ASIA HAS THE TALENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE TO HANDLE HIGH-END PRODUCTION

PHIL CHOY

Inevitably, the COVID-19 pandemic had an impact on producers’ ability to travel. But Choy is keen to forge new connections with international partners now that the world has opened up. “We stayed in contact with partners online during COVID-19, but a key priority for 2023 is to tell our story face to face. We think our members have a lot to offer the international film community, but we also see an opportunity for Asian talent to gain experience through international collaborations. So a key part of our mission this year will be to network with possible partners at events like Hong Kong FILMART, Busan Asian Contents & Film Market (ACFM) and the American Film Market.” Asia is so vast it can appear daunting to outsiders. So it helps to think of it in terms of film clusters. The Middle East, led by Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Jordan is a booming hub, as is India. Heading East, Asia-Pacific’s filming activity (excluding mainland China) tends to centre on five primary destinations: Malaysia/ Singapore, Thailand/Cambodia, Korea, Japan and Taiwan. In each of these hubs, producers can find a range of location options, a film-friendly infrastructure and incentives. Malaysia, a leading economy in Southeast Asia, is now firmly established as a production hub — with a highly attractive

35% tax rebate (recently increased from 30%). Launched 10 years ago, the Film In Malaysia Incentive (FIMI) has accepted around 147 projects to date. A rebate investment of around $140m is reckoned to have brought around $700m in terms of production value to the country. A key beneficiary is Iskandar Malaysia Studios (IMS), a state-of-the art facility in Johor, which is effectively the gateway between Malaysia and Singapore. “Business has been growing strongly as a result of FIMI,” IMS CEO Rashid Karim says, “but the 5% uplift in 2022 has undoubtedly led to a surge in applications. I also think it helps that industry players like IMS have now established their credentials.”

While most of Asia can boast great locations, the presence of IMS is clearly a huge asset for Malaysia’s ambitions. “We’re a fully integrated facility,” Karim says, “housing soundstages, HD-equipped TV studios, water tanks, period standing sets, backlots and extensive production support facilities, all within an 80-acre lot. We’re close to an amazing array of locations.”

Karim says the studio has seen a bounce since COVID travel restrictions were fully lifted in April 2022. “We recently hosted Malbatt: Misi Bakara, a big-budget production which tells the true story of the war in Somalia, from the Malaysian perspective. Over 100 Malaysian soldiers were part of the UN peacekeeping force that helped rescue American troops — the basis for the film Black Hawk Down.”

As for international projects, “several high-end productions — primarily from US, UK and China — are expected to fill up the studios starting in Q2 this year. We have a US-based production by a major studio, led by a multiple-Oscar-winning team, coming; and we also expect Q3 and Q4 to be occupied with international projects.”

The consistency of the incentive has enabled IMS to futureproof its business with key strategic investments. “Work has started on phase-two of our Colonial Asian Standing Sets,” Karim says, “modelled on pre-war Penang and Singapore. Currently over 23 buildings have been completed with the construction of a full-scale hospital building. We are designing a full-scale period jetty that extends into an adjacent lake — and will add other assets, potentially prisons and police stations.”

Karim says IMS also anticipates rising demand for water filming facilities: “We have started to develop a series of wavemaking and water-effect systems to be equipped to our 500 sq m indoor tank as well as the 65 x 65-metre Paddock tank, including dump tanks, hydronic wave makers and water blasters.”

Neighbouring Singapore does not have an incentive like Malaysia — but it is still a film-friendly location that has pulled in projects such as big-budget romantic comedy Crazy Rich Asians and the third season of Westworld. The Singapore Film Commission (SFC) estimates to have supported more than 800 projects across all formats in the last 25 years.

In location terms, Singapore’s strength is its blend of Asian and Western influences. From striking skyscrapers to period shophouses and luscious greenery, Singapore’s architecture has given it a reputation as being a ‘City in a Garden’. Among its most feted locations are Changi Airport, Chinatown, Little India, Marina Bay, the National Museum, Raffles Hotel, Sentosa Island and Victoria Theatre. Singapore has 350 parks including the world-famous Gardens By The Bay and Botanic Gardens.

Singapore is also one of the most wired countries in the region and has committed to investment in virtual production. It also has a relaxed attitude to film permitting compared with many Asian countries. Interestingly, Singapore has a long-standing alliance with the Philippines on matters relating to film and TV . In Cannes in 2023, the Singapore Film Commission organised a joint Philippines-Singapore pavilion at the Marché du Film, with the Film Development Council Philippines (FDCP).

