MOSCOW – The tax rebate program adopted in the Czech Republic last year, has again attracted foreign film crews to the country.
This year, the Czech government is to pay 300 million Czech korunas ($16.8 million) as a production rebate. Of that amount, 230 million korunas ($12.9 million) have already been distributed between 17 projects that have submitted applications, Ludmila Claussova, director of the Czech Film Commission, told The Hollywood Reporter. The total number of projects that have passed the cultural test and are eligible for a rebate, is 25.
“It is going very quickly,” Claussova said. “It’s only the year’s second month, and nearly all the cash has been allocated. We see a big interest in the rebate program and we may have to negotiate with the government to have [the total amount allocated as rebates] to be increased.”
The Czech Republic was the last popular shooting destination in Europe to adopt a tax incentive program for foreign crews. The rebate scheme came into effect in June 2010, and a combined total of 177 million korunas ($9.3 million) was paid last year as a rebate to 21 projects, including Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, Odchazeni and Rockstar.
Among the projects to receive a rebate this year are A Royal Affair (Zentropa Entertainments, Sirena Film), starring Mads Mikkelsen, the TV pilot Missing (ABC Studios, Stillking Films), and a U.S. independent movie with the working title Wenceslas Square.
According to Claussova, the introduction of the rebate scheme really helped to bring international film production back to the country. “We’re back on the map,” she said.