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Czechs to introduce 20% incentive (Variety, 2009-10-21)
After at least a decade of lobbying, the Czech government has approved an incentive plan for foreign film shoots that would refund 20% of their expenses.
Czech film incentive approved by local government (ScreenDaily.com, 2009-10-21)
Films seeking to access the scheme must have 75% of their budget secured from other sources and must pass a broad test for Czech and/or European culture, as required by the European Commission.
Czech rivals agree on need for incentives (Variety, 2009-07-07)
KARLOVY VARY — A new system of production incentives for the Czech Republic's beleaguered film industry inched a little closer after two of the country's top politicians agreed that something must be done about the collapse in foreign co-productions shooting in the country.
George Lucas appeals for Czech filming incentives (ScreenDaily.com, 2009-05-31)
George Lucas wants to shoot an as-yet untitled Star Wars TV series in the Czech Republic, but only if local politicians will institute financial incentives. “Your politicians need to react to the current situation,” he told the Czech daily Mlada fronta Dnes during a visit to the set of Red Tails, which he is executive producing in Prague.
Prague to host Paramount's $170m GI Joe (ScreenDaily.com, 2008-03-10)
Barrandov Studios has signed a contract to host Paramount's $170m GI Joe. The $170m action film would be one of the most expensive ever in the Czech studio's history, between the estimated $150m Casino Royale and the $180m Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And the Wardrobe.
Barrandov gears up for productions (Variety, 2008-02-08)
Faced with leaner, meaner competition to the east, the Czech film biz has finally won a commitment from the state to introduce a Hungary-style tax incentive for foreign productions. At the same time, bizzers are concentrating efforts on fewer but bigger shoots, hoping to build on the recent "Narnia" and James Bond lensing at Prague's retooled Barrandov.
Under winter skies, a city revealed (New York Times, 2008-02-03)
Call it the travel equivalent of contrarian investing: Prague, a famously beautiful city in spring, summer and fall, can yield big dividends for travelers in the winter off-season. Teeming crowds? Gone. Prices? Much lower. Overbooked hotels? Not for now. Picturesque spires and cobblestone lanes? With a gentle dusting of snow, perhaps even more so.
Czech films set for banner year (Variety, 2007-12-12)
Despite complaints about the unreliability of Czech state film funding, 2008 will be a boom year, with 32 locally made features expected to hit cinemas.
Christophe Barratier revisits 1930s Paris (ScreenDaily.com, 2007-10-10)
"From the beginning, it was all a question of cost because the film is very, very expensive," says French director Christophe Barratier of the $38.2m budget for Faubourg 36, the follow-up to his hugely successful 2004 film, The Chorus.
Czech Republic (Variety, 2007-09-07)
The scoop: A sophisticated infrastructure and experienced crews are what attract big-budget shoots to the Czech Republic and its picturesque capital city, Prague.
Universal's Wanted finishes Czech leg of shoot (ScreenDaily.com, 2007-07-22)
Timur Bekmambetov wrapped production on Universal's Wanted in the Czech Republic on Saturday. The crew now moves on to Chicago, where they will shoot Aug 7-17.
Danish WWII thriller Flame & Citron wrapping Prague shoot (ScreenDaily.com, 2007-04-18)
Production on Danish WWII thriller Flame & Citron is scheduled to wrap Saturday in Prague before moving on to Germany and Denmark, producer Lars Bredo Rahbek told ScreenDaily.com.
Stillking is still king (The Prague Post, 2007-04-04)
Whatever one’s opinion might be of Daniel Craig having assumed the Bond tux, there’s no denying that Casino Royale was an international hit, as well as a major success for Barrandov Studios and the Prague-based producers of Stillking Films. Rather than resting on its recent achievements, the Stillking crew has plunged into two new film projects that will be filming in Prague over the next couple of months. Up at Barrandov, Prince Caspian, the second part of the Chronicles of Narnia, began shooting Sunday, April 1, while across town at the Prague Studios, the cinematic version of Mark Millar’s cult comic Wanted, under the helm of the Moscow-based Kazakh Timur Bekmambetov, is gearing up.
Barrandov in talks about Bond 22 (ScreenDaily.com, 2007-03-21)
Barrandov Studios says it has met with representatives of MGM, Columbia Pictures and Eon Productions to discuss hosting the 22nd James Bond film in Prague.
