COVID-19 support funds Q&A

Executives at Screen Australia answer questions around the two funds providing support to productions impacted by COVID-19.

Two new funds have been launched to help practitioners and productions navigate creating content in the midst of a global pandemic: the Temporary Interruption Fund (TIF) and the COVID-19 Budget Support Fund.

These two levers of support have distinct purposes and guidelines, although their goal remains the same. That is, to get the production sector back up and running.

To make the application process easier, Screen Australia’s Tim Phillips (Head of Business Affairs and Offset) and Sally Caplan (Head of Content) have broken down what you need to know about each fund as well as the most frequently asked questions in this two-part story.

However, at a glance, here are the top-level details:

The Temporary Interruption Fund (TIF):

• Is a new fund made available by the Australian Government as part of the Government’s COVID-19 Creative Economy Support Package.
• Will be administered by Screen Australia.
• Provides support for new local productions that could not get off the ground when insurers excluded coverage for COVID-19 in their policies.
• Read through the TIF guidelines here

The COVID-19 Budget Support Fund:

• Is completely separate to the TIF, and is drawn entirely from Screen Australia’s existing budget. While some programs like Story Development and Documentary are now much over-subscribed, others like TV Drama and Features are receiving far fewer applications. Screen Australia is reallocating the funding from these rounds that aren’t being utilised as much in a COVID-19 world and putting it toward COVID-19 costs.
• Was established to cover additional costs for green-lit productions, so they can implement their COVID-19 Safety and Risk Assessment Plans.
• Intends to assist current stalled projects to resume or get into production, and will contribute to the COVID-19 costs for some projects, particularly those that are of scale.
• Only covers projects that are green-lit, in late stage development or pre-production.
• Is for projects intending and ready to go into production within six months of application.
• Is for projects that would be eligible for an existing Screen Australia funding program.
• Read through the COVID-19 Budget Support guidelines here

To read the full range of support programs and advice from Screen Australia in response to Coronavirus, see the resource directory here

Otherwise, read on for more information about these two new funds.

What to read next

Part 1: Temporary Interruption Fund (TIF)

Screen Australia’s Head of Business Affairs and Offset Tim Phillips demystifies the new fund.

27 Aug 2020
Screen Australia