THE state’s screen funding and development agency, ScreenWest, is considering changes to its funding guidelines to provide support for local game developers.
ScreenWest has commissioned a study of its funding model after a recent review of digital funding streams found that Perth game developers are missing out on financial assistance.
Chief executive Ian Booth told WA Business News the study would be completed by the middle of the year, following which time funding guidelines would be drawn up.
“What the board is really interested in doing is working out the role that government should play and the value chain of the games industry,” Mr Booth said.
“(It) is very different to the film and TV sector - which is much more defined because of the role the government has played since the 1970s - and we may find that it’s not even in our scope to fund games development.”
Developers have long been lobbying the government-funded organisation for investment, and are often unsuccessful in securing federal grants because of the industry’s immaturity relative to the eastern states.
If ScreenWest funding were to be allocated for games, it would amount to about $500,000 in the first year and be limited to developments integrated with other film or TV projects.
It wouldn’t be the first time government funding was injected into the industry; in 2007 the state Labor government invested $1.5 million to establish a game development studio in Perth under the US-based company Interzone Entertainment.
The studio went under three years later owing $1.5 million in unpaid wages and taxes.
Anthony Sweet is treasurer of the not-for-profit organisation Let’s Make Games -which aims to support local developers - and was also an employee of Interzone.
He said despite the initiative ultimately failing, it wasn’t a reflection of the local industry.
“The Interzone Games studio here worked like clockwork, we had a really great team and really great management,” Mr Sweet said.
“The skills are definitely here in Perth ... we have people from Perth attending the Global Game Development conference in San Francisco and everyone’s well up to date with their knowledge and skills.”
In November 2012, the federal government announced an inaugural $20 million fund specifically for game development.
But Mr Sweet said he wasn’t confident local developers would be successful in securing initial funding because they were often overshadowed by more experienced businesses in other states.
It’s that reality that has led Let’s Make Games to continue years of dialogue with ScreenWest for local funding.
“Investment for creative industry does help create a sustainable industry because it’s freeing up cash flow for the community to work,” Mr Sweet said.
“If people can get money for things like marketing or business development, then all these things can help people create a sustainable business for themselves, which in turn could help create a sustainable industry for Perth.”
He supported ScreenWest’s cautious approach in fully evaluating the industry before committing to funding.
“We want to create a sustainable industry as well; the idea of just pushing money out to anyone that asks for it and seeing how it goes, that’s just not going to work,” Mr Sweet said.
“It’s going to take a little bit of forethought and actually trying to figure out what businesses need to make their businesses and developers sustainable.”
Local developer and co-founder of independent game developer Binary Space, Saxon Druce, said potential government investment in the local market was positive, but there still needed to be an assurance that projects would be commercially viable.
“If there was funding it would certainly help, but then you get into the situation where people are just living off funding and making projects that aren’t commercially viable in the first place,” he said.
