Cuba will allow independent filmmakers to legally produce their own movies as of August, giving a major boost to directors and producers who have long operated in a legal grey area.

A decree published on Thursday said that as of Aug. 23, a new law will "approve the figure of the audiovisual and cinematographic creator as an independent artist."

It said the legalization of independent filmmakers would "guarantee the quality of production and take advantage of the resources that the country uses in the development of these activities."

Ramon Samada, the director of the Cuban Cinema Institute, said in an interview with the official newspaper Granma that independent movie-makers would have "broad capabilities for the development of their work, such as the capacity to contract and be contracted, to operate bank accounts and interact with any legal Cuban or foreign person."

He said the move would include the creation of a cinema fund to back the production of Cuban film projects.

Members of the filmmaking community, from directors and producers to technicians and critics, have been pushing since 2013 for a new law governing the industry that would legalize the status of the independent filmmaker and create a fund to help the sector develop.