The Singapore Film Commission (SFC) was established under the National Arts Council (NAC) on 15 April 1998 to “nurture, support and promote Singapore talent in filmmaking, the production of Singapore films and a film industry in Singapore”. The objectives of the SFC are: to provide funding for productions, training and film-related travel; nurture local filmmaking talents through training; promote public awareness and appreciation of film as an art form; be a centre for film facilitation; and raise the standards of the film industry in Singapore.[1] The commission is advised by a committee comprising 12 to 15 members headed by Jennie Chua, who has held the post of chairman since the agency’s inception.[2] In 2003, the SFC merged with the Singapore Broadcasting Authority and the Films and Publications Department of the then Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts (now the Ministry of Communications and Information) to form a new statutory body – the Media Development Authority.[3]
The SFC was launched to support the fledgling local film industry, which was undergoing a revival after a long period of decline since the end of the studio era in the 1960s.[4] Prior to the creation of a film commission, the Economic Development Board had, in 1991, mooted the idea of offering government incentives to boost the local film industry, which was identified as a new growth area at the time.[5] However, the pivotal change in the industry came about only in 1995 when Eric Khoo’s debut feature Mee Pok Man achieved critical acclaim. Khoo’s success inspired others to follow in his footsteps.[6] The next year, Khoo, along with producer James Toh and artist Lucilla Teoh, submitted a white paper to the NAC,proposing the setting up of a film commission to fund and market Singapore-made films.[7] In response, then Minister for Information and the Arts George Yeo announced the formation of the film commission in parliament on 16 March 1998.[8]
The commission was initially financed by the Economic Development Board, the Singapore Tourism Board and the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts, together with sponsorship from the Shaw Foundation. In the early years, funding to the film industry was administered through six financial assistance schemes: Feature Film Investment Programme, Short Film Grant, Overseas Film Scholarship, Film Bursary, Internship Training Grant and Overseas Travel Grant. Under the Feature Film Investment Programme, the commission invested up to a sum of S$250,000 or 50 percent of the production budget, whichever was lower, with the expectation of investment returns equally shared with other investors. The Short Film Grant was initiated to nurture budding local filmmakers through the short film genre. The agency also organised quarterly talks and seminars under the Master Lecture Series to help advance film appreciation and the craft of filmmaking.[9]
Since its launch, the functions and programmes of the SFC have evolved to better meet the needs of the industry. Some notable schemes initiated include: the Co-production Investment Programme (CPIP), introduced in 2002 to increase the exportability of Singapore films through co-productions with foreign producers[10] (this scheme merged with the Feature Film Investment Programme to form the SFC Co-Investment Scheme in 2005);[11] the Script Development Grant in 2003[12] (this was superseded by the Development Assistance scheme in 2011);[13] and the Feature Film Fund in 2008. The Feature Film Fund was created to provide funding to first-time local filmmakers for the production and promotion of their films, mentorship in producing and marketing their films as well as the distribution of these films in Singapore by Golden Village.[14] In 2012, the Feature Film Fund was replaced by the New Talent Feature Grant – which is also aimed at new filmmakers, but instead of a co-investment model, the commission awards a grant that allows directors to retain the intellectual property rights over their films. Documentaries, which were previously excluded from the Feature Film Fund, are now eligible for funding.[15]
Today, the SFC manages seven grants and schemes. In addition to the New Talent Feature Grant and the Development Assistance schemes, it also offers funding via the following schemes: Production Assistance, Marketing Assistance, Talent Assistance, Enterprise Assistance and Film Mentorship Initiative.[16] Over the years, the commission has supported more than 500 short films, scripts, feature films and film-related events, and the works of directors such as Anthony Chen of Ilo Ilo, Royston Tan of 881 and Boo Junfeng of Sandcastle.[17]
References
1. Singapore Film Commission. (2000). Annual report 1999/2000 (p. 17). Singapore: Singapore Film Commission. Call no.: RCLOS q384.8095957 SFCAR-[AR].
2. Singapore Film Commission, 2000, p. 18; Media Development Authority. (2014, August 5). Film. Retrieved September 5, 2014, from Media Development Authority website: http://www.mda.gov.sg/IndustryDevelopment/IndustrySectors/Film/Pages/Film.aspx
3. Media Development Authority. (2004). Annual report 2003/2004 (p. 9). Retrieved September 5, 2014, from Media Development Authority website: http://www.mda.gov.sg/AboutMDA/AnnualReports/Documents/AR0304.pdf
4. Singapore Film Commission, 2000, p. 7.
5. Leow, C. (1991, March 7). New incentives in the offing to help film industry. The Business Times, p. 2; Ghosh, N. (1992, August 1). Somewhere over the rainbow. The Business Times, p. 21. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
6. Singapore Film Commission, 2000, p. 7.
7. Toh, H. S. (1996, December 7). Films in search of funding. The Business Times, p. 17; Munroe, B. (1997, August 16). Lights, camera, direction. The Business Times, p. 17; Van Miriah, C. (2008, June 18). Made in Singapore. The Straits Times, p. 56. Retrieved from NewspaperSG; Tan, S. (2000). Singapore. In J. F. Lacaba (Ed.), The films of ASEAN (pp. 158–160). Philippines: ASEAN Committee on Culture and Information. Call no.: RSING 791.430959 FIL.
8. Singapore Film Commission, 2000, p. 17.
9. Singapore Film Commission, 2000, pp. 13–14, 19–20; Singapore Film Commission. (1999). Singapore film directory (pp. 51–52). Singapore: Singapore Film Commission. Call no.: RSING 384.80255957 SFD-[DIR]
10. New fund for film-makers. (2002, April 10). Today, p. 6. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
11. Media Development Authority. (2005, July 14). Singapore Film Commission ups financing scheme amounts. Retrieved September 5, 2014, from Media Development Authority website: http://www.mda.gov.sg/AboutMDA/NewsReleasesSpeechesAndAnnouncements/Pages/NewsDetail.aspx?news=377
12. Media Development Authority, 2004, p. 37.
13. Media Development Authority. (2014, August 27). Development Assistance. Retrieved September 5, 2014, from Media Development Authority website: http://www.mda.gov.sg/IndustryDevelopment/GrantAndSchemes/Pages/DevelopmentAssistance.aspx ; Media Development Authority. (2012). Annual report 2011/2012 (p. 25). Retrieved September 5, 2014, from Media Development Authority website: http://www.mda.gov.sg/Documents/AnnualReport/2012/images/downloads/MDA%20AR2011-12.pdf
14. Media Development Authority. (2008, June 11). Singapore Film Commission introduces New Feature Film Fund at its 10th anniversary. Retrieved September 5, 2014, from Media Development Authority website: http://www.mda.gov.sg/AboutMDA/NewsReleasesSpeechesAndAnnouncements/Pages/NewsDetail.aspx?news=214
15. Media Development Authority. (2012, May 4). Fact sheet – Film directors to get up to 100% funding with launch of ‘New Talent Feature Grant’. Retrieved September 5, 2014, from Media Development Authority website: http://www.mda.gov.sg/AboutMDA/NewsReleasesSpeechesAndAnnouncements/Pages/NewsDetail.aspx?news=27
16. Media Development Authority. (2014, August 27). Grants & schemes. Retrieved September 5, 2014, from Media Development Authority website: http://www.mda.gov.sg/IndustryDevelopment/GrantAndSchemes/Pages/overview.aspx
17. Media Development Authority, 5 Aug 2014, Film.
The information in this article is valid as at 2014 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.