NZ govt film incentive to boost activity, NZFC's Gibson says 25 Nov 2014
Related articles
- Australia Jumping on the Boy Bandwagon Living
- NZ consumers grow more upbeat, may resume spending Business
- Waitakere Mayor championsing NZ film in China Living
- Wellington Band At Top British Film Awards Living
- Knowles quits as CEO of KiwiBank Business
- NZ migration bolstered by British invasion Migration
- NZ manufacturing activity reaches highest since 04 Business
- NZ dollar hits 22-month high vs euro Business
- OceanaGold finds new gold deposits at Fraser mine Business
- Transpower gets go-ahead for $170m SI upgrade Business
NZ govt film incentive to boost activity, NZFC's Gibson says
By Suze Metherell
Nov. 24 (BusinessDesk) - New Zealand's film industry is gearing up for a bumper year as the government's sweeter incentives lures foreign projects and boosts domestic productions, according to New Zealand Film Commission chief executive Dave Gibson.
Cabinet Ministers Steven Joyce and Chris Finlayson last year sweetened New Zealand's film scheme, lifting the incentives paid, as part of a move to put the local industry on a stronger footing and insulate it from lulls between blockbusters. That helped lock in 20th Century Fox to greenlight James Cameron's three Avatar movies to be produced in New Zealand, and Gibson says it's re-injected life into industry that had been in a downturn.
“There was this quite quiet period for a couple of years where the industry really was in a lull, then the government increased the incentives, and straightaway you can see a difference," Gibson told BusinessDesk. "It has been pretty close to a perfect result in the short-medium term that we can see. You really couldn’t have asked for a better kind of pick up or take up on it.
"I've been in the film business for 35 years," Gibson said. "All I can say is hold onto your hats, because next year is going to be a big one."
Recent screen projects lured by local incentives include 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon', 'Light Between Oceans' and television production 'Thunderbirds' and Gibson says more are set to be announced next year.
New Zealand's screen industry has managed to retain a high profile on the success of local film-maker Peter Jackson, who scored high profile projects including The Lord of the Rings, King Kong, and The Hobbit, which were all filmed locally. That's attracted support from successive governments, who typically like to be associated with such projects, and the current administration spent $60 million in the 12 months ended June 30 on screen incentives, according to budget documents.
Jackson, who lobbied hard for the bigger subsidies, has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of past grant schemes, and hislatest Hobbit films reaped $153 million in the first four years of production, according to financial statements lodged with the Companies Office.
Government sweeteners have been a contentious issue with New Zealand pressured to improve the lure of shooting big budget blockbusters locally as a weak US dollar ate into Hollywood studios' margins. The intention was also to develop New Zealand's own film scene, shifting it from a service-based industry to one which creates intellectual property and feeds into other sectors, said Gibson.
“What we’re trying to do is to see if we can actually build sustainable infrastructure off the back of it and do other things," Gibson said. Joyce "is quite keen for it to lead to some sort of alteration in the way the industry operates, so that the industry over time begins to create more of its own IP and be a little bit more sustaining in its own sort of business models. That’s a nice balance that we didn’t see before."
According to Statistics New Zealand, the New Zealand screen industry’s revenue dropped 4 percent in 2013, from a record high in 2012, as decline in production of feature films more than offset gains from local television and movie theatres. The production and post-production sector contracted 12 percent to $1.46 billion in 2013, with declines in production sales largely attributable to a 17 percent drop in gross revenue for feature films. That amounts to about 0.9 percent of the country's gross domestic product.
Under the new scheme, the government combined its Large Budget Screen Production Grant (LBSPG) and Screen Production Incentive Fund (SPIF) into a single scheme called the New Zealand Screen Production Grant. Previous rebates of 15 percent for the LBSPG and up to 40 per cent for the SPIF will be replaced by two rebates - 20 percent plus an extra 5 percent for productions that meet special criteria.
"For the 20 percent in some degree it is a box ticking economic thing – if they do this, and spend that and employ this number of people – yes they will qualify," Gibson said. "With the 5 percent it is much more what additional value are they bringing to the economy of New Zealand in some interesting way."
The scheme aims to support New Zealand productions between $15 million and $50 million, with up to 40 percent in rebates or incentives. Instead of providing those mid-tier productions a grant, the government will take on an equity stake to recoup some of its investment. That might be between 10 percent and 30 percent, according to a Cabinet paper released as part of the December announcement.
As an English speaking population, New Zealand films face competition in their domestic market from international films, Gibson said. Government funding for local films helped ensure kiwis told kiwi stories, but the recent domestic commercial success and international attention of films like 'What We Do In The Shadows', 'The Dead Lands' and 'Dark Horse' shows local films do have an audience.
"If you don’t have a subsidy system like this or an incentives system, then you will not have these films. If there wasn’t a combination of the incentives and the discretionary funding from the Film Commission, pretty much there wouldn’t be a 'Dead Lands', there wouldn’t be a 'Dark Horse'," Gibson said. "I don’t think you can call it a crutch necessarily, it’s just oxygen."
