Culture ministry rejects political censorship on film centre as “absurd”, restricts comments on social media post

The Georgian culture ministry on Tuesday rejected allegations on its alleged attempts to put the national film cente under political censorship as “unfounded” and sparked by “one of opposition groups”, in response to ongoing “reorganisation” in the centre and subsequent backlash. 

 

The body has also restricted comments on its related social media post, amid critical assessments by domestic professionals, accusing culture minister Thea Tsaulukiani of exerting political control on the centre that as they claimed could result in “either conformist, or propagandist” films. 

 

The body launched reorganisations in the centre on June 10 and said the process would be completed on July 12, claiming the purpose of the process was to “improve or simplify” existing management and bureaucratic processes “considering the interests of artists and the domestic cinematography”, amid protests of its employees. 

 

In his latest comments, Irakli Kobakhidze, the head of the ruling Georgian Dream party, criticized the film centre for funding the documentary Taming The Garden by Salome Jashi, about the transportation of gigantic trees by Bidzina Ivanishvili, the founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party, for the dendrological park in the country’s west. 

 

Kobakhidze noted a film with such “shameful content” should not be financed, also claiming the content of films was not under control. 

 

“It is important that a film with shameful content is not made, but with the right content. The film can be critical, it can be politically sensitive, but when you make a film about the absurd, it is absolutely incomprehensible,” said Kobakhidze.

 

Gaga Chkhaidze, the former head of the film centre, after his dismissal told Radio Liberty that Tsulukiani also had questions about the documentary, and claimed the minister disliked depicting the park as Ivanishvili’s “private garden”.