Cannes: Thailand Unveils Plans for Film & TV Production Cash Incentives
Saturday, Thailand unveiled plans for Film and TV production cash incentives during an event held in Cannes.
Thailand will offer a 15% cash rebate on all in-Country production spending beginning in Y 2017. Every production with a local spend over $1.5-M (50-M baht) will automatically get the 15% rebate.
The total can rise to up to 20%.
Above and beyond the 15%, an additional 3% is available if a project hires a Thai actor or actress for the lead role or Key Thai production staff. Another 2% is available for movies deemed to promote Thai tourism.
General Tanasak Patimapragorn, the nation’s Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the National Film and Video Committee, and Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, Thailand’s Minister of Tourism & Sports, unveiled the incentives.
Thailand’s natural environment and lively urban scenes make it popular with overseas filmmakers, and the big success of Chinese movie Lost in Thailand in Y 2013 resulted in a huge rise in the number of Chinese tourists to the country.
Big productions shot in the country in recent years include The Hangover Part II, The Beach, The Impossible and No Escape.
“We already had a very good reputation for having some of the best crews and locations in the region,” Minister Kobkarn said. “We are confident that this incentive will make Thailand even more competitive. We hope it will help us attract not just more productions, but also higher quality films.”
“We currently have a number of big shoots considering coming Thailand,” said Nicholas Simon, founder of Southeast Asia production services company Indochina Productions, which recently facilitated the Vietnam shoot of Legendary Entertainment’s Kong: Skull Island. “This incentive could be a game changer.”
“The smaller films are already coming, but the incentive will help attract more studio films,” added Rachvin Narula, CEO of Bangkok-based production services film Benetone Films.
Figures published by the Thailand Film Office earlier this year showed that the number of foreign film shoots increased by 15% in Y 2015, lead by China, which shot 48 films in the country.
Have a terrific weekend,
Paul Ebeling
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