Article content

The cash-strapped Saskatchewan government is reviewing its funding guidelines after one of its agencies committed $1.15 million to three feature-length films shot in British Columbia, including one starring Nicolas Cage.

Creative Saskatchewan pledged the funds to Regina-based Minds Eye Entertainment through its $2.3 million screen-based media production grant program, which replaced the axed $8 million Film Employment Tax Credit.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Province pledged $1.15M to films shot in B.C. Back to video

The funding is based on 30 per cent of each film’s budget being spent in Saskatchewan or paid to residents of the province, and is capped at $600,000 per project. None of the three projects will receive more than $401,000.

The provincial government is grappling with a $1.3 billion deficit, which its unpopular 2017-18 budget aims to reduce by around $600 million.

In legislative documents, Culture Minister Ken Cheveldayoff said the Minds Eye productions were not prioritized over film projects shot in Saskatchewan. That isn’t good enough for Opposition NDP culture critic Warren McCall.