Barrandov Studio Tomas Zelazko told the Czech daily Hospodarske noviny that no decision on the shooting location had been made yet, but that the producers had been "very satisfied" with their experience shooting Casino Royale in Prague.
Czech films permeate Berlin (Variety, 2007-02-10)
With a pic in every section of the Berlinale, Czech cinema is on a roll. Jiri Menzel's "I Served the King of England" is screening in Competition, the first Czech pic to be selected for that category since Menzel's 1990 Berlinale winner "Larks on a String." David Ondricek's "Grandhotel" is in Panorama and Petr Nikolaev's "It Gonna Get Worse" made it into the Forum.
Czechs approve new money for filmmakers (ScreenDaily.com, 2006-12-21)
Czech President Vaclav Klaus has signed into law a 2007 budget amendment which adds $4.8m (CZK 100m) to state aid for Czech filmmakers, raising the total value of the State Fund for the Support and Development of Czech Cinematography to $7.6m for next year.
Babylon, Caspian booked into new Barrandov stage (ScreenDaily.com, 2006-12-12)
StudioCanal’s sci-fi thriller Babylon A.D. will be the first feature film to shoot at a new 4,000-square-meter soundstage at Barrandov Studios in Prague. Mathieu Kassovitz will direct the film, which will star Vin Diesel and Vincent Cassel.
A Prague "untouched by time" stands in nicely for Vienna (The Seattle Times, 2006-09-23)
Neil Burger's "The Illusionist" takes place in turn-of-the-century Vienna, but world travelers watching the film just might recognize another city: Prague. The film, which opens Friday, was shot in the spring of 2005 in the Czech Republic capital.
Eli Roth plans Czech shoot for HOSTEL 2 (ScreenDaily.com, 2006-07-05)
Eli Roth will begin production on Hostel 2 in September in
Czech study calls for 12.5% tax rebate on film productions (ScreenDaily.com, 2006-05-10)
A 2005 study released May 9 by the Czech Ministry of Culture calls for the creation of a 12.5% tax rebate for productions filmed in the Czech Republic and the creation of a national body to oversee a comprehensive strategy to promote domestic films abroad and boost the country as a destination for foreign productions.
Czech parliament approves big boost to state film fund (ScreenDaily.com, 2006-04-27)
Film-makers have welcomed the decision of the lower house of the Czech parliament to approve an amendment to film law which would more than triple the size of the State Fund for the Support and Development of Czech Cinematography.
Casino Royale to wrap in Czech Republic in late May (Screendaily.com, 2006-04-10)
Director Martin Campbell is scheduled to conclude principal photography on Casino Royale in the Czech Republic at the end of May. The final shots will take place in Czech spa town Karlovy Vary, which will double as Montenegro.
Czechs await Prague spring for production (Screendaily.com, 2006-04-03)
After a busy second half of 2005, Prague studios are experiencing a slow period. No major international productions have yet been announced to shoot in the Czech territory, which is not unusual.
A similar production gap opened in mid-2005 before Young Hannibal: Behind the Mask, Omen 666 and Casino Royale filled local stages.
Rumours that Part 2 of The Chronicles of Narnia would shoot in the Czech Republic could not be confirmed. Rather 2006 is shaping up to be a comeback year for local auteurs.
As previously reported in Screen International and Screendaily.com, Oscar winners Jan Sverak and Jiri Menzel have both returned to the director's chair.
Eva Green is cast as Bond girl Vesper Lynd (Screendaily.com, 2006-02-17)
One day on from the announcement that Mads Mikkelsen had been cast as the next James Bond villain two more high profile additions have been made, including the elusive information of who would play Bond girl Vesper Lynd opposite new James Bond, Daniel Craig.
Daniel Craig - the new 007 - filming in Prague (Radio Prague, 2006-02-16)
There are probably few movie-lovers unaware that the filming of the new James Bond movie Casino Royale is underway in Prague with a brand-new 007: Daniel Craig. Wednesday, though, was the first time the actor appeared officially before reporters, flanked by the film's director Martin Campbell and actress Judi Dench, who plays Bond's hard-as-nails boss 'M'. Radio Prague's Jan Velinger was at the event, and joins us in the studio to give his impressions.
