One year ago, production in Prague had hit a worrying lull, with an uncharacteristic slowdown apparent on the usually booked soundstages and bustling streets of the Czech capital. Normally one of Europe’s busiest production hubs, the Czech Republic was feeling the impact of both the Hollywood strikes and the turmoil at its rebate system, which was closed for new applications for most of 2023.
“If you look back to this time last year, it was pretty dead. The number of calls I was getting, the number of budgets I was doing, the number of scouts we were putting on was very [small],” says David Minkowski, head of production at leading production services outfit Stillking. “Cut to today, and it’s almost back to where it was pre-strike.”
The turnaround is partly a consequence of Hollywood’s bounce-back from the 2023 labor stoppages, which impacted production globally. But a bigger boost has come from the introduction of a new audiovisual law that its backers say will both modernize the Czech industry and make it more competitive with neighboring countries in the restless arms race to attract more foreign productions.
“The Czech Film Fund had to adapt, as its original framework was no longer sufficient,” says Helena Bezděk Fraňková, CEO of the newly christened Czech Audiovisual Fund. “It was necessary to respond to the audiovisual policies of other countries. The world is changing, and we have to change with it.”
The new-look audiovisual law will be introduced to industry professionals during the Berlinale Series at this year’s EFM, where the Czech Audiovisual Fund is partnering with the Berlinale Co-Production Market to host a panel on Feb. 18. Participants will include Fraňková; Petr Tichý, CEO of Prague’s historic Barrandov Studios; and Vratislav Šlajer, chairman of the Assn. of Audiovisual Producers.
Robert Eggers’ “Nosferatu” was filmed in the Czech Republic.
Courtesy of Aidan Monaghan/Focus Features
Among the key provisions in the new legislation is an increase in the country’s production incentive from 20% to 25% for live-action projects, as well as the introduction of an incentive of 35% for digital production and animation. The maximum amount that can be claimed per project tripled to nearly $19 million.
The revamped Czech Audiovisual Fund will also support a broader range of productions than its predecessor, offering selective support mechanisms not only for films but for series, video games and animated projects. Its budget is expected to rise dramatically thanks to a provision that will collect levies from global streaming platforms for the first time; those funds will in turn be matched by the state, with the total budget estimated at $92 million a year.
The industry’s response has been bullish, with Tomáš Hrubý, of leading TV production outfit Nutprodukcia, describing the law’s passage as a “great success,” and Šlajer, of the producers association, insisting: “It’s going to really kickstart the Czech audiovisual industry.” Minkowski says the overhauled incentive scheme “absolutely puts us closer to where we should be” in order to continue attracting foreign productions like “Nosferatu,” the Oscar contender that was largely filmed at Barrandov.
The changes will radically overhaul domestic production, giving a dramatic boost to a TV industry struggling to stay afloat, with the Czech public broadcaster beset by financial woes and global streaming platforms sluggish to enter the local market. (“We still haven’t seen an original show from Netflix,” notes Hrubý.) Meanwhile, Martin Vandas, of prolific animation house Maur Film, which is premiering the stop-motion animated feature “Tales From the Magic Garden” in the Berlinale’s Generation Kplus strand, says the incentives will bolster the Czech Republic’s historically robust animation sector and will “open up the possibilities of developing and producing TV series and co-producing them with domestic TV and foreign partners.”
The prospect of forging new pathways into the international market is a tantalizing one for local talents — and a necessary step toward the Czech industry’s growth. “There is a new generation that is more globally experienced as an audience, and as creators,” says Šlajer. “What we need now is stronger financing…[and] more international connection — being more global in terms of the types of projects we produce and create, but also be able to be stronger co-production partners.”
Director Jiří Mádl, whose gripping period drama “Waves” was shortlisted for the best international feature Academy Award, thinks the Czech industry is ripe for an awakening. “I feel we’re in good shape — better than in previous years,” he says. “What I think we’re missing now is the attention of the outside world.”
Mádl’s “Waves,” which follows a dogged group of investigative journalists on the eve of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact’s 1968 invasion of the Czech Republic, is fittingly set at a time when Czech cinema blossomed. Could the world be ready for another Czech New Wave?
“I feel something is growing,” he says. “It’s about to explode. I feel we’re on the verge of something.”