To the north of Malaysia and Singapore, but still on the Southeast Asian mainland, Thailand has also emerged as a popular filming destination. Thailand’s experience as a tourism hub has positioned it well — and this has been boosted by the country’s incentive scheme, which offers 15-20% cash rebate. In January 2023, the Thailand Film Office (TFO) reported that 2022 had been a record-breaking year, with 348 international projects generating $182m for the country — up from $148m in 2021. Nine projects, including seven from the US, secured rebates in 2022. In total, these were granted $10.2m and invested $60m in Thailand.

Recently Thailand has hosted a slate of Netflix original productions and Paramount+ series The Blue. In the latter, Thailand’s wide range of beautiful locations were used to double for the Philippines and Australia. Other high-profile projects to visit have included Fast & Furious 9, Da 5 Bloods, BBC scripted series The Serpent and Disney+’s Ms. Marvel, which managed to meet its production targets despite COVID disruption.

The Serpent’s quest for authenticity did succumb to COVID however, as executive producer Preethi Mavahalli explains: “We were so close to completing our long shoot in Bangkok when global events meant we had to suspend production. We had planned to film for a few days in Budapest at the end of the shoot but that plan now also looked unlikely. We were finally ready to remount the shoot in August but it took place in Tring, Hertfordshire in the UK. It wasn’t quite what we had imagined but our amazing crew were able to recreate a number of international locations including Kabul, Bangkok, Paris, Mumbai and Delhi, and everything went very smoothly.”

But in normal times most of the country is accessible to production, opening up a diverse array of locations. In 2022, the TFO named capital city Bangkok, Phuket Samut Prakan, Chang Mai and Phang Nga as its top-five film locations. “Bangkok is a major transportation hub and has various studios such as Moon Star and Montri,” according to the TFO. “Its markets are popular with filming groups from Japan and Korea. Phuket is the largest island in Thailand as is especially popular with European producers.” Particular attractions near Phuket include Sirinat National Park, with its stunning white sand beaches and coral reefs.

Phuket Is The Largest Island In Thailand And Is Especially Popular With European Producers Tfo

In northern Asia, producers have intriguing options such as Japan and South Korea. Both are thought of as strong domestic production markets, with increasingly successful content export strategies. But there is also a growing ambition to host international productions — especially at a metropolitan level.

Japanese capital Tokyo is a case in point. Itto Kameshima, manager of the Tokyo Film Commission (TFC), calls Tokyo “one of the most unique cities in Japan, combining history, nature and cutting-edge technology. There is such a wide variety of spots where producers can shoot. For example, Asakusa, with its historical and cultural assets, Shibuya, the symbol of a cuttingedge city, and many Japanese gardens.”

As with any busy city, filming in Tokyo comes with certain restrictions. But Kameshima says that the Japanese capital is overcoming obstacles through technology. “Popular spots like the Shibuya Crossing have restrictions on shooting hours, so some companies have launched shooting environments in a 3D space”. An example is Geek Pictures, which operates a digital location service called Next G.

Not to be overlooked, Kameshima adds, is the TFC’s incentives programme for overseas film projects, “which includes ¥1m ($7,500) for location scouting and ¥7m for filming”.

Tokyo’s charm offensive seems to be paying off, with a growing number of movies, high-end TV and commercials visiting the city. Projects have come from countries and regions including Asia (mainland China, Hong Kong), Europe (France, Germany), and the US.

“In recent years, these include Tokyo Vice, a Japan-US co-production (HBO Max and WOWOW) which is currently flming a sequel,” Kameshima says. “Another high-profle production that came to Tokyo was Detective Chinatown, a popular Chinese flm series which flmed episode three here. As a result, the Tokyo Film Commission has developed extensive experience in assisting flming on location.”

Turning to Korea, the capital Seoul is seeking to capitalise on its reputation as a global leader in screen-based entertainment. Erica Ko, deputy general manager, international afairs, at the Seoul Film Commission says: “Seoul vividly shows the charm of the Korean wave. Since we have a strong local market, we have experienced professional crews and a strong technical infrastructure. The Seoul Metropolitan Region, comprised of Seoul, Incheon and the province of Gyeonggi, is home to 95% of Korea’s flm and TV-related companies and facilities. Over 40% of all local movies and TV productions are shot here each year.”

Ko says that Seoul and the wider Korean market have a number of high-quality studios. A key innovation in this area, she adds, is “the rise of virtual production studios. Representative studios such as Dexter Studio, VA Studio and CJ ENM Studio have been constructing virtual studios using LED Walls during this decade. According to the Ministry of Culture, the size of Korea's immersive content market, such as VR and AR, grew fve-fold between 2020 and 2022.”

