German culture minister Michael Naumann has unveiled a package of measures to strengthen the federal government's culturally-oriented film funding programme.

Naumann, whose film funding budget was raised this year from $7.75m (DM15.5m) to $9m (DM18m), is directing more money at script development with sums of up to $50,800 to be paid out for the support of screenplays in place of the present $10,000. Naumann has also created two annual Script Awards, each with a purse of $25,000, instead of the present single $25,000 award. The most recent Script Award went to Ruth Toma and Rolf Schuebel for Gloomy Sunday this week.

Meanwhile Naumann is also directing more money towards documentaries and children's films with the creation of dedicated German Film Prizes in Gold, worth between $200,000 and $250,000. In addition, children's and young people's films will benefit from an extra $500,000-$965,000 and a $152,000 Special Award will be introduced to encourage the programming of documentaries in cinemas.

Naumann also aims to support better distribution of culturally valuable films by increasing his annual Distributor Award from the present $102,000 to $305,000. He is also seeking to address impending structural changes in the film industry with the creation of two Innovation Awards worth $15,200 as an incentive for modernisation in all areas of the film industry.

"It's not only quantitative improvements that are connected with these measures," Naumann said. "We are also setting important structural innovations on their way. With the revision of the film funding guidelines, the exact purpose and attractiveness of the [federal government's] cultural film funding programme will be further intensified".