The budget presentation of the Minister of Finance has caused widespread concern in the Finnish film industry, as possible cuts will critically affect the industry’s operations.
The cuts in the budget presentation would at worst take international cooperation away from Finland and make it difficult for domestic productions to be competitive among international productions. Illustration image. Antti Mannermaa
The budget proposal of the Minister of Finance will be published on October 9 to the parliamentary board, which will decide whether the proposal will go through as it is.
In the film industry, the decision is awaited with trepidation. If the proposed cuts come to pass, they are expected to have a crippling effect on domestic film production, international operations, and the maintenance of cinemas.
According to the budget presentation, 1.3 million euros will be cut from the Finnish Film Foundation’s budget. The Finnish Film Foundation is responsible for the preservation of movie theaters, the development and production of domestic films, and film festivals. In addition, the av production incentive may be terminated, as it has not been granted a continuation in the budget proposal.
CEO of Suomen Filmikamari ry Tero Koistinen commented on the situation in the film industry and preparing for cuts to Iltalehti.
– Surgeries are boring, Koistinen describes.
– According to our information, the finance minister’s budget presentation is the only thing that is black and white on this point. Money has only been set aside for old commitments regarding the production incentive, and 1.3 million will be cut from the Finnish Film Foundation’s budget, Koistinen confirms.
Preparing for the worst
Domestic film production and distribution are already preparing for the fact that the government will implement the cuts in the budget proposal. The end of the av production incentive in particular would have a crippling effect on film production in Finland.
Executive director of the association of production companies, Audiovisual Producers Finland Laura Kuulasmaa says that the incentive is an instrument administered by Business Finland to attract foreign productions and investments to Finland. At the same time, domestic production is internationalized with its help.
– The incentive model is a risk-free, automatic money-making machine for the state, so it is not out of place. The production incentive finances itself and generates many times more work and income. They are really critical money for the industry, Kuulasmaa says.
If the incentive is removed, international cooperation, which has been invested in in Finland since 2017, will come to nothing. Its operation is an important part of film productions and international collaborations.
– This comes at the worst possible moment. Finland’s reputation has improved internationally, and now more and more international projects would be coming to Finland, he commented on the cuts.
Removing the incentive means that international and domestic productions will decrease. At the same time, the turnover from productions will decrease significantly, causing the employment situation to change and the number of productions to decrease due to a lack of funding.
International productions
Kuulasmaa says that the av production incentive has so far brought significant productions and projects to Finland. At the same time, it has increased the export of domestic productions abroad.
The incentive has enabled Finnish drama series, such as Ivalo, Carp and Sorjonen, rise to export products. At the same time, domestic animation expertise, such as The Moomins, and international interest in VFX, i.e. post-processing of visual effects, has increased. For example Christopher Nolan’s You doFinnish know-how can be seen in the post-production of the film.
The production incentive has also brought Hollywood productions to Finland, which have been filmed in Helsinki and Tampere, for example. At the same time, they have brought investments to Finland. Granting the incentive requires that at least 25% of the production budget is foreign money and a certain minimum budget has been defined for the productions.
As a result of such cooperation, a domestic was born Gomovie that came out last year.
The film Sisu, starring Jorma Tommila, is a production made possible by a production incentive, where you can see both domestic and international know-how in the film industry. PDO
Industry concern
Koistinen feels that the removal of the incentive will be a special decision, if it really comes true. The Av production incentive is a payment credit for international production carried out in Finland. The incentive does not need additional funds from the state, only a concession.
– All countries have production incentives. If we don’t have it, we won’t come here. That’s why we really hope that an interpreter will come before the budget proposal goes to the parliament for consideration, Koistinen states seriously.
The uncertainty of the current situation regarding possible cuts is already partly reflected in the future, because in terms of productions it should already be possible to predict which projects and joint works can be accepted within the framework of funding.
According to Kuulasmaa, a proposal for an incentive and a budget for this year and next year would have been added in the budget rush, but this is not reflected in the documents.
– International productions will not come to Finland if there is no incentive. And you can’t call in December to ask if you’re coming in January, because you have to be able to predict the business, Kuulasmaa describes the precarious situation.
In addition, the budget cut for the film foundation causes concern. Koistinen states that Finnish movie theaters will suffer the most, because the digitalization of movie theaters made in 2012 is no longer up to date due to developments.
According to Koistinen, the technical equipment in many cinemas should be renewed soon. If there are no funds for renewal, the future outlook of theaters can be fatal. Koistinen believes that in this situation, some movie theaters would have to close their doors.
And this would be just one of the effects of the film foundation’s budget cut.
Government cuts would not only affect film productions, but it would also affect producers, creators, cinemas and what content is made and offered to viewers. Illustration image. Antti Mannermaa
Long-term consequences
The cuts in the budget presentation would have a critical impact on international joint ventures, the number of domestic productions, and jobs in the industry. For citizens, the changes in the industry would be reflected, for example, in terms of program offerings and movie theaters.
Ending the production incentive would make it difficult to finance domestic drama series and would move productions to, for example, the Baltic countries, and international productions that are profitable for Finland would be moved elsewhere entirely.
On their part, Koistinen and Kuulasmaa hope that there has been a mistake in the budget proposal related to the av industry or that the new entries have been forgotten in the parliamentary bulletins. Otherwise, the outlook for domestic production will darken in the middle of the best internationalization period.
– There is strong support for the issue from the governing parties and the incentive can be found in the government program, but the issue is not visible in public documents. Kuulasmaa sums up that the budget presentation only shows reservations for money already granted.
A cut of the incentive would not only affect domestic film production, but would have far-reaching consequences in other areas as well.
Kuulasmaa emphasizes that the export of film and TV content also has an impact on the field that offers subcontracting services, such as accommodation and tourism services. AV products are also a significant channel for the export of music and literature, and for the development of the growing animation and virtual productions also in the domestic gaming industry.
– The production incentive has a significant impact on society more broadly than just the growth and employment of the industry, Kuulasmaa clarifies.
– We hope that things will still change, Koistinen concludes.