By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Dec 17: The Hello Meghalaya Conclave 2024, hosted by the Tourism department, showcased the state’s ambitious push to develop its film industry with the announcement of significant grants for filmmakers. Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma and Tourism Minister Paul Lyngdoh unveiled the ‘Financial Assistance Guidelines for Film Production’, a structured policy offering grants up to Rs 35 lakh across four categories, marking a milestone for Meghalaya’s creative ecosystem.
The policy offers grants designed to support filmmakers at various stages of their careers. Category A, focused on nomination-based filmmakers, carries the largest grant of Rs 35 lakh.
This funding will be disbursed in phases — 20% upon script selection, 30% for pre-production, another 30% during production, and the remaining 20% upon completion or post-production of the project.
Category B, dedicated to filmmakers with CBFC-certified movies, offers a corpus of Rs 25 lakh. Fiction web series under Category C can receive Rs 20 lakh, while Category D aims to nurture emerging talent with Rs 5 lakh grants for short films.
In addition to these grants, the policy also introduced a National Collaboration and Exchange Programme, which will commission one film annually. The initiative mandates that the cast and crew consist of 50% professionals from Meghalaya and 50% from other regions of the country, promoting national-level collaboration and creating opportunities for local talent to work with established professionals. To further incentivise production, the government will contribute up to one-third of a film’s total budget, with provisions for matching private sponsorships to expand project budgets.
This was announced at Hello Meghalaya Conclave 2024 — the platform which was launched six months ago. Top filmmakers of the state like Pradip Kurbah, Dominic Sangma and Simi Khongtiang were given grants in the category A of the grant for film production.
Earlier in the conclave, award-winning film Rapture was screened, setting the stage for engaging panel discussions. The first panel, “Voices from the Hills – Indigenous Storytelling in Meghalaya”, moderated by filmmaker Dominic Sangma, delved into the importance of preserving cultural narratives. The second, “The Role of Cinema in Bridging Cultural and Regional Divides”, featured experts such as Dinesh Shenoy, Pradip Kurbah, Anku Pandey, and Padma Malladi.