The Government of Thailand looks to increase incentives and deregulate foreign film shoots in the country, aiming to promote shooting and production. (Photo: bangkokpost.com) Danucha Pichayanan, Secretary-General of the NationalEconomic and Social Development Council, said the Centre for Economic SituationAdministration (CESA) asked related agencies at a meeting on December 3 tofind fresh ways to lure more foreign film shoots to Thailand.
New incentives should be finalised and proposed toCESA's next meeting in January, he said, as cited by The Bangkok Post.
According to Danucha, rules and regulations pertainingto foreign film shoots involve various agencies, while work permit proceduresare not convenient for film shoots, the import tax for equipment is relativelyhigh and state agencies' regulations for use of public areas are unclear.
A major obstacle is some regulations are outdated,such as a requirement that actors take a blood test for syphilis, he said.
In addition, the incentives offered in Thailand areless competitive compared with those promoted by other countries.
However, Danucha said Thailand's competitive edge isits host of attractive locations for film shoots and good tourism infrastructure.
Thailand currently offers a cash rebate equivalent to15 percent of every 50 million baht spent on a film shoot.
An extra 5 percent cash rebate is offered if foreignfilm studios hire Thai staff, promote Thai culture and shoot in second-tiertourism provinces. The cash rebate is capped at 75 million baht.
According Danucha, CESA also instructed the CreativeEconomy Agency, the Tourism Department and relevant agencies to propose freshincentives to attract international film production companies to shoot theirfilms in Thailand.
He said the most likely scenario for the newincentives include a 30 percent cash rebate for foreign filmmakers who spendbetween 50 and 100 million baht on production in Thailand.
In 2020, there were 176 foreign film shoots inThailand, of which 74 were movies, 33 were series, 28 advertisements and 41other types. The average production cost was 100-300 million baht./.
In addition, the incentives offered in Thailand areless competitive compared with those promoted by other countries.
However, Danucha said Thailand's competitive edge isits host of attractive locations for film shoots and good tourism infrastructure.
Thailand currently offers a cash rebate equivalent to15 percent of every 50 million baht spent on a film shoot.
An extra 5 percent cash rebate is offered if foreignfilm studios hire Thai staff, promote Thai culture and shoot in second-tiertourism provinces. The cash rebate is capped at 75 million baht.
According Danucha, CESA also instructed the CreativeEconomy Agency, the Tourism Department and relevant agencies to propose freshincentives to attract international film production companies to shoot theirfilms in Thailand.
He said the most likely scenario for the newincentives include a 30 percent cash rebate for foreign filmmakers who spendbetween 50 and 100 million baht on production in Thailand.
In 2020, there were 176 foreign film shoots inThailand, of which 74 were movies, 33 were series, 28 advertisements and 41other types. The average production cost was 100-300 million baht./.
VNA
