Czech Film Fund (Státní fond kinematografie)
The Czech government agency supporting the development, production, and promotion of Czech film, providing grants and co-production support for Czech cinema within a European funding framework.
Overview
The Czech Film Fund (Státní fond kinematografie) is the Czech government agency responsible for supporting the development, production, and promotion of Czech cinema and audiovisual work. Established in 2013, the Fund provides selective grants and co-production support for Czech theatrical features, documentaries, and international co-productions with significant Czech creative participation. The Czech Film Fund is the primary public institutional support for Czech cinema, administering both the national selective funding and the Czech Film Production Incentive that has made the Czech Republic one of Europe's most active international production destinations.
The Czech Republic has a rich film heritage rooted in the FAMU film school in Prague (one of Europe's oldest and most distinguished film schools), the Barrandov Studios complex (one of the largest film production facilities in Europe), and the internationally celebrated Czech New Wave of the 1960s, which produced directors including Miloš Forman (Amadeus, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest), Jiří Menzel (Closely Watched Trains), and Věra Chytilová (Daisies). The Czech Film Fund supports the continuation of this tradition.
Czech Film Production Incentive
The Czech Film Production Incentive provides a 20% rebate on qualifying Czech production expenditure for international productions that choose the Czech Republic as a shooting or post-production location. This incentive, combined with Barrandov Studios' extensive studio facilities, Prague's architecturally diverse urban environment (which has doubled for numerous historical and contemporary settings), and the Czech Republic's experienced and technically sophisticated crew base, has made the country one of the most active international production destinations in Europe.
Major international productions including Amadeus, Mission: Impossible, The Grand Budapest Hotel (partial), and numerous major television series have shot in the Czech Republic. The Czech Film Fund administers the incentive program and provides guidance to international productions on qualifying expenditure and application processes.
Czech Film Education
FAMU (Filmová a televizní fakulta Akademie múzických umění) in Prague is one of Europe's most historically significant film schools, producing graduates who have shaped Czech and international cinema for decades. FAMU is a CILECT member school and maintains active exchange relationships with film schools worldwide. For international filmmakers, FAMU represents a training tradition that combines Central European intellectual depth with practical craft formation.
What Filmmakers Should Know
For international productions considering the Czech Republic as a shooting location, the Czech Film Production Incentive and Barrandov Studios' facilities create compelling financial and practical arguments. Prague's architectural diversity, the country's experienced crew community, and the incentive's competitive rebate rate position the Czech Republic as one of Europe's most versatile production locations.
For Czech filmmakers, Czech Film Fund selective grants provide the development and production support that sustains Czech independent film alongside the international production activity that employs the country's crew and facilities.
See Also
For the European co-production funds that complement Czech Film Fund support, see EURIMAGES and Creative Europe MEDIA Programme in this directory.
