The Australian government is going big and offering Hollywood productions $280 million to attract significant productions.
The announcement was made on Friday by Prime Minister Scott Morrison. The new filming incentive will provide cash grants over the next several years. It is important to note; the new filming incentive is on top of Australia's Location Offset system, which provides production rebates for work done in the country.
The Location Incentive program is also on top of a $175 million package revealed last month to support those negatively affected by the Coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. $34.4 million was given to the film and TV industry and insurance policies to allow film and TV productions to resume filming.
“The Location Incentive is an economic multiplier. It will sustain the vitality of Australian screen production and support jobs and local businesses,” said federal Arts Minister Paul Fletcher.Â
The government anticipates 8,000 jobs over the next seven years and will help nearly 10,000 businesses.
What has helped Australia's film industry amid the Coronavirus pandemic, is how the government managed the outbreak better than the United States. Consequently, filming in Australia is more attractive than in other parts of America.
Currently, ten movies had access to $86 million of filming incentives under the new Australia Location Offset program. Such films, including “Thor” and “Godzilla.” Currently, Marvel's “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” are taking advantage of the rebate program.
“South Australia has increased its investment in high-value international production in recent years, with productions including the state's biggest ever screen production ‘Mortal Kombat' demonstrating the state's capacity to deliver. ‘Mortal Kombat' has provided a strong pipeline of work through the entire South Australia screen sector, including significant work for our world-class post-production, digital and visual effects companies,” said South Australia's Minister for Innovation and Skills, David Pisoni, told Deadline. “With South Australia one of the safest places in the world right now, and one of the first places in the world to resume production, the state is ideally placed to take a slice of this new fund in the post-COVID recovery.”
It is important to note, the number of auditions and casting calls for Australian actors has skyrocketed since late June. We've reported at least 20 auditions since April 2020. Meanwhile, many productions are still getting started leaving many American actors and crew members looking for a job.
In related news, last June, a new report by The Age reported Australia could see a major rise in the number of Hollywood productions. Ausfilm leader Kate Marks says the agency has “18 Hollywood feature films and TV shows looking to film in Australia and planning on spending over $900 million.
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