International Filmmakers Offered Tax Incentives to Film in Georgia

Georgia is taking steps to become an attractive place for international cinematographers and to improve the local film industry.

Foreign film makers are being encouraged to use the unique Georgian landscape and architecture to shoot their films.

The Georgian Government has launched the Film in Georgia initiative to help develop the local film industry and get Georgia on the map as an international film location. Filmmakers who shoot movies, television series and documentary films are encouraged to choose Georgia as their filming location.

The initiative was part of the state program Produce in Georgia, which supports entrepreneurship and works to increase the country’s export potential.

As a part of the Film in Georgia initiative the country is going to launch a tax refund system with a 20% rebate for the qualifying expenses and an extra 2% for any Georgian elements.
This rebate will cover productions that cost at least $300’000 for feature films and $150’000 for documentaries for productions that will take place in Georgia and will spend a minimum of three days shooting in the country.

David Vashadze, Head of Exports and Distribution at the Georgian National Film Centre, told the Film New Europe website, which provides news about film and TV industries in Central and Eastern Europe, that interest in filming in Georgia already exists and to ease the financial side of filming and the customer oriented incentive scheme will increase the number of foreign film productions in Georgia.

He told the FNE “We think that this decision is crucially important for the Georgian film industry. There are many film production companies looking for new and very diverse territories. Low bureaucracy and a film friendly atmosphere are very important, but without financial incentives the possibility of attracting of big number of foreign productions is not possible.”

Photo by Giorgi Mrevlishvili.

Tamar Svanidze