30/06/2025 - The association of production companies PROFILM blames Spain's drop in competitiveness compared to other European countries on the lack of fiscal adjustments

PROFILM president Fernando Victoria de Lecea during the report's presentation

Foreign investment in Spain’s film sector, including shoots, post-production services and visual effects, has seen a decline in 2024, dropping by 33.6% compared to 2023. According to figures released by PROFILM, investment has fallen from 197.4 million euros in 2023 to 129.9 million euros in 2024. These figures correspond to 27 projects carried out across nine Spanish autonomous communities, compared to 37 in the previous year. PROFILM brings together Spanish production companies that provide services to international productions. Its members, (including Filmax, Nostromo Pictures and El Ranchito, among others) have participated in 85% of international film shoots in Spain over the last decade. The organisation's annual report was presented in Barcelona at an event co-organised with the Catalunya Film Commission, a body of the Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies (ICEC) under the Department of Culture.

In addition to the decline in investment, the report notes a 16.5% reduction in the number of new hires, falling from 10,747 to 8,510. The report highlights a significant impact on sectors such as accommodation, which received 13.3 million euros in investment, followed by technical equipment rental, with 9.1 million euros, and location costs, which accounted for more than 6 million euros. Also noteworthy are services related to travel, visual effects, set design and transport, demonstrating the wide-ranging benefits that these film shoots bring to the local economy.

Presented by the organisation's president, Fernando Victoria de Lecea, the report details that, despite the general decline, Catalonia has tripled its investment volume with eight projects worth 41.3 million euros. The Canary Islands also have eight projects underway with an investment of 42.7 million euros. The Valencian Community has exceeded 14.8 million euros, followed by Andalusia with twelve projects. Asturias joins as a new destination with two productions and a direct impact of nearly three million euros. The Balearic Islands lost ground, with just two films (totalling six million euros), while the Basque Country also had two projects (worth almost five million in total) and Galicia had one. Madrid has not registered any international filming activity during this period. However, the Spanish capital leads in the post-production and visual effects sector with two projects totalling 3.1 million euros in 2024.

Fernando Victoria de Lecea pointed out that "among the possible causes of this decline is the fact that since 2022, most European countries have updated and strengthened their tax incentive systems to attract a greater volume of productions and have increased their presence in international audiovisual markets. Spain, however, maintains a more rigid tax system that is less responsive to competing markets.”

Since the introduction of tax incentives in 2021, the report notes that other European countries have continued to adapt their models to the sector’s evolving needs. For example, France and Hungary offer a 30% incentive and Italy 40%. Therefore, PROFILM proposes improvements in the following areas: for filming, establishing a single 30% deduction and guaranteeing the return of incentives; and for post-production, reducing the minimum expenditure required to access the incentive from 200,000 euros and increasing the percentage of the incentive itself.

(Translated from Spanish)