No third installment of gov't grant if 80% film shooting not completed

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has issued new regulations for full-length feature films produced under government grants. From now on, the third installment of the grant will not be released unless at least 80 percent of the film's shooting is completed.

This directive was announced in a notification issued by the Ministry's Film-2 branch on Wednesday (July 9). Concurrently, an 11-member Full-Length Film Grant Committee has been formed in accordance with the Government Grant Selection Rules for Full-Length Feature Films-2025 (Amended).

According to the notification, this newly formed committee will authorize the release of the second installment of the film grant. Before releasing the third installment, the committee will verify whether at least 80 percent of the film's shooting has been completed.

Furthermore, the committee will review the stories, scripts, proposals, and applications recommended by the Film Selection and Monitoring Committee in light of the policy to provide final approval for the grants. The committee will also hold the authority to recommend suspending grants for any year if an inadequate number of quality proposals are received, decide on the cancellation of grants if necessary, and offer required counsel to producers and directors to ensure films are constructed according to the approved scripts.

The 11-member committee will be chaired by the Advisor of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. Other members include the Special Assistant on Information and Broadcasting to the Chief Advisor, the Secretary of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the Additional Secretary (Film), the Managing Director of the Bangladesh Film Development Corporation (BFDC), government-nominated experts, former Chairman of the Department of Theatre and Performance Studies at Dhaka University Professor Dr. Syed Jafar Iqbal, President of the Bangladesh Film Exhibitor Association Awlad Hossain, and actress Humaira Islam Mukti, among others. The Joint Secretary (Film) of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting will serve as the member-secretary of the committee.

The notification stated that this order, issued in the public interest, will come into effect immediately.