Thanks to the commercial success of such releases as the Oscar-winning Nowhere In Africa, scifi horror pic Resident Evil and 2002's top local film Bibi Blocksberg, producer-distributor Constantin Film has been able to pay back more than Euros 1.5m in production and distribution subsidies to the Bavarian public fund FFF Bayern and the Bavarian Bank Fund (BBF).

FFF Bayern funding executive Nikolaus Prediger told Screen Daily that Constantin's distribution arm Constantin Filmverleih paid back over Euros 868,000 in distribution support, while almost Euros 662,000 in production funding was repaid for two of Constantin's international co-productions Resident Evil and The Cement Garden.

In addition, Berlin-based X Verleih has repaid the distribution support awarded by FFF Bayern for the theatrical releases of this year's blockbuster Good Bye, Lenin! (Euros 100,000) and Connie Walther's Wie Feuer Und Flamme (Euros 72,700)

While the distribution support repaid by the two companies will be re-invested by FFF in other distribution campaigns, the production support coming back from Constantin will be paid into an interest account for it to draw upon for the financing of future film projects.