For
those considering international co-productions Hal Levy reports
on the International Production scene in the first of his two Reports,
the second part will be included in next weeks IFTN News.
AUSTRALIA
The Macguarie GreenLight
Film Fund, with a nut of $30 million to be raised by the Macquarie
Bank, will be a gap equity investor in English-language films and
television worldwide. The only criterion for a project is that it
is a commercial product with expectations of making money. Macquarie
Bank currently has the Macquarie Filmed Investment Fund.
AUSTRIA
The government has under
discussion proposals to both establish a film investment fund as
well as introduce tax incentives. There are currently three sources
of government funding available in Austria: The oldest is the Vienna
Film Financing Fund that offers repayable loans of under $1 million
to projects that have a Viennese co-producer. Up to $3 million must
be spent in the city on locations, crews and facilities. Another
important consideration for funding is the chance of recovering
the money, which means commercial projects are first in line. The
Austrian Film Institute, with an annual budget of $14 million, is
aimed at Austrian productions, which means international films have
limited accesses to the funds. Last year saw the formation of Cine
Tirol, a film commission based in Innsbruck with a current annual
budget of $1.5 million. If 80% of financing is at hand, Cine Tirol
can then lend the additional 20% as an interest-free loan. Partial
filming must be done in the area, and they are interested only in
commercial product.
BELGIUM
With a new government
being elected in June, all new tax shelters and regional funding
plans have been put on the back burner and are expected to have
to start the legislative process all over again. The Centre du Cinema
et de l'Audiovisuel (CCA), in French-speaking Belgium, has an annual
budget of $20 million, half of which is provided by the regional
government, the rest by the television industry. In addition to
which, television spends about $3 million annually on television
co-productions and features plus cable companies pay a yearly tax
of $4 per subscriber, half of which goes to CCA. The Flemish Dutch-speaking
sector, however, is suffering from a lack of funding. Television
companies at present do not have to invest in film production. However
the picture may change, as recent government rules will give a television
company a financial incentive once they commit themselves to the
production of a film.
BOSNIA HERZEGOVINA
Bosna Film and Holland's
Egmond Film & Television are co-producing "Sarajevo" with Veljko
Bulajic directing.
BRAZIL
While Brazil currently
offers tax breaks to any company that reinvests up to 70% of its
withheld taxes in film production, there is still a critical lack
of money in the production industry. Reports are that more than
60 completed films don't have enough money to get out of post-production
and about 70 films have suspended shooting in the middle of production.
The government has come up with Mas Cine 9912000, which will try
to raise $14 million dollars from the financial sector to solve
the problem. The government has also ordered that each screen must
show annually at least 49 days of local production…Set for the fall
is "The Girl From Rio", a co-production with UK's Celtic Films and
Spain's' LolaFilms, with shooting in England and Brazil.
CANADA
The Canadian Broadcasting
Corp. will invest $20 million over a five years period in English-language
Canadian feature films and CBC's French division will spend $13
million on French-language Canadian features… More and more American,
British and French companies are coming to Canada to take advantage
of the federal government's production services tax credits and
now all Canadian provinces are providing additional tax credits
plus other benefits. Last year, the Yukon launched tax incentive
programs in 1998 as well as a travel rebate program and it covers
commercials as well as films.
CHINA
Last year the filmmaking
industry completed 82 movies. In the first half of the 90s it was
averaging 150 a year. To get more needed product, the China Central
Television network (CCTV) has budgeted $6 million for its own production
program. With CCTV's movie channel CCTV6 itself airing more than
2600 films a year, CCTV expects to come up with 100 made for TV
films this year.
CUBA
Juan Carlos Tabio directs
"Waiting List" starting in June. Film is a Cuban/Spanish/German/French
co-production… Maestranza Films has set the fall to start shooting
"Habana Blues". The $2 million production will be produced and directed
by Spain's Antonio Perez.
