Mirziyoyev Dissolves Cinema Agency and Shifts Film Industry to Market-Based Model

President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev announced on October 26 the dissolution of the Cinema Agency and the transfer of state film policy functions to the Ministry of Culture. The reform affects the entire sectoral hierarchy — from financing to production and distribution.

Instead of the agency, a Department of Cinematography will be established within the Ministry of Culture structure, with its head receiving a status equal to deputy minister. The agency and its subordinate organizations are to be abolished within one month.

Simultaneously, a new state company, Uzbekfilm, will be created. Unlike the former studio, it will not produce films itself: its task is to select and finance projects, handle promotion and distribution, and bring films to international markets and film festivals. The company is to be organized within one week.

Mirziyoyev criticized the existing state procurement system: individual directors were assigned up to six projects, some authors up to seven, and nearly half of all orders went to state studios. "Works of art should not be purchased according to technical specifications, like ordinary goods or construction work," the president stated.

Statistics cited by Mirziyoyev demonstrate the scale of investments over the past decade: state financing of film production grew from 10 billion som in 2016 to 218 billion som in 2024, two presidential decrees and eight resolutions were adopted, and the Uzbekfilm studio underwent complete reconstruction. Nevertheless, the president noted that national films continue to lag behind foreign ones: foreign films draw full theaters, while domestic productions fail to meet the changing tastes of viewers.