29-10-2014

Film Incentives Boost International Productions Shooting in Croatia

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    ZAGREB: Macedonian director Mitko Panov’s Wait for Me/Čekaj me, which wrapped shooting in Croatia on 18 October 2014, is the eighth international project benefitting from the film incentives scheme provided by the Croatian Audiovisual Centre in 2014.

    The programme has been so successful in increasing the number of international film productions shooting in Croatia that changes to the incentives scheme in 2015 to accommodate more films are already being considered.

    "We are working on a proposal for the next year – which would be a new model of financing, not through the annual cap per calendar year (such was the case thus far), which is 20m HRK per year, but closer to the logic: as many applications, as much finances, but with an overall cap. However, the amount of that cap is yet to be negotiated with the Government. We are still investigating different models of how securing finances is being done elsewhere," Sunčica Pleština, the Filming in Croatia Programme Officer, told FNE.

    This year was the most promising year since HAVC launched the film incentives scheme in 2012. The total amount of money spent in Croatia was 11m EUR/87m HRK in 2014 with a refund of 2m EUR/17m HRK. The application process is still ongoing and the exact figures will be known at the end of the year.

    For the time being Croatia can afford to pay 20% incentives for 10 projects per year with a total spent around 13m EUR/100m HRK. Foreign film production spend was 3.3m EUR/25m HRK in 2012, growing to 7.6m EUR/58m HRK in 2013.

    Wait for Me/ Čekaj me, a political thriller set around the search for a war criminal in former Yugoslavia stars the Irish actor Padraic Delaney and Swiss actor Bruno Ganz, and is produced by Switzerland’s Tipimages Productions, Croatia’s MP Film Production, Macedonia’s Pirej Film and Ireland’s Samson Films. The project spent almost 500,000 EUR in Croatia during 18 days of shooting, and will get back around 100,000 EUR.

    For the US mini-series Dig starring Jason Isaacs and Anne Heche, NBC spent approximately 1.5m EUR during 17 days in September, and it will get back approximately 300,000 EUR. Embassy Films provided local services.