To be eligible for tax relief, a film must be certified as British by the UK Film Council. This is achieved via the Cultural Test, which awards points for each element they regard as British. Your cast, crew location, postproduction, and even story and characters are considered. A score of 16 out of the 31 available points is required to pass.

99 per cent of UK short films will pass this test as few can afford the luxury of looking to other countries for elements such as locations, crew or post-production.

The completed Cultural Test application form should be submitted along with a shooting script, a synopsis, shooting schedule, production budget, DVD of the film, Chain of Title and an Accountant’s report. All these documents must be up-to-date and complete. (I warned you it was not for the fainthearted!).

Quick tip: Read the rules carefully before starting out as you may find you can save yourself a bit of time in certain areas. For example, if you already have the required 16 points to pass the Cultural Test you can skip the section relating to the Britishness of the writer(s) or underlying material. In doing so, you have removed the need to provide Chain of Title. (Chain of Title is made up of all the documents you need to prove you have the rights to make your film, e.g. writer’s agreements, clearance on existing materials, etc).

Once you have received your certificate from the UK Film Council, you are ready to apply to HM Revenue & Customs.

Cultural Points