Republican Susana Martinez, the recently-elected Governor of New Mexico, is considering plans to reduce the state’s filming incentive by a dramatic 10% in line with efforts to cut public spending.
The Australia China Screen Alliance has been created to smooth the way for more co-productions between the two countries. The nations have had a co-production treaty in place for three years now.
Singapore’s Media Development Authority and CJ Entertainment (CJE), a South Korean media giant, have announced the launch of a USD50 million fund to support Singapore filmmaking.
Puerto Rico has unveiled a new collection of tax incentives to encourage more international production companies to shoot in the region. Puerto Rico residents can already be eligible for a 40% production tax credit, but this is to be expanded to non-resident talent as well, albeit with a reduced 20% figure.
Screen Australia has revised its co-production guidelines to make it easier for projects to access financing and incentives. The changes involve including Australian personnel in the points scheme from production jobs that were not awarded anything previously.
The newly-launched Film Location Austria scheme will reward filmmakers with up to 25% of their eligible production expenses. Productions will need to spend at least 25% of their total budget within Austria in order to qualify. In addition a cultural test will ensure the country benefits from the project technically and creatively.
New incentives recently introduced in Florida have already impacted on the state’s audiovisual production. While Florida has attracted theatrical feature productions like Marley & Me and Confessions of a Shopaholic in recent years, the state is an especially popular location for television projects.
China and Singapore have signed a film co-production agreement in Beijing. The agreement covers feature films made for both theatrical and TV release. Official co-productions will qualify for the same funding and incentives available for national productions in each country.