TYGlobe

Author: Xiya | Source: Radio & TV Review

Editor's Note: Targeted tailored policy services, tangible financial support, streamlined green channels... At the Policy Information Release and Exchange Session of the First China High-Quality Radio and Television Production Conference, 8 local radio and television administrations and culture and tourism authorities, which boast both sound supporting policies and high-quality representative productions, released their "favorable filming policies" on site.

From the Beijing Grand Audio-Visual sector behind the viral internet meme *Who on Earth Is in Beijing*, well-received Shanghai-produced TV dramas, to local film and television shooting-related initiatives including *Zheli Pai* (Zhejiang Film and Television Shooting Service), *Sufu Pai* (Jiangsu Government Service Film and Television Shooting Support Program), *Guangdong Ten Articles* (Ten Supportive Policies for Film and Television Production in Guangdong), *Qilu Haipai* (Shandong Convenient Film and Television Shooting Service), *Shoot in Sichuan*, as well as the WeChat Mini Program *Shoot in Fujian · Film and Television Shooting Service Platform*, the full package of favorable policies and premium services for film and television shooting rolled out by local authorities across China has made this exchange conference a resounding success...

At the Policy Information Release and Exchange Session of the First China High-quality Radio and Television Production Conference, 8 local radio and television, culture and tourism authorities that boast both sound policies and excellent works released policy information and support measures on promoting film and television development on site. The repeated active promotions by the heads of these authorities prompted the on-site audience to frequently take out their mobile phones to record relevant content, and enthusiastic exchanges were also conducted among participants after the session.

01 Beijing: Beijing's Great Audio-Visual Sector Serves "Good Stories"

For key drama projects, a "one drama, one policy" service mechanism shall be established, and whole-process follow-up services shall be implemented; the "one enterprise, one policy" policy outreach services for enterprises shall be improved. Customized service measures shall be developed for enterprises, and practical problems shall be solved through coordination...

In recent years, behind the sensational popularity of Beijing-produced television dramas such as *My Altay*, *The Tale of Rose* and *Always on the Move* lies the solid support and safeguard of the "Beijing Grand Audio-Visual" brand.

Zhang Su, Party Leadership Group Member, Deputy Director-General and First-Class Inspector of the Beijing Municipal Radio and Television Bureau, stated that the "Beijing Great Audio-Visual" brand will promote and guarantee the development of the film and television industry from three dimensions: policy, funding and mechanism. In terms of policy, efforts will be made to vigorously develop the capital's film and television industry, animation industry, public service advertising, ultra-high-definition audio-visual industry and the "Jing Langya" talent training program, provide various special fund support for the aforesaid initiatives, stimulate the vitality of enterprises, and put in place diversified service guarantee mechanisms for the optimization of the business environment, so as to jointly promote the high-quality development of the capital's film and television industry.

02 Shanghai: Serving as the "super nanny" for film and television crews

In October 2014, the Shanghai Film and Television Production Service Agency was established in Shanghai, providing 116 items of consultation and coordination services falling into 4 major categories free of charge for all types of entities coming to Shanghai to shoot films and television productions. Over the past decade, the Shanghai Film and Television Production Service Agency has continuously innovated its working mechanisms and refined its service contents, and gradually formed a film and television production service system that conforms to the current status of industrial development, the actual social environment and the urban characteristics of Shanghai. For its high-quality services, it has been hailed as the "super nanny" and "general producer" by numerous production crews.

Behind the thriving prosperity of Shanghai-produced TV dramas lies further nourishment from the fertile soil of the film and television industry.

Luo Yi, Member of the Leading Party Members' Group and Deputy Director-General of Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, and Deputy Director-General of Shanghai Municipal Radio and Television Administration, stated that Shanghai has continuously strengthened top-level design to build the brand of "Shanghai-produced TV dramas". At the municipal level, Shanghai has established the Shanghai Cultural Development Fund and the Special Fiscal Support Fund for Promoting the Development of Cultural and Creative Industries of Shanghai, rolled out the "Jing'an Nine Policies" of Jing'an District, and developed the "Songjiang High-tech Film and TV Hub". It has improved the industrial chain from multiple dimensions including space, content, funding and enterprises, built the "1+X" film and television industry development pattern with Shanghai High-tech Film and TV Hub as the core, accelerated the construction of Shanghai International Film and Television Production Center, and set up film and television production service institutions to improve the quality and efficiency of film and television production.

