President Ilham Aliyev has signed an order on the establishment of a new national Film Agency in Azerbaijan.
The decree’s goal is to improve the implementation of state policy in Azerbaijani cinema, to ensure the sustainability of national cinema to international competition, to modernize the local production and broadcasting infrastructure.
It is established that the general management and control of the agency will be carried out by a Supervisory Board consisting of a chairman and two deputies. Maintenance and operation of the agency will come from the state budget and other sources not prohibited by law.
Meydan TV spoke with different Azerbaijanis who work at the film industry to assess their opinions about the new film Agency.
Film producer Fikrin Bektashi believes that serious work should be done in this area and all the provisions of the decree should be made public. He concerns whether the Film Agency will operate under the principles of transparency and accountability. In his opinion, disclosure of all items specified in the decree should be accessible and open to all, since there can be no closed market in this area.
One who shares the same view as Bektashi on regards of transparency of the decree and operations of the new Agency is the film actor Rasim Balayev. He thinks, however, that although the Film Agency will be subordinated to the Ministry of Culture, it will operate as a separate body and will open wide opportunities for Azerbaijani cinema.
Film critic Aygun Aslanli praises the foreseen activities of the organization in terms of cooperation with foreign foundations, joint projects and filming. She believes the Film Agency is a step forward for Azerbaijan, and that the country can finally evolve from the old Soviet system in the film industry.
On the other hand, in the opinion of director Fehruz Shamiyev, to keep the Film Agency under the Ministry of Culture is preserve the Soviet way of having the State supervising cinematography. Shamiyev believes that it would be better if the Film Agency operates independently and by people who are experienced in the field, not bureaucrats.