CZECH REPUBLIC
Sweetpea Entertainment/Silver
Pictures/J&M Entertainment are co-producing "Dungeons and Dragons"
in Prague later this month. Joel Silver is executive producer on
the $35 million film, with Courtney Solomon directing… Seven Hills
Pictures has started shooting "All Forgotten" in Prague and area.
Reverge Anselmo is producer/director. The film is produced by Jo
Ann Smith and directed by Reverge Anselmo.
ENGLAND
Look for the Ealing
Studios to be taken out of the production loop. Owner National Film
& Television School is putting the studio, with its in-London site,
on the market… Spain's LolaFilms will co-produce "The Maid of Buttermere"
with the UK's Alan Latham. Filming on the $16 million production
starts in the autumn in England's Lake District. Fernando Trueba
directs the English-language film… London Weekend Television (LWT)
enters the feature production field with "Northanger Abbey" which
it is co-producing with HAL Films and Granada Film.
EUROPEAN UNION
Look out for Europe
to challenge the US's hold on post-production. European digital
film post-production houses: Belgium's ACE, Germany's Das Werk,
Italy's Blue Gold and France's Mikros Image have formed MAX to bring
more post work to Europe. Also recently formed is the European Animation
Pool with participating members Das Werk, Tornasol Digital of Spain,
Sceneries Europe of France and Trixter Animated Features of Germany.
Group has in development five animated features, with budgets running
up to $10 million… The EU's MEDIA office is expected to test a funding
scheme for the development of project packages. Companies chosen
will be offered three-year loans of up to $235,000 each, deposited
into special bank accounts. Maximum per proposed production will
be $47,000. When and if a project goes into production, the film
company will have to repay the loan plus low interest to the bank,
and this money will be available to the company for future development
projects… Meanwhile Eurimages, the EU's production fund, has changed
requirements for co-production funding from three different EU countries
participating to two. Also applications will be processed in five
weeks instead of the previous eight. In addition those applying
will be divided into two categories: cultural and commercial. Commercial
projects will receive three payments (50%, 25%, 25%) with a maximum
of under $1 million while cultural projects will receive two (75%
and 25%) with a ceiling of half a million dollars. Eurimages annual
budget is $20 million and since 1988 it has contributed to some
655 features and documentaries.
FRANCE
Societes de Financement
du Cinema et de l'Audiovisuel (SOFICAS), tax shelters run by film
financing companies, is the major source of financing in the industry.
Business investors get 50% and individuals 100% tax write-offs.
Monies raised are loaned to producers… While the country tends to
make co-production deals with other European countries, France still
continues to attract American productions. And to help attract them,
there are now almost 20 regional film commissions looking for business…
Nice's La Victorine Film Studios is expected to be run by Les Studios
de France under court orders. New managers currently are involved
with the Arpajon Studios.
GERMANY
In 1997, Munich led
the German market with $425 million spent on production. Hamburg
came in at $390 million, Cologne $310 million and Berlin registered
$245 million Production figures for 1998 are expected to list the
same cities in the same order … KC Medien is coming out with its
fourth bond series for the funding of mainly Hollywood films in
the face of new German tax laws that call for more investment in
German and/or European films. Minimum investment in the $28 million
Medienbeteiligungsfonds 99 is $16,500. MBF 99 expects to put money
into six US feature films this year… The EU has given Germany's
current production subsidy of $22 million the okay for another five
years. However, only up to 50% of a budget can be covered and a
maximum of 20% will be permitted to be spent in other EU countries…
Although Hamburg has a film fund, many people there feel that more
needs to be done to stop the many projects currently being lost
to the media centers in Berlin, Cologne and Munich. Leading the
fight is Martin Willich of Studio Hamburg.
HOLLAND
According to producer/director
Roel Reine, his new production company, Two Independent Films, will
make American films with American casts using American scripts.
ICELAND
Taking advantage of
new tax incentives for international filmmakers, Panarctica and
Norway's Tony Kaye Productions will co-produce Kaye's next project
here. The untitled English-language film will have mainly Icelandic
cast.
Hal Levy
Please use halevy@bigfoot.com
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