Foreign direct investment (FDI) relating to the filming of foreign productions in Spain strengthened in 2022 according to data published by Profilm, the association of key Spanish companies that specialise in providing audiovisual production services to international projects.

FDI in filming grew rapidly from 132 million euros in 2019 to reach 263 million euros in 2021. Although there was an increase of 8% in 2022, this continues the upward trend in these investments, which exceeded 288 million euros. The number of international audiovisual projects grew by 10% to 49, as Profilm's Chair, Fernando Victoria de Lecea, explained.

Entire shoots
The report, based on data provided by association members, also reveals an increase in the length of stay, which it attributes to tax incentive reforms for international productions, as approved in 2020. As a result, he explained, it is becoming more usual for productions to choose Spain for the entire shoot and not just for part of it, as was previously the case.

The increase in the number of projects also reflects growth in most of the autonomous communities. Only Madrid dropped from seven international filming projects in 2021 to five shoots in 2022. The regions that attracted the most investment were the Canary Islands, with close to 113 million euros, Catalonia (around 78 million) and Navarre (over 38 million).

Associated benefits
As an associated benefit, Profilm highlights the direct investment generated by these shoots in terms of international promotion of the chosen locations, as well as job creation in adjacent sectors.

For the first time, the report includes data indicating the investments made in 2022 by service sector. The hiring of technical equipment and specialists represented the highest cost for production companies, at 83 million euros out of a total of 288 million euros. This was followed by social security (25.6 million), technical equipment rental (24.2 million) and accommodation (23.6 million).

Audiovisual policy
In Victoria de Lecea's opinion, "it has been a positive year for developing international projects, but there is room for improvement. We trust that the future government will maintain the level of dialogue with the industry that has taken place to date and will be able to embrace the changes that our country's audiovisual policy needs in order to compete on equal terms."

Profilm's Chair took advantage of the presentation of the report  in Bilbao to announce a major upcoming study in collaboration with the Spain Film Commission. The study corresponds to a commission received from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation for implementing the Spanish audiovisual hub.

^{Photo: Profilm}