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Germany to Lead a Film Industry Reform

Germany to Lead a Film Industry Reform

And it's a lot for some people.

Thanh Lieu
February 21, 2024

Good days. Hope you’ve drank some water today, and make sure to drink some more.

Every week, Roll the Tape offers a bullet read of recent transactions and funding in the film industry, upcoming films, and music groceries of recommended tracks for you to expand your musical palate.

If you’re new here, welcome to The Produced. Check out our previous issues:

B-Roll #1: Deep Dive into Streaming Services vs. Movie Theatres
Roll the Tape #1: Studio Conglomerates On a Tight End?
Primer Issue: What in the World is the Produced Newsletter?

The Produced’ s Recent Transactions

The Saudi Film Fund partnered with MEFIC Capital and Rosa Media ventures to set up a $100 million investment for the Saudi film industry.
Amazon MGM studios is building up to 5.4 million square feet of production infrastructure in Ontario with Pinewood Toronto Studios.
Disney+ outbid Netflix and Universal Pictures to pay Taylor Swift $75 million for exclusive rights to her Eras Tour Movie.
Vietnamese Shark Minh Beta to donate all proceeds from screening “Peach, Pho and Piano” to the Vietnamese state budget for film funding - box-office is currently at only $20,573 USD.
Bollywood recently released its box office report of $1.5 billion in 2023, 30% higher than 2022.

German Film Industry: “Let’s shake up this industry - I mean the world just a little bit.”

Setbacks in budgeting is inevitable in the film industry, but seems like Germany is ready to face them head-on.

Last week, Germany’s Commissioner for Culture and Media, Claudia Roth, proposed a new direction in the film funding system. So what changes in the German Film Law?

Tax is what it is.

Live laugh love Claudia Roth. Image: Thomas Niedermueller

So what are in this new revamping plan?

Call for an annual investment of Germany’s annual $640 million USD in film funding
Make it an obligation for US and local streaming services to carve out and invest a proportion of their profits in local productions.
Replacement of the existing German Federal Film Fund and German Motion Picture Fund, which provided more than $200 million USD to support German and International projects in 2023.

Unsurprisingly, Divided Opinions

This film funding reform is undoubtedly going to be a significant boost for the German film and TV scene. But why is it not received well among all sectors within the industry?

Many producers are in favor of this tax incentive model as it provides stability and guarantee for a complete production with little to no financial hurdles that may stall the project.

But some are unhappy:

German distributor and exhibitor trade associations remain critical: the model implies that most German films would need to stay local with little to no international distribution.
Local pay-TV broadcasters are not in favor of the obligatory investment paid by streamers and other video-on-demand services - they believe it restricts their content flexibility and frequency of publication.

So?

Despite conflicting opinions, Roth still pushes this incentive forward to have it in effect on January 1, 2025. Since no films have been made under this new model, we would have to wait and see how productions come into (or not come into) fruition. Do you think Roth change the German film industry for the better?

Films, Films, Films

People have been gushing over Netflix’s series remake of the movie “One Day” staring Ambika Mod and Leo Woodall. They need a good cry.

Well, let The Produced introduce you to a film that is going to hit just as hard, if not, more. Make sure to add “Kleenex” into your expenses on the income statement for this month.

“Omar” (2013) directed by Hany Abu-Assad

Other New Highly Anticipated Releases

The Sympathizer (HBO Series), directed by Park Chan-wook and produced by A24; staring Robert Downey Jr. and Hoa Xuande.
Shogun, produced by Hiroyuki Sanada · Erin Smith · Jamie Vega Wheeler · Tom Winchester · Eriko Miyagawa (and FX productions); staring Anna Sawai and Hiroyuki Sanada.
Challengers, directed by Luc Guadagnino, produced by MGM; staring Zendaya, Mike Faist and Josh O’ Connor.