It’s been a good year for the established production hubs around the world, with regions like Buenos Aires, South Africa, Eastern Europe and New Zealand maintaining their appeal for commercial projects. Australia has seen a production resurgence, while in the US the spectre of budget deficits has put real pressure on state filming incentives.
Ahmad Tea has recreated turn-of-the-20th Century England in Portugal, revealing a potential alternative for commercial filmmakers seeking more bang for their buck. We also took an in-depth look at a pretty stunning new commercial from Jeep that filmed on location in Budapest.
The Wales Screen Commission (WSC) has experienced another busy year assisting productions. Seven feature films and five major television dramas shot in Wales throughout 2011, proving that Wales is still a popular choice for film and TV producers.
Acclaimed silent feature The Artist, a homage to early Hollywood, has become one of the latest films to shoot in Los Angeles’ historic Broadway theatre district. The district has been used recently by The Dark Knight Rises and Clint Eastwood’s biopic J Edgar.
The British Government has announced that location filming tax relief will continue to be available for production in the UK through to the end of 2015. Projects budgeted at more than GBP20 million can get a 20% rebate, while those spending less than GBP20 million can access 25% tax relief.
Last week was a good one for the Los Angeles film industry. Citing figures from Film LA, the Los Angeles Times reports that feature film production days reached nearly 180, an increase of almost 50% on the same time last year.
It seems Alaska is still having problems attracting the big productions. The new Superman film, Man of Steel, will be doubling British Columbia for Alaska. Specifically, the production will be building an Alaskan fishing village in the District of Ucluelet on the west coast of Vancouver Island.
It’s a summer of superheroes in several US cities as the major studios’ 2012 release slates shape up. The Dark Knight Rises has been filming fight sequences and scenes involving the so-called Batwing in Pittsburgh, while Marvel has been wreaking havoc in Cleveland, Ohio, for The Avengers.