Dutch Film Fund paid €550,000 for Greenaway film that never appeared

The Netherlands Film Fund (Nederlands Filmfonds) paid out more than 550,000 euros in subsidy to a high-profile feature film by director Peter Greenaway that has never been completed. A joint investigation by Nieuwsuur and NRC, reported by NOS, found that the fund made exceptions to its own rules and did not check whether the film was actually finished.

What happened

The film is Lucca Mortis, directed by the well-known British arthouse filmmaker Peter Greenaway, who lives in Amsterdam. According to NOS, it was a prestigious project with Oscar winners Dustin Hoffman and Helen Hunt in the lead roles and an expected budget of more than 13 million euros. In 2023 the Film Fund pledged more than 600,000 euros through a subsidy scheme. The scheme is meant to make it attractive for filmmakers to hire Dutch people and so give the Dutch film industry a boost.

Under the scheme, it must be certain at the time of application that the film will be shown in the Netherlands. That guarantee was missing. The fund’s business director, George van Breemen, told the reporters: “We believe in the production. Then we can make an exception.” The fund said that belief rested on “the director, the cast and people with a broad track record” who were involved.

NOS reports that the fund did not carry out a background check on the lead producer, Facing East. At the time of the subsidy procedure, its owners were involved in lawsuits in three countries over non-payment. Applicants must also show that half of the financing is guaranteed. Facing East said it had the money, but there was no proof. The application itself was submitted by a Dutch production company, Witfilm, which wrote that Netflix was drawing up a contract worth 2.5 million euros. Netflix says it never heard of the project.

Financial problems surfaced quickly. Dustin Hoffman did not show up for the first days of shooting because he had not been paid. Witfilm did not report this to the fund, although the rules require it to. In messages to a crew member, Witfilm wrote that the fund was “(not yet)” allowed to know about the problems, “otherwise the money won’t come”. In response to questions, Witfilm said it informs the fund when doing so is “sensible and necessary”, and that the suspension of filming had “no direct bearing” on the Dutch part of the production.

Once filming did begin, it was halted several times because payments did not arrive. Afterwards a dispute broke out over the edit. Facing East made a version without Greenaway’s involvement, but that version was not finished either, partly because the people working on it were not paid, or not paid in full. According to NOS, at least ten people worldwide are still waiting for payment, in some cases tens of thousands of euros. The producers submitted an unfinished version of the film to the Cannes film festival.

Several people involved reported the problems to the Film Fund. Even so, the third instalment of the subsidy was paid last year, after Witfilm told the fund there was a final version of the film, known as a “picture lock”. The rules say the fund may only pay once it has seen and approved that version. There was no such version, and the fund did not check. The Film Fund now acknowledges that it never received a final edit. It paid on the basis of costs incurred and an email in which Witfilm described “a very special film”. The fund says that without the subsidy, “payment to the crew and cast” would have stalled.

Why it matters if you live in the Netherlands

The Film Fund distributes around 100 million euros in subsidies each year, according to NOS. This is public money, and the case raises questions about how carefully it is handed out. Professor of administrative law Jacobine van den Brink called the fund’s conduct careless. “When you give advances, you have to make sure the requirements have been met, because it is public money,” she said.

The story also matters for people working in, or hoping to work in, the Dutch film sector:

• Fairness for applicants. Van den Brink described the sudden dropping of the screening requirement as “not fair and not transparent”, adding: “Certainly not towards other potential applicants, who may not apply because they think they don’t stand a chance.”
• Unpaid crew. The scheme exists to create work for Dutch film professionals, yet at least ten people worldwide are still owed money for their work on this production.
• For film fans. Despite the subsidy condition that the film be shown in the Netherlands, there is no finished film to watch, and no release date.

What to watch next

The Film Fund says the Nieuwsuur and NRC investigation produced “new information”. It wants to hear from Witfilm before the end of the year when the film will be released. If no clarity follows, the fund says it is considering further steps, including withdrawing the subsidy in full or in part.

Witfilm stresses that its role in the film is “very limited”, as it holds a 6 percent stake. “The Film Fund’s rules therefore apply to 6 percent of the film,” its director wrote. Greenaway said through his lawyer that he could give “no substantive answer” to questions. “We hope that Lucca Mortis will one day reach a worldwide audience. Like every filmmaker, we want our work to be seen.”

The key points to follow are whether Witfilm gives the fund a release date before the year ends, whether any subsidy is clawed back, and whether the crew members still waiting are paid.

Source: NOS Cultuur