3) For winners of the following awards, a cash prize of NT$100,000 shall be awarded: the Silver Wolf Award and Silver Cub Award at the Amsterdam International Documentary Film Festival, the Best Short Film Award at the International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg, and the Annecy Cristal at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival.
(4) For winners of best director awards in international competition sections, a cash prize of NT$200,000 shall be awarded.
In the event that motion pictures mentioned in the preceding paragraph are less than 60 minutes in length, the cash prize shall be reduced by half.
The cash prizes mentioned in Paragraph 1, subparagraphs 1 through 3 shall be awarded to applicants whose applications have been submitted according to Article 6, Paragraph 1 and approved by the GIO. The cash prizes mentioned in Subparagraph 4 of the same paragraph shall be awarded to award winners resident in the ROC and in possession of a valid ROC identification card and ROC motion picture director registration certificate.
In the event that more than one of the award winners mentioned in the preceding paragraph share the same award, they shall negotiate between themselves the ratios by which the prize is to be shared.
5. Applications for cash prizes listed in Article 3, Paragraph 1, subparagraphs 1, 2, 8, and 9 shall be submitted to the GIO by the relevant ROC motion picture production enterprise within 30 days of winning an award. Applicants submitting applications after the deadline or with incomplete supporting documents who then, after being notified to rectify the relevant documents in a specified period of time fail to do so or do so incompletely, shall have their applications rejected. The following documents shall be submitted with applications:
(1) An application form and, for applicants mentioned in Article 3, Paragraph 5, an agreement on cash prize distribution.
(2) A photocopy of an award certificate from the relevant film festival organizer.
(3) A photocopy of materials proving participation under the name of the ROC (Taiwan) in the international film festival.
(4) A photocopy of the screening license issued according to the Motion Picture Act.
(5) When applying for individual cash prizes, applicants shall submit a letter of proxy from the award winner, a photocopy of both sides of the award winner’s ROC identification card, and a photocopy of the award winner’s relevant ROC motion picture industry worker registration certificate.
Applications for cash prizes listed in Article 3, Paragraph 1, subparagraphs 3 through 7 shall be submitted to the GIO by the relevant ROC motion picture production enterprise within 30 of winning an award. For motion pictures produced without the involvement of a motion picture production enterprise, the ROC applicant listed in the relevant screening license shall submit an application with the following documents to the GIO within 30 days of winning an award. Applicants submitting applications after the deadline or with incomplete supporting documents who then, after being notified to rectify the relevant documents in a specified period of time fail to do so or do so incompletely, shall have their applications rejected:
(1) Documents listed in subparagraphs 1 through 4 of the preceding paragraph.
(2) A photocopy of both sides of the applicant’s ROC identification card, a copy of the applicant’s household registration transcript, and a photocopy of the award winner’s relevant ROC motion picture industry worker registration certificate.
6. Applications for cash prizes listed in Article 4, Paragraph 1, subparagraphs 1 through 3 shall be submitted with the following documents to the GIO by the relevant ROC motion picture production enterprise within 30 of winning an award. For motion pictures produced without the involvement of a motion picture production enterprise, the ROC applicant listed in the relevant screening license shall submit an application with the following documents to the GIO within 30 days of winning an award. Applicants submitting applications after the deadline or with incomplete supporting documents who then, after being notified to rectify the relevant documents in a specified period of time fail to do so or do so incompletely, shall have their applications rejected:
(1) An application form and, for applicants mentioned in Article 4, Paragraph 4, an arrangement on cash prize distribution.
(2) A photocopy of an award certificate from the relevant film festival organizer.
(3) A photocopy of material proving participation under the name of the ROC (Taiwan) in the relevant international film festival.
(4) A photocopy of the screening license issued according to the Motion Picture Act.
(5) If the application is submitted by an ROC applicant listed in the screening license, a photocopy of both sides of the applicant’s ROC identification card, a copy of the applicant’s household registration transcript, and a photocopy of the applicant’s ROC motion picture industry worker registration certificate.
Applications for cash prizes listed in Article 4, Paragraph 1, Subparagraph 4, shall be submitted to the GIO by the relevant ROC motion picture production enterprise with the following documents within 30 days of winning an award. For motion pictures produced without the involvement of a motion picture production enterprise, the relevant ROC director shall submit an application with the following documents to the GIO within 30 days of winning an award. Applicants submitting applications after the deadline or with incomplete supporting documents who then, after being notified to rectify the relevant documents in a specified period of time fail to do so or do so incompletely, shall have their applications rejected:
(1) Documents listed in Paragraph 1, subparagraphs 1 through 4.
(2) A photocopy of both sides of the applicant’s ROC identification card, a copy of the applicant’s household registration transcript, and a photocopy of the applicant’s ROC director registration certificate.
7. ROC motion picture enterprises and directors awarded cash prizes listed in Article 3, Paragraph 1, subparagraphs 1 and 2 may apply to the GIO for funding for the production of their next domestically produced motion pictures. Application deadlines, items applicable for funding, and amounts of funding available are as follows:
(1) ROC motion picture enterprises and directors awarded cash prizes listed in Article 3, Paragraph 1, Subparagraph 1, may submit a joint production proposal for their next domestically produced motion picture and apply to the GIO for funding for the production of the proposed motion picture within 2 years of being awarded a cash prize by the GIO. For each production proposal reviewed and accepted by the GIO, the GIO will cover 50 percent of the production budget stated in the proposal, with a maximum of NT$80 million.
