COVID-19 relief funding for productions
With ongoing COVID-19 restrictions affecting the ability to safely carry out screen productions, especially in Auckland, we are aware there are inevitable impacts on costs.
We have been successful in securing access via the Ministry for Culture and Heritage to unspent funds from last year’s Screen Production Relief Fund. These funds are available through until end of June 2022, acknowledging that we may ping around alert levels for a wee while yet.
These funds are for productions funded through NZ On Air that have been shut down, delayed or constrained by COVID-19.
A reminder about the settings for this fund:
- Applicants can only apply for additional costs that are explicitly attributable to a change in the New Zealand COVID-19 alert level status.
- The funding may only be used to support individual New Zealand-based screen productions.
- Productions must be receiving funding from NZ On Air and must not be included in the Screen Sector Indemnity Scheme.
- The funding can cover things like close down and set up costs, travel costs and additional interest payments.
If you wish to apply to the fund please read the Eligibility Criteria first.
It is expected that you will have exhausted all other options before you apply to this fund. We would prefer also that we receive just one application per production. Subsequent applications from an individual production will be de-prioritised, behind first-time applicants.
We are currently accepting applications from productions that have a clear path back into production and where the additional funding required can be accurately assessed. Applications will be processed in batches, and we will endeavour to take no more than 3-4 weeks to make funding relief decisions.
If you have questions please contact Glenn Usmar, Associate Head of Funding – Systems.
Call for nominations for the 2022 WIFT NZ Awards
The WIFT Awards are a chance to celebrate the incredible women who make up our Film and TV industry.
Next year the awards will be held on April 7th at the ASB Waterfront Theatre, Auckland. Tickets will go on sale in the new year.
Anyone can nominate, you can nominate yourself, but nominees must be women in the NZ screen industry - though they do not have to be WIFT members.
Nominations close at 5pm on Monday 22 November. This is your opportunity to celebrate and profile the work of women in the screen industry. It’s a privilege to shine a light on someone deserving, don’t miss your opportunity to do so!
ScreenSafe location recce guidelines at higher alert levels
After discussions with WorkSafe and Screen Auckland, and based on recommended guidelines from the Ministry of Health regarding limits on social gatherings in public places, ScreenSafe has created these location recce guidelines.
Overall, ScreenSafe recommend that only essential crew are involved for a recce in a public place and that you visit at a time when there is unlikely to be significant numbers of public around. If this is not possible, then efforts should be made to minimise contact with the general public.
Further information on COVID-19 Health and Safety protocols for productions is available on the ScreenSafe website here.