Applications for the Cinema Fund second Far Eastern grant competition increased by nearly 20 percent compared to last year, executive director Fyodor Sosnov announced at a TASS press conference. Applications were accepted from April 13 to May 27, 2026, following the first competition in 2025, which saw 29 participating projects.
Sosnov said the rise in submissions shows growing interest in the selection process and support program. He added that the quality of submissions improved, allowing nearly twice as many projects to pass expert evaluation and reach the final stage compared to last year.
Six winning films will receive a combined total of 400 million rubles in state support, against a total budget of 1.6 billion rubles across all six projects. Three of the winners, the animated film BAM by studio Mechtalet, Beshamel by Vremya Kino, and Palma 3 by MME, will receive 200 million rubles in state support.
Winning Film Projects
Animated project BAM has already entered production, according to Mechtalet founder and director Ilya Kuznetsov. It is the studio second picture, following Captain Nevelskoy and the Lands of the Black Dragon, which is set to enter distribution in September. Production on BAM is planned for completion in 2029 to coincide with the 55th anniversary of the Baikal-Amur Mainline.
Palma 3, the third installment about the dog Palma and the Lazarev family, will be filmed by the established team behind the first two movies, general producer Ruben Dishdishyan said. The crew moves to the Far East on August 20 to prepare filming locations, with shooting scheduled to start August 24. Creators are targeting a theatrical release in August or September next year.
Historical drama Beshamel takes place in 1941 and centers on a boy from the city of Nakhodka, general producer Georgy Zhitkov stated. Creators plan to release the movie by May 9, 2028.
Regional Film Industry Support
Elvira Nurgalieva, Deputy Minister of the Russian Federation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic, explained that government efforts to build a regional film support system have been underway for more than five years. She said the growing volume of mature projects stems from long-term initiatives that combine educational programs for local personnel with new infrastructure.
The grant competition is organized by the Cinema Fund with support from the Ministry of Culture of Russia, the Ministry for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic of Russia, and the Corporation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic. During the inaugural 2025 competition, grants were awarded to three films: Legend of the Ermine from Chukotka, All Rivers Flow into Seas from Khabarovsk Krai, and Dog from Primorsky Krai.