Last week, the Commission signed the New Zealand-China Television Co-Production Agreement, the first television co-production agreement China has signed with another country, giving filmmakers access to funding and incentives programmes in each country, with productions regarded as national film and television of each country.
It includes a $1 million China Co-Production Production fund for investment in the production of one or more official feature film co-productions with China.
Separately, the National Business Review reported the future of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment-funded Film New Zealand is under scrutiny, with high level talks held in Wellington on Monday.
The film marketing agency is isolated from the wider domestic production industry, and has been criticised by the likes of Jackson and John Barnett, chairman of South Pacific Picture over its effectiveness, accountability and transparency, NBR reported.
(BusinessDesk)
News
Hilary Timmins' Award-Winning UK Documentary Series To Inspire NZ Students
29 Jun 2020 Education
Dream Catchers, produced and directed by Hilary Timmins, celebrates the success stories of more than thirty inspirational New... more
New Zealand reaffirms support for Flight MH17 judicial process
7 Mar 2020 News
Ahead of the start of the criminal trial in the Netherlands on 9 March, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has reaffirmed the need to... more
Business
NZ Government's Economic package to fight COVID-19
17 Mar 2020 Business News
The Coalition Government has launched the most significant peace-time economic plan in modern New Zealand history to cushion the... more
NZ Government announces aviation relief package
19 Mar 2020 Business News
Transport Minister Phil Twyford today outlined the first tranche of the $600 million aviation sector relief package announced earlier... more
Living
Diversity was Key at New Zealand Trade Tasting in London
6 Jun 2022 Food & Wine
New Zealand Winegrowers Annual Trade Tasting was recently held in London, on Wednesday 4 May, in Lindley Hall.
It was the first... more
Kiwi author stuns Behind the Butterfly Gate
12 Jan 2022 Arts
Hidden behind the Butterfly Gate is where the secret has been kept for 76 years...
New Zealand writer Merryn Corcoran’s... more
Property
Fairer rules for tenants and landlords
17 Nov 2019 Property
17 NOVEMBER 2019
The Government has delivered on its promise to the over one million New Zealanders who now rent to make it fairer... more
New Zealand Government will not implement a Capital Gains Tax
17 Apr 2019 Property
The Coalition Government will not proceed with the Tax Working Group’s recommendation for a capital gains tax, Jacinda Ardern... more
Migration
Boosting border security with electronic travel authority – now over 500,000 issued
19 Nov 2019 Migration
19 NOVEMBER 2019
We’ve improved border security with the NZeTA, New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority, which helps us to... more
Christchurch reinstated as refugee settlement location
18 Aug 2018 Migration
18 AUGUST 2018
HON IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY
The announcement that Christchurch can once again be a settlement location for refugees... more
Travel
Gallipoli Anzac Day services cancelled
19 Mar 2020 Travel & Tourism
The New Zealand and Australian Governments have announced this year’s joint Anzac Day services at Gallipoli will be cancelled... more
New Zealanders advised not to travel overseas
19 Mar 2020 Travel & Tourism
New Zealanders advised not to travel overseas
more
Sport
The Skipper's Diary: Sir Richard Hadlee honouring his father and NZ's Forty-Niners
27 Oct 2019 Cricket
NZNewsUK London Editor Charlotte Everett spoke to Sir Richard Hadlee about why he’s chosen to publish his father’s... more
PREVIEW: All Blacks v England semi-final
26 Oct 2019 Rugby
The two most convincing quarterfinals winners are set to square off in a semifinal showdown for the ages when the All Blacks meet old... more
Columns
Gordon Campbell on the Gareth Morgan crusade
11 Nov 2016 Opinion
Gordon Campbell on the Gareth Morgan crusade
First published on Werewolf
The ghastly likes of Marine Le Pen in France and Geert ... more
Gordon Campbell on the US election outcome
10 Nov 2016 Opinion
Column - Gordon Campbell
Gordon Campbell on the US election outcome
Well um.. on the bright side, there (probably)... more
Kiwi Success
Congratulations to Loder Cup winner
26 Sep 2018 People
25 SEPTEMBER 2018
The Loder Cup, one of New Zealand’s oldest conservation awards, has been awarded to Robert McGowan for 2018... more
Appointments to New Zealand National Commission for UNESCO
16 Aug 2018 Appointments
16 AUGUST 2018Appointments to New Zealand National Commission for UNESCO
HON JENNY SALESA
Associate Education Minister Jenny Salesa is... more
Recruitment
Historic pay equity settlement for education support workers
14 Aug 2018 Recruitment
14 AUGUST 2018Historic pay equity settlement for education support workers
RT HON JACINDA ARDERN
HON CHRIS HIPKINS
Prime Minister
The... more
Historic pay equity settlement for education support workers
22 Aug 2018 Recruitment
14 AUGUST 2018Historic pay equity settlement for education support workers
RT HON JACINDA ARDERN
HON CHRIS HIPKINS
Prime Minister
The... more