Germany’s Hastily Passed New Film Funding Law Has Room for Improvement but Is ‘Good News’ for Hollywood, Industry Experts Say

variety.com:

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Germany’s film and TV industries will kick off 2025 with an overhaul to the country’s funding system for productions that, besides providing a local boost, is also good news for Hollywood.

The German parliament on Friday, in its last session before being dissolved, pushed through a watered down version of the country’s long-gestating new film funding law that will basically streamline the process through which local productions get subsidies that are financed by various levies, including on movie admission tickets.

The still partly provisional new law also raised Germany’s existing cash back production grant by 5% to 30%, which “makes Germany more competitive for incoming productions,” says producer Philipp Kreutzer, who is among the founders of Munich-based Penzing Studios and has been servicing Hollywood productions such as the second season of Nicole Kidman-starrer “Nine Perfect Strangers” and “Cliffhanger 2″ (pictured above).

The good news for Hollywood is that – amid turbulence due to Germany’s political crisis – the existing incentive “has been increased and optimized,” Kreutzer adds, noting that he just received €11 million ($11.45 million) from the cash grant for “Riddick: Furya,” the fourth installment of the “Riddick” franchise toplining Vin Diesel, production for which is now in prep.