03 Jiangsu: The First-Round Review Period Shall Not Exceed 20 Days

"We have comprehensively shortened the timeframes for administrative examination and approval and expert review, and made a public commitment that the first-round review period shall not exceed 20 days. We adhere to the combination of independent expert review and collective research under the "one drama, one meeting" mechanism, optimize review procedures, and ensure that review opinions adhere to principles, respect artistic laws, are accurate and specific, and deliver the service value of helping projects hold the bottom line and improve quality," said Wu Yiqiao, Member of the Leading Party Members' Group and Deputy Director General of Jiangsu Provincial Radio and Television Administration. He noted that in terms of financial support in Jiangsu, provincial and municipal governments as well as provincial radio, television and audio-visual industry bases have all implemented full-coverage support and incentive measures: the maximum support for creation and shooting is RMB 10 million, the maximum reward for broadcasting is RMB 5 million, and the maximum reward for award-winning works is RMB 3 million. In addition, Wuxi City provides a maximum support of RMB 100 million for new leading platform-based investment projects.

In terms of service measures, service policies aligned with supply and demand shall be implemented, and high-quality services shall be provided covering the review cycle and all processes of creation and production. In terms of planning and layout, for the purpose of exploring high-quality themes, the vertical and horizontal benchmarking method shall be applied, and the creation planning of key projects shall be linked with high-quality work support, creation services and other related items, so as to improve the quality and guarantee the quantity of creation works.

No. 04 Zhejiang: RMB 200 Million Micro Short Drama Development Fund

This year, Yuhang District of Hangzhou took the lead in rolling out a RMB 200 million micro drama development fund, formulated the 10 Golden Support Policies for Micro Dramas, and built a full industrial chain for micro dramas. Six local branch centers for online micro drama review have been set up in 6 localities including Hengdian and Xiangshan. "To build the brand of 'High-quality Zhejiang-produced Dramas'," mentioned Xu Xiao, Deputy Secretary of the Leading Party Members' Group and Deputy Director-General of the Department of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Province has introduced three-dimensional supporting policies featuring full-process services with provincial, municipal and county-level linkage, and adopted the mode of pre-support, interim subsidy and post-award to fully support high-quality creation of films and TV dramas.

Build a sound ecosystem for radio, television and audiovisual creation, expand the audiovisual industry chain in accordance with local conditions, develop the "Guidebook" for film and television shooting in Zhejiang to improve the creation ecosystem, and promote the incubation and production of works by providing comprehensive local support services. In this regard, Zhijiang Screenwriters Village injects a constant stream of creativity for creation, while entities including the Zhijiang Film and Television Shooting Service Center and the "Shoot in Zhejiang" online digital application platform provide full-process all-round services for film crews.

05 Fujian: Efficient Collaborative Review Puts Photography Services Literally "In the Palm of Your Hand"

"We have established a high-efficiency collaborative review mechanism, rolled out specific measures including the "no need for even one trip, maximum one trip" rule for TV drama-related government service items and the mode of "simultaneous editing, review and revision, with synchronous examination and unified modification" for completed production review, cutting the statutory time limit for TV drama review to one third of the time limit prescribed by laws and regulations." Consisting of a batch of collaborative filming agencies, one service guide, one integrated platform, one set of convenient measures and one set of promotion mechanisms, the "Filming in Fujian" TV drama promotion initiative has built a "five-in-one" work system to provide all-round and highly efficient services for crews coming to Fujian to shoot TV dramas, stated Zhang Wenzhen, Member of the Leading Party Members' Group and Deputy Director-General of the Fujian Provincial Radio and Television Bureau. Adhering to the service tenet of "available whenever called, deliver on all promises, provide thoughtful services", the initiative releases the *Filming in Fujian – Service Guide for TV Drama Shooting* every year, and launches the "Filming in Fujian · Film and Television Drama Shooting Service Platform" WeChat Mini Program. The Mini Program has 8 modules covering shooting locations, policies, extras, topic selection, cases and other contents, as well as 1,000 AR scenes for crews to carry out preliminary location scouting and selection, making all information on Fujian's shooting resources literally at users' fingertips.

