KUALA LUMPUR (April 15): The Ministry of Communications and Multimedia (KKMM) has agreed to improve the implementation of the Film In Malaysia Incentive (FIMI), which came into effect on April 9, as proposed by the National Film Development Corporation Malaysia (Finas).
Finas, in a statement, announced that the improvement covered the domestic sector, namely, changing the three Qualifying Malaysian Production Expenditure (QMPE) categories to just one, whereby a minimum expenditure of RM1 million is eligible for a 30% cash rebate.
“Secondly, the reduction of post-production QMPE from RM500,000 to RM250,000 for each project will be eligible for a 30% cash rebate and an additional rebate (cultural test) for production of genres portraying nationalism and patriotism,” it said in a statement tonight.
For the foreign sector, the post-production QMPE is reduced from RM1.5 million to RM1 million for every project and will be eligible for the 30% cash rebate and additional rebate (cultural test) for productions that feature local cultural values or traditional elements.
The government had, through Budget 2021 that was tabled in November, announced improvements to the incentives, with an estimated RM40 million allocation to spur again investment in the national film sector.
In addition, Finas also agreed to offer a fund called Dana Kenegaraan under the Creative Industry Immediate Economic Action Plan (PELAKSANA) 3.0 initiative for the production of supertele and drama series through strategic co-operation with government broadcast stations, namely Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM).
According to the statement, applications for the fund would be open from April 26.
