"Georgian film is in danger," say many Georgian filmmakers. They rally under this slogan as they fight against what they see as an attempt to bring the nation's cinema culture under the state's control. 

At the heart of the controversy is the ongoing reorganization of the Georgian National Film Center (GNFC), a public agency that sponsors film projects and otherwise supports the film industry. Many filmmakers argue that the reform is about removing government skeptics from the structure and installing government loyalists in their place.

Several employees of the GNFC were fired, including its longtime director Gaga Chkheidze. The Ministry of Culture, which maintains oversight over public agencies for arts and culture, accused Chkheidze of financial mismanagement. Supported by a large circle of film professionals, Chkheidze says that the campaign against him is retaliation for his criticism of government policies. 

Earlier on, similar controversies broke out in other areas of arts and culture. Scores of longtime professionals were dismissed from museums and all alleged reprisals for their political views. The National Book Center, the literary version of the GNFC, was also reorganized and that led to a standoff between Georgian writers and the Ministry of Culture.       

At the center of all these controversies is Minister of Culture Tea Tsulukiani, who is widely accused of attempting to purge cultural institutions of critical minds. 

The longest-serving cabinet member under the governing Georgian Dream Party, Tsulukiani's background is in human rights law and she started out as minister of justice. She is known for her loyalty to Bidzina Ivanishvili, the billionaire founder of Georgian Dream, and also has the reputation of a strict disciplinarian. 

Tsulukiani was appointed the minister of culture, sports and youth in 2021 and Georgian culture has been in turmoil ever since. She dismissed longtime arts and culture professionals, and installed law-and-order officials to managerial positions at cultural agencies. 

Tsulukiani's former aide at the Ministry of Justice was appointed deputy director of the Georgian National Museum. Chkheidze was replaced at GNFC by a former penitentiary official with no experience in cinema. Bacho Odisharia, a TV host and pro-government propagandist, became the deputy head of the center.  

Tsulukiani motivated the changes by the need to improve and streamline management of publically funded cultural institutions, but critics accuse her of trying to bring Georgian culture to the government's heel.  Many historians, writers, and filmmakers accused Tsulukiani of closing off access to public funds to individuals who failed to demonstrate loyalty to her and the ruling party. 

Perhaps the most notorious controversy associated with Tsulukiani is connected to the film "Taming the Garden," an award-winning documentary by Salome Jashi. The film's premiere in Tbilisi was canceled last year because, as Jashi alleged, it was perceived as critical of billionaire Ivanishvili. 

Chkheidze claimed that Tsulukiani was unhappy that on his watch GNFC partially funded the documentary. Georgian Dream's chairman recently described the film as "shameful."

A group of filmmakers has recently held protest rallies at the GNFC and the Ministry of Culture, demanding a meeting with Tsulukiani and the stoppage of the ongoing reorganization of the center. They were joined by prominent figures from other fields of arts and culture. One of the protesters' main demands is to make the GNFC director a position elected by film professionals rather than appointed from above.