The Film Department of the Arts and Culture Division bestows, upon recommendation of an expert jury, yearly or biennial Outstanding Artist Awards and an Austrian Art Award.
The endowment of the Outstanding Artist Award (normally, two are given in different genres), comprises € 10,000 per award. Persons recommended for an Outstanding Artist Award must have produced at least three outstanding and innovative works.

The endowment of the Austrian Art Award is in the amount of € 15,000. Persons recom-mended for an Austrian Art Award must have produced at least five innovative works that have been internationally recognized and reviewed.

This award is dedicated to Thomas Pluch (1934–1992), screenwriter, author, and co-founder of the ARGE Drehbuch (screenplay working group) – since 2002 the Drehbuch-verband Austria (Screenplay Association Austria).

The Thomas-Pluch-Drehbuchpreis (initiated in 1992 by two writers) was first awarded in 1993. The goal of the award is to aid screenwriters in achieving the recognition they deserve, and to support talented young writers. The main award is endowed with
€ 12,000, the Thomas Pluch Special Jury Award with € 7,000, and the Thomas Pluch Award for Short or Medium-Length Fiction Films with € 3,000.

Every year since 2004, international juries select the best screenplays realized as Austrian film productions. The award money is made available from the Film Department of the Arts and Culture Division, and the awards are presented in the context of the Austrian film festival Diagonale in Graz.