[slideshow id=123]Tortilla chip brand Doritos has embraced the image of the Western gunslinger and filmed its new commercial on location in Mexico. Dip Desperado charts the fictional life of Esteban Ortega, a Mexican peasant who finds fame and glory flicking Doritos rather than ‘slinging’ a gun.
A filming agreement has been signed between Ireland and Luxembourg that will enable official co-productions to access resources and financial incentives in each respective country. The signing took place over the weekend at the Galway Film Fleadh, a six-day film festival.
A survey for the Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) shows a spending rise in 2010, as well as the highest number of location shoot days in three years. Also, the appetite among US production companies for filming abroad has fallen significantly over the last few years.
The filming incentive in Washington State has been ended after local politicians decided the 30% cash rebate programme wasn’t having a big enough economic impact. More than 20 projects received collective incentives worth USD5.4 million through the course of 2010, with nearly USD20 million being channelled into the economy.
[slideshow id=121]Feature drama The Devil’s Double has filmed in Malta and Jordan, using each country as a stand-in for Iraq. Set in the late 1980s, the film tells the fact-based story of a lieutenant in the Iraqi army who is forced to be the body double of Uday Hussein, eldest son of Saddam.
December 2011 will see the launch of a 20% filming tax rebate in Croatia if the Croatian Audiovisual Centre has its way. If the launch goes ahead as planned, competition in Eastern Europe will reach new levels, with Croatia already establishing itself as a cheaper double for countries like Italy.
Rhode Island, on the east coast of the US, has decided to keep its 25% filming tax credit for another year as filmmaker Wes Anderson shoots in the state. Governor Lincoln Chafee had singled out the scheme for cancellation to reduce the state deficit, but it seems he had a change of heart.
Maryland has increased the size of its film fund in a bid to get more productions. Previously worth just USD1 million a year, the new bill had a USD15 million figure but this was reduced to USD7.5 million at the last minute. The incentive is worth up to 25% for qualifying film productions.