Czech producers enter winter of content (Screendaily.com, 2005-12-22)
There's a certain cockiness in the Czech film industry at the moment. Maybe it's the holiday spirit or the professional-strength optimism that is required in the business - but Prague is definitely feeling its oats.
Barrandov Studios to expand in 2006 (Screendaily.com, 2005-12-19)
Barrandov Studios has announced that its owners have approved plans to build new stages to handle increasing demand at the
Czech Republic to host Edith Piaf co-production (Screendaily.com, 2005-12-12)
Director Olivier Dahan will begin shooting the Edith Piaf project La Môme on January 16 at Prague Studios in the Czech Republic.
South Korea has "Lovers in Prague" (The Prague Post, 2005-11-02)
It seems that Prague is locked in a love affair with the people of South Korea.
And, as in any good relationship, each side is doing its part: CzechTourism recently opened a branch in Seoul, the capital of South Korea, and just ordered 10,000 brochures to be printed in Korean.
Roman Polanski's "Oliver Twist" premieres in Prague (Radio Prague, 2005-09-27)
One of the world's most famous film directors, Roman Polanski, was in Prague this weekend to attend the premiere of his latest movie Oliver Twist, an adaptation of Charles Dickens' classic novel of life on the streets of Victorian London. Oliver Twist is the latest major movie to be filmed in Prague, mostly at the city's Barrandov studios. So is it any good? Theo Schwinke, editorial director of Monitor CE, publishers of the Prague Daily Monitor, was at the premiere.
Hollywood shoots trek to Czech Republic (ScreenDaily.com, 2005-09-21)
This autumn two major Hollywood productions, Omen 666 and Young Hannibal: Behind the Mask, will shoot in the Czech Republic, providing a welcome injection of cash after a slow summer and a dip in foreign orders in 2004.
"Young Hannibal" Begins Production (Dark Horizons, 2005-09-12)
Dino and Martha De Laurentiis are set to unite once again with Tarak Ben Ammar of Quinta Communications and British co-producers Chris Curling and Phil Robertson of Zephyr Films, to produce the highly anticipated BEHIND THE MASK: Young Hannibal. Petr Moravec of Czech production company, Etic Films, will also join the fold for their first collaboration together. Best selling novelist Thomas Harris, who created and authored the world shattering series, has also written the screenplay, based on his highly anticipated upcoming novel, BEHIND THE MASK.
Webber's Young Hannibal lines up for Prague shoot (ScreenDaily.com, 2005-09-12)
Peter Webber’s Behind The Mask: Young Hannibal is to start shooting on October 10th in Prague.
Dino and Martha De Laurentiis, Tarak Ben Ammar of Quinta Communications and British co-producers Chris Curling and Phil Robertson of Zephyr Films will produce the film with Petr Moravec of Czech production company, Etic Films.
Hollywood on the Vltava (Globeandmail.com, 2005-08-27)
PRAGUE -- When Hollywood film producer Jane Garnett scouted for a location to recreate early 20th-century Vienna's cobblestone streets and baroque façades, she found it 110 kilometres north of the Austrian border: in Prague.
Korean series should attract crowds of tourists to Prague (MF DNES, 2005-08-25)
The Jan Hus memorial on Old Town Square became a “wall of wishes” covered by dozens of letters yesterday. Why? Because South Korean filmmakers began filming a romantic series here that is expected to attract hoards of tourists from this Asian country to Prague.
South Korean TV series expected to draw thousands of Korean tourists to Prague (Radio Prague, 2005-08-25)
Prague's Old Town Square, Charles Bridge and other attractive parts of the historic centre are busier these days than usual. It's because a South Korean film crew are shooting a romantic TV series in the city called "Loves in Prague". It is a sequel to a popular series "Lovers in Paris" which had a regular audience of 10 million people and radically increased the number of Koreans travelling to the French capital.
Hrebejk embarks on Beauty shoot at Barrandov (ScreenDaily.com, 2005-07-29)
Leading Czech director Jan Hrebejk has begun shooting his new feature, Beauty in Trouble, at Barrandov Studios. The film is produced by Total HelpArt and Czech Television in cooperation with Barrandov Studios and HBO.
