{"id":108593,"date":"2025-10-30T09:23:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-30T09:23:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/108593\/"},"modified":"2025-10-30T09:23:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-30T09:23:07","slug":"earth-showcases-thailands-30-film-incentive-at-tokyo-fest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/108593\/","title":{"rendered":"Earth’ Showcases Thailand’s 30% Film Incentive at Tokyo Fest"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tThailand has transformed from a scenic backdrop into one of Asia\u2019s most competitive production hubs, backed by enhanced film incentives and robust infrastructure, according to Apinat Obb Siricharoenjit, partner and line producer at Living Films, who presented at the MPA<\/a> seminar at the Tokyo International Film Festival<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\tSpeaking at the event, the \u201cAlien: Earth<\/a>\u201d line producer detailed Thailand\u2019s journey from hosting location shoots to becoming a full-service production destination trusted by studios and filmmakers worldwide. The country has successfully increased its film incentive to 30% on local spend without any cap, up from the initial 15% when first introduced in 2017, with an uplift to 20% before the recent increase at the end of last year.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWhat you just saw is actually evidence that Thailand is no longer just a backdrop of any film. It\u2019s rather now developed into one of Asia\u2019s most competitive production hub trusted by studios and filmmakers all over the world,\u201d Siricharoenjit said, following a video showcase of films produced in the country.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe production manager, whose company Living Films has put at least 15 films through Thailand\u2019s incentive program and was among the first to utilize it, emphasized that the country\u2019s appeal extends beyond financial incentives. \u201cIt\u2019s also the infrastructure, the crew and the creativity of the local people,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n

\n\tThailand\u2019s success stems from collaboration between government agencies and the private sector. The Ministry of Culture\u2019s Department of Cultural Development and the Department of Tourism work alongside Thailand\u2019s film office and private companies, with industry professionals sitting on advisory boards to guide policy development. \u201cOur government recognizes that film is not just art. It is an industry and a bridge to soft power,\u201d Siricharoenjit noted, adding that stable government policies and competitive incentives have been crucial to attracting international productions.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe scale of production activity has created substantial economic impact. \u201cAlien: Earth\u201d alone generated 24,000 jobs across the country, with 1,600 local crew members on weekly payroll and a construction crew of 450 people. The production bought out hotels in Krabi in southern Thailand and chartered planes for the shoot.<\/p>\n

\n\tSiricharoenjit emphasized the importance of crew pipeline development, noting that local departments have grown from small units to global-scale teams. \u201cCrew became bilingual, trained by working side by side with the best people in Hollywood, Europe, Korea, Japan,\u201d he said. However, he acknowledged challenges when multiple major productions overlap. During \u201cAlien: Earth\u201d production, at least 70% of Thailand\u2019s crew base was employed, and the situation became more strained when \u201cJurassic World\u201d arrived, bringing 400 crew members to service their shoot and competing for locations.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cAlien: Earth\u201d presented unique challenges that expanded Thailand\u2019s capabilities. \u201cThere are departments and sections that we never done in Thailand before, like, for example, we never had a creature department,\u201d Siricharoenjit revealed, explaining how collaboration with international teams helped develop new skills. The elaborate creature eggs featured in the production were crafted by Thai artisans.<\/p>\n

\n\tFilm production continues to drive tourism long after cameras stop rolling. Maya Bay, featured in \u201cThe Beach\u201d (2000) starring Leonardo DiCaprio, remains a popular destination despite being \u201cjust only a small bay. Actually. It\u2019s really tiny.\u201d The Lebua hotel, which featured in \u201cThe Hangover Part II\u201d (2011), still offers a Hangover Suite as one of its best-selling accommodations and serves a Hangover cocktail among its top sellers. More recently, \u201cWhite Lotus<\/a>\u201d shot at a property in Koh Samui saw occupancy rates surge after the first two episodes aired, demonstrating \u201cthe economic impact of international films.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe influx of international productions has catalyzed infrastructure development. \u201cThe ecosystem starts, and it\u2019s followed with all the vendors, sound stages, rental houses, equipment, base. It\u2019s all growing because of all these international productions that came in, and that\u2019s the demand for it,\u201d Siricharoenjit explained. <\/p>\n

\n\tThe combination of global expertise and local craftsmanship distinguishes Thailand\u2019s offerings. \u201cArt directors with infused local textures, costume teams that understand fabric traditions, crafts people, construction team who built sets. This mix of global skills and local artistry is what makes Thailand truly different,\u201d he said. \u201cEvery production leaves more than images on the screen, and film is more than production. It is identity, influence and memory.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tTo maintain its super hub status, Siricharoenjit stressed the need for continued evolution. \u201cWe must keep incentives competitive and predictable. Speed of approval, transparency of audit, and you must keep improving on the incentive,\u201d he said, adding that the country must continue connecting film to culture. \u201cWe must continue trying film to culture, not just action films in Bangkok or epics in jungles, but dramas in historic towns, stories that showcase our creative cities, our crowds and our music. A super hub is not only a service platform, it is also a cultural part.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Thailand has transformed from a scenic backdrop into one of Asia\u2019s most competitive production hubs, backed by enhanced…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":108594,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[19569,156,409,78162,111,139,69,12330,51565],"class_list":["post-108593","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-alien-earth","tag-entertainment","tag-movies","tag-mpa","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-tokyo-international-film-festival","tag-white-lotus"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108593","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=108593"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108593\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/108594"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=108593"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=108593"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=108593"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}