Rio City Hall announces R$20 million in funding for the resumption of Rio’s audiovisual sector

Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes announced on Tuesday (17/08) the Rio de Janeiro Audiovisual Recovery Plan, an investment package with a series of measures to recover and strengthen the sector in the city through RioFilme, a company that is part of the Secretariat of Government and Public Integrity (SEGOVI). The actions foresee investing R$20 million this year, through public notices, in the areas of production, finalization and development of projects for cinema, TV, local actions and games.

The Resumption Plan budget also guaranteed resources for holding events, exhibitions and film festivals, totaling R$3.750.000,00. The remainder, R$16.250.000,00, will be allocated to other notices.

 

– This city has a historical and moral obligation to show that any type of prejudiced and denialist censorship will not be valid. We will launch a new call for proposals for audiovisual projects next year. We will continue to do so, strengthening the sector. We will once again assume this leading role. The dark ages are over. This city depends heavily on culture, which builds the history and identity of Rio – said Paes, alongside the Secretary of Government and Public Integrity, Marcelo Calero, and the CEO of RioFilme, Eduardo Figueira, to an audience made up of representatives of the audiovisual sector in Rio.

 

Among the requirements for participating in the notices are rules such as: interested companies must have been operating for at least two years with headquarters in the city of Rio, 70% of the resources received through the notices must be spent in the municipality and investments must begin to be used in 2021.

In addition to the support, the Recovery Plan includes actions to recover the sector's infrastructure in the city, such as the restructuring of the Cine Vídeo Center and the reopening of CineCarioca Nova Brasília, in Complexo do Alemão, which is preparing to resume activities in October of this year.

 

– It is a joy to talk about this recovery. After four years of an incomprehensible gap, incompatible with what the city has already produced in audiovisual, we are once again the most important hub in this sector, which generates so much employment and income, in addition to reflecting our own identity. Rio de Janeiro is once again taking the lead. It is not just a contribution of resources, it is public policies aimed at this segment – ​​highlighted the Secretary of Government and Public Integrity, Marcelo Calero.

 

Also within the infrastructure measures, a decree signed by the mayor will create a Working Group (WG), made up of representatives from municipal departments, to evaluate the creation of the Creative District of Rio de Janeiro (DCC), in the region between Barra and Jacarepaguá, in the West Zone. Based on the work of the WG, which has a maximum term of 90 days, the viability of the District will be analyzed in light of tax and structural needs. The initiative aims to consolidate and solidify audiovisual activities in the region, which already encompasses a complex of segments inherent to the sector, with television studios, a hotel chain, a broad commercial and tourism structure, in addition to the Cine Vídeo Center.

Another measure is the consolidation of RioFilme as a gateway for those filming in Rio. This is supported by a decree signed this Tuesday by the mayor, which expands RioFilme's powers, making the company the centralizer of the procedures for filming authorization in the city, with the implementation of a system that speeds up, reduces bureaucracy and streamlines the processes for authorizing the use of public locations. The process will have defined criteria and deadlines and will be more efficient and transparent. The new rules will come into effect in 60 days, counting from the date of publication of the decree.

 

– It is a pleasure to be part of this recovery. The actions were discussed with producers and directors. We want to open RioFilme more to you in the audiovisual industry. Let’s work together. I would like to thank the mayor and Calero for understanding the needs of our market. May Rio de Janeiro be the protagonist – said RioFilme CEO Eduardo Figueira.

 

During the launch ceremony, a partnership between RioFilme and Firjan was also announced, which will provide extensive consultancy to the municipal company for the modernization of its structure and definition of its strategic planning, which should result, among other achievements, in the creation of a new brand: RioFilme+.

The Recovery Plan also includes the creation of an advisory board, the RioFilme Board, a step towards increasing the participation of the audiovisual market in the company's decisions. The board should bring together a group of seven notable representatives of the audiovisual sector in the public and private spheres, two members from the City Hall and five from the market. The board will have the challenge of assisting RioFilme in its dialogue with the market and in implementing its guidelines.

Director of the Rio Festival, Walkiria Barbosa left the City Palace “completely satisfied” with the initiatives launched.

 

– There was no doubt that this would happen. We know Eduardo Paes, we know that he likes audiovisual, but it is more than that: he understands the importance of the sector from both a social and economic point of view and for promoting the city – she emphasized.

 

Promotion

R$20 million will be injected into the audiovisual production chain in Rio de Janeiro, still in 2021, one of RioFilme's largest investments in the last ten years. The resources are divided between: reimbursable, with R$15,18 million divided between two notices and seven lines (reimbursable funding notice with 5 lines and automatic reimbursable funding notice with 2 lines); non-reimbursable, with R$1,070 million in the production of short films and local actions; and R$3,75 million that will be allocated to support Events, Exhibitions and Festivals.

Among the reimbursable resources, the line of Complementary Funding for Production and Completion of Feature Films will distribute R$5,8 million among at least eight fiction, animation or documentary projects. Also among feature films, there will be a call for proposals that will prioritize debuting directors: the “Revealing Talents” line will dedicate R$3,75 million to at least six filmmakers who are preparing their first films.