06 Shandong: "Ultra-simplified Tax Handling" and More Tax Incentives

First, we pursue "Standardized Handling" under unified norms. We have formulated practical manuals including the *Work Guide for Filing of Domestic TV Drama Production*, sorted out 87 government service items, and formed standardized basic catalogs, implementation lists and service guides, so as to realize unified element-based management, undifferentiated acceptance and standard-aligned processing. Second, we pursue "Minimalist Handling" through process reengineering. We have advanced the "certificate-free handling" and "certificate reduction handling" initiatives, directly canceling 21 items of certificates and supporting materials, and cutting 20 items of certificates and supporting materials. We have promoted the "upgraded handling" of high-frequency matters, and launched the service of direct reporting by relevant institutions to the provincial bureau. Third, we pursue "Reassuring Handling" with proactive front-end services. We have advanced the reforms of tolerance-based acceptance for non-critical missing materials and simultaneous review and rectification, unclogged the green channel for review, increased the frequency of filing review by arranging centralized review twice a month, cutting the initial review cycle by 50%. "Quality services are provided at the 'Shandong Speed'," said Liu Guohua, Member of the Party Leadership Group and Deputy Director-General of Shandong Provincial Radio and Television Bureau. He noted that to promote the characteristic development of Shandong-produced TV dramas, Shandong Province has been working to build an optimal content creation ecosystem from three aspects: providing policy support, building service platforms and optimizing government services. It has established a three-level (provincial, municipal and district) coordinated funding support policy, built a "one-stop" service platform and optimized government services. In addition, Shandong has strictly implemented preferential tax and fee reduction and exemption policies including the *Announcement on Continuing the Implementation of Preferential Value-Added Tax Policies for Publicity and Culture*, with approximately RMB 500 million of taxes and fees to be reduced or exempted during the 5-year preferential period.

07 Guangdong: Developing the "Micro Short Drama +" Guangdong Model

"We will develop a Guangdong model featuring integrated innovation of 'short drama +' and '+ short drama', take the lead in China to build a high-quality short drama communication matrix, promote cross-border cooperation in the short drama sector, effectively advance the 'Travel with Short Dramas' initiative, and launch the 'Discover Brands through Short Dramas' creation program..." Against the backdrop of the booming short drama industry, Zhong Qingcai, Member of the Leading Party Members' Group and Deputy Director-General of the Guangdong Provincial Administration of Radio and Television, stated that Guangdong has established a well-connected support system covering the entire process of creation and production, rolled out integrated support measures for the film and television industry with coordinated efforts at the provincial, municipal and district levels, introduced the "Ten Guangdong Measures" covering multiple aspects of film and television creation, and set up special funds in three areas: script incubation, high-quality work creation, distribution and broadcasting. For example, at the creation stage, the support fund for TV dramas and online dramas adopts the "one drama, one discussion" mechanism, with the maximum amount reaching 20 million yuan per drama, and the support for each short drama is up to 200,000 yuan.

Meanwhile, we are actively building industrial clusters, and have initiated the construction of the "Bay Area International Digital-Intelligent Audio-Visual Service Valley", "Bay Area International Creator Ecosystem Valley", "Smart Audio-Visual and Digital Cultural and Tourism Industry (Guangzhou) Development Research Institute" and "Key Laboratory of Ultra-High-Definition Technology Innovation and Application (Smart Audio-Visual) of the National Radio and Television Administration".

08 Sichuan: Support + Incentives, Each TV Drama Is Eligible for a Maximum of RMB 27.8 Million.

Let me first elaborate on the share allocated to the radio, television and audio-visual sector from Sichuan's annual RMB 300 million major literary and artistic support fund pool. The radio, television and audio-visual support fund amounts to RMB 150 million, and the high-quality production award fund amounts to RMB 83.2 million, which are used for full-process support and excellence rewards for high-quality literary and artistic works in the radio, television and online audio-visual fields. With the combination of support and rewards, a single TV drama can obtain a maximum of RMB 27.8 million, a single radio and television program can obtain a maximum of RMB 16.5 million, and a single online film and TV drama can obtain a maximum of RMB 12.6 million.

Starting with the buzzword "300 million", Li Xiaojun, Vice Minister of the Publicity Department of the CPC Sichuan Provincial Committee, Secretary of the Leading Party Members' Group and Director of the Sichuan Provincial Radio and Television Bureau, stated that in terms of funding policies, Sichuan Province provides coordinated funding support at the provincial, municipal and county levels for film and television works of all themes and genres;

In terms of spatial layout, the "one core, multiple poles" framework shall be implemented to realize the full industrial chain layout featuring "Chengdu as the core and multiple poles across Sichuan Province". In terms of platform construction, the structure of "one platform (Audio-Visual Sichuan) and three brands (100 High-Quality Sichuan Works for Global Promotion, Mysterious Charm of Shu, Filming in Sichuan)" shall be established. Sichuan's brands shall be developed in accordance with regional characteristics and cultural effects, so as to facilitate the development of cultural tourism.

Proceeding from the dimensions of policy, funding, services, talents and industry, the radio and television administrative departments of eight provinces and municipalities have achieved full-process coverage of supporting policies, enabling sound policies to be better aligned with high-quality stories.

This Policy Information Release and Exchange Conference is guided by the National Radio and Television Administration and the Beijing Municipal People's Government, organized by the Department of TV Series, the Department of Planning and Finance of the National Radio and Television Administration, and the Beijing Municipal Radio and Television Administration, and undertaken by the Television Production Committee of the China Federation of Radio and Television Associations.