The Milei administration took another stab at Argentina cinema with the announcement that the National Institute of Film and Audiovisual Arts (INCAA, for its Spanish initials) will enact changes to state funding for films based on what they said is a decision to halt finance for movies that fail to attract an audience.

“The government will no longer subsidize movies with no viewers,” read the communiqué published on Saturday informing the details of a decree mandating how funds will be assigned in line with the goal of “taking care” of government resources. 

The government justified the decision based on data allegedly showing that in 2023, the INCAA subsidized more than 100 films that attracted less than 1,000 total viewers. It went on to say that these 100 projects obtained almost 50% of all funding and that these changes were made to “maximize benefits for taxpayers and moviegoers.”    

According to the new law, directors and producers interested in state finance will only be able to apply for 50% of the total cost of film production. They will have to secure the remaining half of the budget through other means. Furthermore, there will be a cap on the amount of money each project can receive but there are no indications of what that limit might be. 

The decree stipulates that producers who do receive financing are barred from applying for new funds the year after their projects have been completed. It also determined that INCAA expenditures for everyday activities and routine operations cannot surpass 20% of the film institute’s total funding.

“These changes are meant to reorganize expenses in order to use resources more efficiently and promote the film school, the search for talent, and competitive audiovisual productions,” the statement read, pointing out that Culture Minister Leonardo Cifelli, INCAA Director Carlos Pirovano, and Deregulation Minister Federico Sturzenegger were in charge of deciding the changes. 

The government and Argentine cinema 

The government has seemingly had Argentina cinema and the INCAA in its crosshairs since day one. In the package of sweeping state reforms known as the Ley Omnibus that the Milei administration initially sent to Congress last December, the film institute was among the public institutions that the president could either close or restructure. The INCAA was eventually pulled from the list when the revised law was approved in June.

In March, the government officially suspended the institute’s operational funding and set about a series of layoffs as part of its austerity plan for the public sector. That same month, a demonstration outside Argentina’s classic Gaumont movie theater meant to protest cuts for the INCAA was met with a police crackdown, with officers teargassing the crowd and arresting four people.

In April, the INCAA was shut down and staff were sent on temporary leave while the institution, which funds and supports local film production, went through what was called an internal reorganization.