Karlovy Vary IFF helps Czech Film Commission promote production (THE OFFICIAL ENGLISH DAILY OF THE 40TH IFF KARLOVY VARY, 2005-07-05)
The Czech Film Commission presented the new Production Guide Czech Republic at the 40th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
Norton's ILLUSIONIST wraps in Prague (ScreenDaily.com, 2005-06-08)
Director Neil Burger and producer Cathy Schulman have wrapped production on The Illusionist after 46 days of shooting in various locations in the Czech Republic.
Bond goes over to the other side (Times Online, 2005-05-18)
British film-makers were shaken yesterday to discover that negotiations were under way for James Bond to defect to Eastern Europe. Casino Royale, the 21st film about the suave spy, is expected to be made in the Czech Republic.
DOOM wraps production in Prague (ScreenDaily.com, 2005-02-02)
Video game adaptation Doom wrapped principal photography at Prague’s Barrandov Studio on 28 January and is concluding work with a reduced unit this week, unit publicist Geoff Freeman told Screendaily.com. “Filming went very well and I hope we do justice to the video game,” he said.
Polanski puts a twist on Dickens (The Prague Post, 2004-11-25)
After a career that has included gritty dramas such as Rosemary's Baby , Chinatown and The Pianist, director Roman Polanski decided to make a story for children.
Polanski praises Prague as OLIVER TWIST wraps (ScreenDaily.com, 2004-11-16)
Roman Polanski concluded filming Oliver Twist in the Czech Republic yesterday (Nov 15). Principle photography began at Prague’s Barrandov Studio in July 2004. The director was enthusiastic about shooting in Barrandov’s stages and on the nearby back lot, where Czech crews built the London and village sets.
Shining some light on Everything (The Prague Post, 2004-08-19)
Elijah Wood should be home hibernating by now. Principal photography on Everything Is Illuminated, shot mostly in the countryside around Prague, finished on August 12.
Gilliam's Grimm starts 17-week Prague shoot (ScreenDaily.com, 2003-06-30)
Terry Gilliam's $75m Brothers Grimm kicks off its 17-week shoot in Prague today, with Matt Damon, Heath Ledger, Lena Heady, Peter Stormare and Jonathan Pryce in the main roles.
The shoot will travel around the Czech Republic for the next two weeks, with Czech castle- and cathedral towns including Krivoklat, Kacina, Kutna Hora and Ledec doubling for the 19th-century German countryside.
Scott takes Tristan And Isolde to Prague in August (ScreenDaily.com, 2003-06-13)
Ridley Scott's Tristan And Isolde is set to go into production in the Czech Republic at the end of August.
The film is a co-production between Quality International and ApolloMedia/ ApolloProMedia, UK-based MFF and Filmgroup 111 Prague. Moshe Diamant is set to produce and Ridley Scott oversee as Executive Producer. Kolin Luxembourg will be the service producer while Prague-based Stillking will handle the local production for the project in the Czech Republic.
Gilliam heads to Prague for Grimm shoot (ScreenDaily.com, 2003-04-20)
Terry Gilliam’s Brothers Grimm has received the final go-ahead for a shoot in Prague, with the gothic fantasy set to start a 17-week schedule at the end of June and wrap in late October.
Producers are currently in negotiation with Nicole Kidman for a small part in the film, sources in Prague told Screendaily. The film stars Matt Damon and Heath Ledger in comic turns as the brothers of fairy-tale fame, directed by ex-Monty Pythoner Gilliam (12 Monkeys, Brazil).
Location Prague attracts two new US productions (ScreenDaily.com, 2003-03-23)
Two US studio films, Brothers Grimm and First Daughter are close to confirming a shoot in the Czech Republic, joining a spate of other planned location shoots, according to sources in Prague.
MGM and Miramax are expected to give the go-ahead to Terry Gilliam's Brothers Grimm for a Prague shoot, according to local production firm Etic, which will be handling production services on the shoot together with another Czech firm, Reforma.
Czechs to introduce 20% incentive (Variaty, 1970-01-01)
Czechs to introduce 20% incentive (Variety, 0000-00-00)
After at least a decade of lobbying, the Czech government has approved an incentive plan for foreign film shoots that would refund 20% of their expenses.