There are serious concerns in the Irish film industry regarding the future of the Section 481 tax incentive scheme, which has played a central role in the development of the industry, the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands, Ms de Valera, has acknowledged.
She was speaking yesterday at her first formal meeting with the recently formed Screen Commission of Ireland in Dublin Castle.
Film industry representatives have expressed concern about the uncertainty surrounding Section 481, since the statement by the Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, in his Budget speech last week that the incentives were currently under review.
The scheme comes up for renewal in 1999, and Ms de Valera said that the Film Industry Strategic Review Group, the think tank which she established earlier this year, was now examining an independent economic consultancy report on the incentives.
This, she said, supported the extension of Section 481. She expected to receive the final report of the think tank in January, and the statutory basis for implementing decisions on Section 481 was the 1999 Finance Bill.
It was clear that the incentives had contributed in no small measure to attracting film-makers like Steven Spielberg, Alan Parker and Mel Gibson to Ireland in recent years, said Mr Roger Greene, chief executive of the Screen Commission, but competition around the world for film productions was vicious. "These people were, and are, highly unlikely to come here if it were not for Section 481," he said.
The incentives were also vital as part of the local film-making industry, had helped to create an internationally aware indigenous sector, and created awareness of opportunities in film investment within the Irish financial sector.
The Screen Commission is charged with promoting Ireland overseas as a film location and selling the tax advantages and other incentives in operation in Ireland, as well as highlighting the facilities, professional crews and film-making experience available to outside production companies.
It will also facilitate incoming companies by providing information on casting, crews, locations, equipment, facilities and infrastructure. In addition, the commission will act as a contact point for regional film commissions and organisations around the country.
Mr Greene said that the commission would represent Ireland at the Association of Film Commissioners International (AFCI) annual Locations Trade Show in Los Angeles in February next year, and there would be an Irish film industry trade mission to Los Angeles at the same time, which Ms de Valera hopes to lead.
The Screen Commission will also attend the important American Film Market in March, and will host a joint exhibition stand with the Irish Film Board at the Cannes Film Festival in May.
The board members of the commission are professionals from film finance and production, as well as practitioners in various related fields, including the actors Pierce Brosnan and Sinead Cusack. Speaking in a pre-recorded video message to the meeting, Ms Cusack said she was delighted that the commission had now become a reality, and she hoped it would empower and enable film-makers in Ireland.
