Lawmakers in Alaska have launched a grant scheme to fund local crew training, while also making moves to extend the state’s incentive programme. Despite hardly lacking in topographical wonders, Alaska’s been a relative newcomer when it comes to attracting outside film interest.
Location filming figures in Los Angeles levelled off in the second quarter of 2011 against the same period last year. Commercial production fell by nearly 8%, while only five feature films shooting in the city took advantage of the state tax credit, compared to 16 in the same period in 2010.
A delegation of Bollywood producers is visiting Israel to scout filming locations, meet industry personnel and attend the Jerusalem International Film Festival (JIFF). They were invited by the American Jewish Committee’s Project Interchange, designed to improve ties between Israel and India.
[slideshow id=123]Tortilla chip brand Doritos has embraced the image of the Western gunslinger and filmed its new commercial on location in Mexico. Dip Desperado charts the fictional life of Esteban Ortega, a Mexican peasant who finds fame and glory flicking Doritos rather than ‘slinging’ a gun.
A filming agreement has been signed between Ireland and Luxembourg that will enable official co-productions to access resources and financial incentives in each respective country. The signing took place over the weekend at the Galway Film Fleadh, a six-day film festival.
A survey for the Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) shows a spending rise in 2010, as well as the highest number of location shoot days in three years. Also, the appetite among US production companies for filming abroad has fallen significantly over the last few years.
The filming incentive in Washington State has been ended after local politicians decided the 30% cash rebate programme wasn’t having a big enough economic impact. More than 20 projects received collective incentives worth USD5.4 million through the course of 2010, with nearly USD20 million being channelled into the economy.
[slideshow id=121]Feature drama The Devil’s Double has filmed in Malta and Jordan, using each country as a stand-in for Iraq. Set in the late 1980s, the film tells the fact-based story of a lieutenant in the Iraqi army who is forced to be the body double of Uday Hussein, eldest son of Saddam.