Meet Iceland’s Changemakers: Icelandic Film Commission and Truenorth on Strengthening the Industry
In June 2022, it was announced that Iceland’s film tax incentive has been increased from 25% to 35% for major productions. The incentive includes all film and television programme production costs incurred in Iceland - with no cap on the total refund a company can receive.
To qualify, production must:
- Last for at least 30 working days
- Create at least 50 local jobs for Icelanders
- Have a minimum production spend of 350 million Icelandic Krona
In this interview, LBB speaks with film commissioner, Einar Hansen Tómasson of the Icelandic Film Commission and Karl Sigurðarson, head of service production at Truenorth, to uncover how this incentive came about and how it’s helping strengthen and support a more sustainable film industry.
LBB> Firstly Einar, tell us about how the film refund incentive came about.
Einar> Minister Lilja Alfreðsdóttir and her political party, Framsóknarflokkurinn (the Progressive Party), promised prior to the elections last fall that they would like to increase the incentive up to 35%. So this promise was to my knowledge part of the political agreement of the current government and then approved in parliament this June.
The Film Commission’s role is to promote the incentives as well as Iceland as a good place to make your film or movie. That includes branding of film in Iceland, marketing and building relationships with foreign producers.
I was appointed in a committee along with some great people from the industry and government officials, and we came up with ideas for the minister on what would be the best way to increase the incentive. Then it was the minister who took the decision.
LBB> And Karl, you mentioned that Truenorth lobbied for an increase on the film refund incentive in Iceland. Can you tell us what issues you were looking to address and how you approached the Iceland Film Commission to start the conversation?
Karl> Truenorth has always had a close relationship with the Iceland Film Commission and still does. During the process of the last 20 years, we have helped lead the increase of the tax rebate incentive step-by-step.
Our approach this time around was not only about increasing the tax rebate to make Iceland a more financially feasible option for projects, but more toward taking the next step in making the film industry more sustainable as an all-year-around business. The tax incentive helps give the industry the bump it needs to accomplish this.
Having a proper studio is a vital part of that process. To develop a proper studio, the industry needed a project that was of a scale that not only required the fantastic Icelandic landscape and locations, but also interior locations - and most importantly, a studio booked for a lengthy amount of time which would make the investment justifiable financially.
Since a project of that size had been brought to our attention recently, we saw that as an opportunity to pursue with this dream and approached authorities with a very well laid out plan and a sales pitch to die for. The rest is history.
LBB> How did the discussion pan out, was there a lot of back and forth and logistics to work out, or was it a relatively smooth process to increase the film refund incentive?
Karl> It generally went well and smoothly. As with most successes in life, you need a bit of luck. Iceland is a country of much space but few people and therefore the link from the film industry to a high rank political level is not long, so to speak. The film industry is in good relations with the authorities and government and always has been and that relationship has grown stronger over the last few decades.
Last year we had parliamentary elections in Iceland. Leading up to the elections, the general film community in Iceland raised the importance of filmmaking in Iceland as a marketing tool for attracting tourists - something especially needed in a small, tourist-dependent economy post covid-19.
One of the political parties seized the occasion and made the task of increasing the tax rebate a part of their political agenda before the election. And guess what? That same party ended up attaining their best results in decades and became a vital part of a coalition government that is in power today. This element was vital in our approach and helped a lot. Eventually, it became more about HOW we were going to achieve it rather than IF it w2as possible.
LBB> How do you see this move benefiting both the Icelandic film industry and the wider industry?
Einar> I see a great benefit with the new incentive and Iceland is now competitive on the international arena. I am sure that this will change the infrastructure even more for the better, with new investments in studios. This will also strengthen the PR of Iceland in general for tourism. I am sure that the city of Reykjavik will be used more as a location when it comes to filming.
Karl> This move will strengthen and support every aspect of the industry in Iceland. Two decades ago, we dreamed of becoming a known and go-to film location, and in the last decade or so we have accomplished that and then some.
Now, we are taking the next step towards the future and aim to become a country that can provide full-scale film services for all sizes and shapes of projects with a very strong and fully developed infrastructure. Not bad for an island in the middle of the North Atlantic with less than 400,000 people.
The foundation of Truenorth as a business will always be the magical and unique locations. Based on that, we have been working hard to develop an infrastructure that is now on the verge of creating something special. At Truenorth, we are not only happy to be a part of that, but have been leading that development.
LBB> What more can be done in future to continue this positive trajectory?
Karl> Stay professional, keep up the good work and follow the latest trends and developments in the industry. We at Truenorth believe that the future of filmmaking will not only be about money, though it will always be an important factor. We think that with growing general knowledge about the environment, energy of the future, elements like sustainability, human rights, gender equality and more will play a part in film production.
The same goes for the consumer side. Some decades ago, animals were suffering in filmmaking, now that is not happening as much. In the same way I think the coming generations will evaluate, for example, the carbon footprint when deciding what to see on TV or in cinema. Being one of the greenest countries in the world energy-wise, the future of Iceland filmmaking and Iceland in general, is very bright.
LBB> Any other interesting insight you would like to share?
Karl> Making film production a more family friendly business is maybe something to be considered. Long working hours and periods is maybe not as good or beneficial as we have always considered. We have already produced longer projects on shorter working days and weeks, as is common in Europe, resulting in a better outcome delivered by a happier crew at a desirable cost.
