Hollywood on the Danube

„Yet for all of Budapest’s versatility as a film set, it is economic hard times that are helping to turn Hungary into Hollywood on the Danube. Dozens of foreign film and television productions are choosing Budapest over Prague, Paris, London or Sofia for shooting in Europe, drawn largely by a 20 percent rebate on production costs, a weak local currency and low wages for crews. Every penny you can save and put on the screen is a huge boon for filmmakers - said Steve Auer, the Budapest-based director of operations for Raleigh Studios, one of the largest independent film studios in the United States. In April, Raleigh — drawn in part by the rebate program — opened a sprawling new 16-hectare, or 40-acre, complex on the outskirts of Budapest. The $75 million facility contains a 3,700-square-meter, or 40,000-square-foot, sound stage that is among the biggest in Europe or the United States. (...)

Hungary has a film tradition more than a century old. It has produced industry titans like Adolph Zukor, the founder of Paramount Pictures; Sir Alexander Korda, the founder of London Films and producer of The Third Man, among other film classics; and Michael Curtiz, the director of Casablanca. But the country began to gain a financial edge in 2004 when the government approved a 20 percent rebate for foreign and domestic film productions. The Hungarians sweetened the incentive in 2008 by extending the rebate to some production expenses incurred outside of Hungary.

A foreign film production in Hungary receives the 20 percent discount through a partnership with a local production company, which typically supplies everything from lighting to crews. The local production company gets the rebate from teaming up with a registered Hungarian company that provides the financing and can deduct the contribution from its income taxes.”