(2) ROC motion picture enterprises or directors awarded cash prizes listed in Article 3, Paragraph 1, Subparagraph 1, may submit production proposals individually for their next domestically produced motion pictures and apply to the GIO for funding for the production of the proposed motion pictures within 2 years of being awarded a cash prize by the GIO. For each production proposal reviewed and accepted by the GIO, the GIO will cover 50 percent of the production budget stated in the proposal, with a maximum of NT$40 million.
(3) ROC directors awarded cash prizes listed in Article 3, Paragraph 1, Subparagraph 2, may submit a production proposal for their next domestically produced motion picture and apply to the GIO for funding for the production of the proposed motion picture within 2 years of being awarded a cash prize by the GIO. For each production proposal reviewed and accepted by the GIO, the GIO will cover 50 percent of the production budget stated in the proposal, with a maximum of NT$20 million.
In the event that two or more people share a cash prize listed in Article 3, Paragraph 1, subparagraphs 1 and 2, the GIO shall cover 50 percent of the production budget stated in each prize winner’s production proposal for funding listed in subparagraphs 2 and 3 of the preceding paragraph, with the maximum amount of funding being half of that stated in the relevant subparagraphs.
8. Applications for funding listed in Article 7 shall be submitted to the GIO by the award-winning motion picture production enterprise and director with the following documents and in the specified period of time. Applicants submitting applications after the deadline or with incomplete supporting documents who then, after being notified to rectify the relevant documents in a specified period of time fail to do so or do so incompletely, shall have their applications rejected:
(1) An application form.
(2) A photocopy of a statement certifying that the GIO has awarded the applicant one of the cash prizes listed in Article 3, Paragraph 1, subparagraphs 1 and 2.
(3) A proposal for making a domestically produced motion picture (including details such as the film title, script, producer, director, cast, staff, production costs, financing plan, shooting schedule, marketing plan, investment return plan, and the previous two years’ financial statements from the production enterprise).
(4) When the applicant is an ROC director, a photocopy of a notarized statement showing that an ROC motion picture production enterprise has agreed to make the motion picture mentioned in the preceding subparagraph shall be submitted with the application.
ROC motion picture production enterprises and directors granted funding listed in the preceding article shall not transfer their funded production proposals to other motion picture enterprises for production by the latter. They may produce the proposed motion picture with other production enterprises if such cooperation is agreed on in writing by the GIO.
9. For motion pictures shortlisted in international film festivals belonging to Classes A through D or in other international film festivals that have been produced by domestic enterprises and that represent the ROC (Taiwan) either independently or through selection of the GIO, the relevant ROC motion picture production enterprise shall submit an application to the GIO within 30 days of the film festival’s conclusion for funding for editing and translation of foreign language dialogue, subtitle production, film development, shipping and customs clearance, promotional material production, and public relations expenses. Applications shall be accompanied by a film festival participation achievement report and proof of the expenses applicable for funding. For motion pictures produced without the involvement of a motion picture production enterprise, the ROC applicant listed in the relevant screening license shall submit the applications.
The amount of funding mentioned in the preceding paragraph is listed in Table I.
Applicants submitting applications after the deadline prescribed in Paragraph 1 or with incomplete supporting documents who then, after being notified to rectify the relevant documents in a specified period of time fail to do so or do so incompletely, shall have their applications rejected by the GIO.
Recipients granted funding mentioned in Paragraph 1 shall send one copy of the relevant motion picture to the GIO for archiving at the time of receiving the funding and shall grant the GIO, in writing, the right to ten public and non-profit showings of the film whenever and wherever it chooses and without charge.
Recipients failing to fulfill the obligations mentioned in the preceding paragraph shall have their funding approval revoked by the GIO.
10. For motion pictures shortlisted in international film festivals belonging to Classes A through D or in other international film festivals that have been produced by domestic enterprises and that represent the ROC (Taiwan) either independently or through selection of the GIO, the relevant motion picture production enterprise shall submit an application with the following documents to the GIO within 30 days of the film festival’s conclusion for funding to help cover the costs of flights, meals, and accommodation for the producers, scriptwriters, directors, and actors/actresses of the participating film. Applications shall be accompanied by a film festival participation achievement report and proof of the expenses applicable for funding. For motion pictures produced without the involvement of a motion picture production enterprise, the ROC applicant listed in the relevant screening license shall submit the application.
The amount of funding mentioned in the preceding paragraph is listed in Table II.
Applications filed after the deadline prescribed in Paragraph 1 shall be rejected by the GIO.
11. With the exception of cash prizes listed in Article 3, Paragraph 1, subparagraphs 1 and 2, the maximum amount of cash prizes awarded per year to a single enterprise producing multiple award-winning motion pictures as per these Guidelines shall be NT$3 million. The maximum amount of cash prizes awarded per year to a single award-winning motion picture as per these Guidelines shall be NT$2 million. The maximum amount of cash prizes per year to a single worker of an award-winning motion picture as per these Guidelines shall be NT$1 million.
12. The GIO shall expound upon on any queries or discrepancies arising from these Guidelines.
NB: This is a translation of the Chinese text of the Guidelines. In the event of discrepancy between the Chinese and English versions, the Chinese text shall prevail.
