The MoD has announced a funding competition worth €250,000 to support the production of films and other audiovisual works aimed at strengthening the Estonian public's willingness to defend the country.
"I would like to impress upon everyone on the committee selecting these films at the Ministry of Defense that any film that is overly propagandistic or too polished and carefully packaged is actually less credible. When we talk about defending Estonia, my view, my belief, is that the truth ultimately works best," film director Ilmar Raag commented.
The Ministry of Defense is inviting submissions for feature films, documentaries, animated films, television series and narrative video games. The ministry has supported the production of Estonian war films for more than 20 years, including "Names in Marble," "1944" and "O2."
According to ministry representative Thomas Mell, different audiovisual formats make it possible to reach different generations.
"The willingness to defend the country is an important part of Estonia's national defense and strengthening it is one of our core responsibilities. Supporting films and other audiovisual works is one way to contribute to this. Film is a medium that reaches a wide audience, as do video games nowadays, for example, and they help communicate national defense issues in ways that resonate with different generations," Mell said.
Raag, who previously received funding through a Ministry of Defense competition to produce a documentary, believes that funding decisions must also take into account the potential for a backlash.
"Those who allocate funding at the ministry need to recognize that if a filmmaker takes an overly simplistic, propagandistic approach, it could actually backfire," Raag noted.
To qualify for Ministry of Defense funding, projects must align with national defense objectives. This raises the question of how much influence the state, as a funder, can exert over a film's content.
"As the Ministry of Defense, we do not interfere in any way with filmmakers' creative freedom. We do not dictate scripts, themes or how characters should be portrayed. Instead, filmmakers themselves are free to submit their proposals to us," Mell explained.
The Ministry of Defense is accepting applications until November 18. The funding can be used next year.
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