Building policies for the film industry (Part 2): Film licensing regulations need to be reasonable 

The Draft Revised Cinema Law was first discussed by the 15th National Assembly at the 2nd session and is scheduled to be reviewed and passed at the 3rd session in May 2022.

Summary of 08 Key Administrative Procedures in the Film Industry

Along with the development of the economy, society, and the rapid advancement of technology, techniques, and digitization in cinema, some provisions of the current Cinema Law have become outdated or unsuitable, causing difficulties and obstacles in management and impacting the development and integration of Vietnamese cinema.

Currently, the Draft stipulates that all film production services provided to foreign organizations and individuals must be licensed by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism.

Specifically, Article 14 of the Draft stipulates that Vietnamese film establishments providing film production services to foreign organizations and individuals must obtain a license from the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism.

The application for a license includes:
a) A written request in the format prescribed by the Minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism;
b) A script in Vietnamese;
c) A memorandum or contract for the provision of film production services between the parties.

However, from the perspective of an expert, I believe that this regulation is unreasonable when it groups all film production services into one management form.

The principle of licensing is that the activities of certain entities can significantly impact the legitimate rights and interests of others in society, as well as national and ethnic interests, requiring the government to regulate those activities more strictly. Therefore, the licensing of film production services should only be considered for services that severely affect the legitimate interests mentioned above.

It is clear that film production services include pre-production and post-production, with many types: scriptwriting, set design, costume design, filming, sound, lighting, special effects, subtitles, etc.

For example, transactions providing special effects or subtitles for any foreign film can be done quickly over the internet. If a film establishment is required to submit an application for a license with a Vietnamese script and wait 30 days from the submission of the valid application to be granted a license to provide services, this is not really necessary and results in unnecessary costs in terms of time, money, and business opportunities for the companies or individuals providing these services.

Regarding this issue, I recommend that the Draft Revised Cinema Law should be amended to only require licensing for providing film production services to foreign organizations and individuals for films set in Vietnam's historical and political context. In this case, submitting an application with a Vietnamese script is reasonable because the script contains content related to Vietnam’s historical and political context, which directly impacts national and ethnic interests.

Nguyen Quang Dong - Institute for Policy Studies and Media Development