According to Ko, producers visiting the city can tap into a range of incentives from the Korea Film Council and Seoul’s Metropolitan Government. “Seoul Film Commission runs three incentive programmes funded by the city government. These include location scouting support, screenplay development and production cost support.” Under the last heading, producers can access cash reimbursements “up to 30% of the production costs for foreign projects shot in Seoul — with a cap of approximately $231,000”.

Recent projects that showcase Seoul’s appeal include “US series such as XO, Kitty, a new spin-of from Netfix’s To All The Boys trilogy, and the second season of Dramaworld,” Ko says. “Last year, the flms we supported from the development stage to production cost were well received at flm festivals. These include a French feature, Return to Seoul and Ajoomma, a Singaporean-Korean feature. The directors and producers from these works mentioned that the strengths of Korean production are professional, talented, fexible crews.”

In terms of where the work comes from, Ko says: “After the successful flming of Avengers: Age of Ultron in Seoul in 2014, the number of enquiries from Hollywood productions increased, which subsequently led to more flming in Seoul. Since then, the Seoul Film Commission has supported the Production Cost Support for at least one American production every year, making the US the country that has flmed the most productions in Seoul. Alongside this, productions have come consistently from Southeast Asia, particularly Malaysia and the Philippines. France is the most consistent European country to flm in Seoul, with genres including documentaries, flms, and web series.”

Seoul is also a great gateway for other locations in Korea, Ko says, because of its comprehensive transportation network. “In addition, Korea also benefts from the Korea Film Commissions and Industry Network (KFCIN) which is located in Seoul. KFCIN is a federation that includes 13 regional flm commissions as well as several industry associations. It is an important bridge between stakeholders and is also a major inbound contact point in marketing Korea as a location.”

Korea’s second city Busan is also an important hub in its own right, says Phil Choy, who promotes his own city in parallel to his AFCNet duties.

Blessed with a state-of-the-art urban infrastructure, the city has provided a one-stop service for flmmakers for more than 20 years, Choy says. “BFC has been running sound stages inside the city and we are also developed our virtual production capabilities. We have accumulated experience supporting big projects like Black Panther, Pacifc Rim: Uprising, Pachinko and numerous Asian flms.”

In total, Choy says, the BFC supports around 150 productions yearly. In 2022, this total included 26 features and 16 streamer dramas. “Many streamer productions from the likes of Netfix, Apple TV+, Disney+, Wavve and Tving have shot here recently. Productions have included Pachinko, D.P., Sweet Home, The Glory, Jung E and Reborn Rich. In addition, features including Decision to Leave (Park Chan Wook), Broker (Kore-eda Hirokazu) and Mother (Bong Joon Ho) shot in Busan.”

According to Choy, Busan is keen to build on this foundation: “BFC works closely with local government and its various agencies to provide location services to productions shooting in Busan. The city is also preparing a huge lot for exterior flm sets to the west of Busan. This will be the largest space ever in Korea for open-air sets. In addition, new global-standard sound stages are soon to be built here.”

Another jewel in North Asia’s crown is Taipei, the capital of Taiwan, located of the coast of China in the Pacifc Ocean. Discussing the city’s many attractions, Taipei Film Commission international co-ordinator Jessie Chang says the city has a rich creative heritage, with “internationally acclaimed masters like Hou Hsiao-hsien, Lee Ping-bing, Tsai Ming-liang, Tu Du-chih and the late Edward Yang all based in Taipei. Besides cinematic talents, Taipei is also the seat of some of the best animation studios in the world.”

Like Japan and Korea, Taiwan is building on its virtual production and VFX post-production capabilities in a big push to attract international productions. There are also funding opportunities: “Taipei Film Fund exists to encourage international co-productions,” Chang says. “There is also support at a national level, from funds such as TICP (Taiwan International Co-funding Programme). Run by the Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA), this supports up to 30% of either a project’s production budget or global marketing budget.

“As of late February, we have had fve foreign productions in 2023,” Chang says. “Last year, there were a total of 556 productions in Taipei, including 61 international co-productions. Of these, 16 were feature flms.” Looking at projects set to beneft from the Taipei Film Fund in 2023, she points to: Red Line (Hong Kong), For My Country (France), My Heavenly City (Malaysia), Pierce (Singapore/Poland), Be with Me (US) and Snow In Midsummer (Malaysia). Black Ox (Japan/US) comes on stream in 2024.

Taiwan also prides itself on its tolerant culture, which Chang says was a factor in productions such as C B Yi’s Moneyboys, Abderrahmane Sissako’s The Perfumed Hill and Olivier Megaton’s recent flm project A Weekend In Taipei, all choosing Taipei. “We make sure productions know it is a friendly environment without censorship. Taiwan opens its door to all subjects including religion, politics, and LGBTQIA+. This enables flmmakers to release their creativity in the country.”