Hellboy 2, Transporter 3, Season of the Witch and The Borgias – just to mention a few from the endless list of titles shot in Hungary (link to royal Budapest film culture subpage). What brought the companies to Budapest from all over the world? The artistry, craftsmanship and low costs are inevitable just like the highest level of production value for movies of all sizes. But there is a lot more - let’s see the whole list about the advantages of filming in Hungary!
1. 30% tax rebate
TV-films, series, feature films, animation short movies and documentary projects all have the potential to receive the tax rebate. The incentive is available through local business companies who receive tax relief after their support of films. Up to 25% of your budget can be spent outside of Hungary and still have your project remain eligible for the 30% tax rebate (link to blog about tax rebate).
2. Low costs
In addition to the tax rebate, Hungarian workforce and rental fees are much lower than in the Western European region. Companies can save up to 30% on that compared to those countries. Oh, don’t you forget: you still get a top-notch service!
3. Beauty and scale
While the diverse architecture is an obvious attraction for productions, it’s the scale of the city that makes Budapest a location-rich filming destination. Budapest is Europe’s eighth largest city and expresses this through spacious avenues, vibrant walking streets, vast public squares, beautiful bridges, sprawling parks and countless signature buildings and castles.
4. Hollywood-standard studios and back lots
Hungary has an impressive number of film studios with an array of back lot sets and state-of-the-art sound stages. The wide range of stages available allows productions of all sizes to take advantage of the incredible set-building expertise available in Hungary. The supreme artistry and low costs make it ideal for productions needing to build entire worlds practically.
5. Incredible talent pool
Budapest is rich in talent due to a very large performing arts community – and with the amount of film productions happening each year – from big studio films, TV shows, mini-series and so on – there are plenty of opportunities for actors to get valuable on-screen experience.
+1 International professionals
Some of the Hungarian production companies are designed to utilize international ties to the arts and entertainment world to cultivate original projects in feature film, TV, commercials, music videos, and various forms of web content. Just like The Royal Budapest Film Co. (introduction link), that is fuelled by award-winning professionalism (including 2 Emmy nominations, a Grand Prix at Cannes and a spot in the Clio Hall of Fame) and inspired by one of the cinema’s richest histories.