The call for proposals with reimbursable resources also includes a line for the Development of Feature Films, which will benefit at least six projects with a total investment of R$540 to be distributed among fiction, animation or documentaries. R$690 will be allocated to serial works, distributed among at least eight animation, fiction or documentary projects. Finally, this call for proposals also includes a line dedicated to the production of games with resources of R$400.

The Automatic Investment Notice will distribute R$4 million divided into four prizes, half for excellence in Commercial Performance and the other half for merit in Artistic Performance. In both categories, the producers of the works will be the ones to benefit from the prizes. The process for this notice, because it is automatic, is different from the others.

Among the calls for proposals with non-reimbursable resources, short filmmakers from Rio de Janeiro will benefit from a non-reimbursable call specifically for the format, totaling an investment of R$920 that must be distributed among at least ten projects, including fiction, animation and documentaries. And the Call for Proposals aimed at Local Actions foresees investments of R$150, which must benefit at least ten projects.

Betting on diversity and social inclusion, the notices provide for affirmative policies that will grant additional points for criteria such as gender, race, belonging to other vulnerable groups such as people with disabilities and transsexuals, as well as the location of the proponent in areas of greater social vulnerability (AP's 3, 4 and 5 - in the north and west zones) score more.

The Recovery Plan also provides for non-refundable resources totaling R$3,75 million, intended to benefit events, film shows and festivals and initiatives aimed at audience development.

The registered projects will be analyzed by specific selection committees for each line, each of which will be composed of five people chosen based on the criteria of notable knowledge and performance in the audiovisual sector, among representatives of the public administration and civil society.

Before registration, all notices will be open for Public Consultation on the RioFilme website, starting today (17/08), at the addresses www.riofilme.com.br e www.rio.rj.gov.br/riofilme. Those interested in participating in the Public Consultation may do so by email at fomentoriofilme@gmail.com. In the specific case of the Automatic Award Notice, the classification criteria for the award-winning works will be available.

 

Rio Film Commission

Another essential point of the Retomada is the strengthening of the Rio Film Commission (RFC), the RioFilme branch responsible for conducting filming in the city, which will undergo a major restructuring to gain greater empowerment and prominence. The idea is to make the RFC more agile and streamlined in its role as a centralizing body among the agents that authorize and manage filming locations in Rio, concentrating in a single entry point (Rio Film Commission System) the requests for authorization to film on: municipal, state and federal public roads and facilities.

In addition, partnerships are being created to reduce deadlines and costs with managers of the most sought-after locations in the city. The goal is to make life easier for those filming in Rio, together with companies that provide lighting; power generators; camera crew; motion crew; accommodation; studio rentals, among others. The proposal is so promising that it has already won over partners such as BioParque, AquaRio, Paineiras Corcovado, Bondinho do Pão de Açúcar, Rio Star – the Ferris wheel at Porto Maravilha, Museu do Amanhã, and companies such as VLTQuanta, Naymar and Hoffmann.

To streamline the process and attract new filming to the city, catalogs of locations and Rio production companies will be made available on the Rio Film Commission website.

The Rio Film Commission should also act as a bridge between producers and public managers of spaces such as Beaches, Parks (SMAC); Theaters, Libraries, Cultural Centers, Museums (SMC); Schools (SME), Planetarium (SEGOVI) and Sports Facilities (SMEL).

 

Infrastructure

The RioFilme Audiovisual Recovery Plan also has as its central goal the strengthening of the production and exhibition environment in the city, focusing on actions aimed at restructuring the Cine Vídeo Hub, through the concession of the space that will be put out to tender, through investments for its modernization.

The idea is to offer state-of-the-art studios for the audiovisual sector in Rio de Janeiro. The six existing studios will be renovated and 4.800 m2 of new studios will be built. At the end of the work, the Hub will have a total usable area of ​​9.600 mXNUMX. The winners of the competition will be exempt from property tax throughout the contract. During the construction period, they will also be exempt from renting the space.

The creation of the Working Group to study the viability of the Rio Creative District (DCC) is also an achievement for the efforts to strengthen the city's audiovisual infrastructure. The District is a demand from the sector, which identified the West Zone, between Barra and Jacarepaguá, as a natural hub that brings together attractions for the creation of a large audiovisual complex. In addition to the studios of two of the largest television companies in the country, the area also has an excellent logistical base for productions, such as a hotel chain, shopping malls and cultural facilities, such as the Cidade das Artes.

With the reopening in October of CineCarioca Nova Brasília, in Complexo do Alemão, pointing to future actions with the exhibition park, RioFilme has been in dialogue with representatives of the area to optimize actions aimed at these spaces in the city.

Category:

• News

August 17th, 2021

Appointments: CineCarioca Nova Brasília movies Complexo do Alemão Audiovisual Carioca Resumption Plan City Hall of Rio Rio de Janeiro City Hall RioFilme Secretariat of Government and Public Integrity Segovi