Just two months ago, Navarra formally presented Navarra Film Industry, the brand that brings together the professional audiovisual sector in the region and aims to project the community as a territory for the development of the industry.
The regional industry has unique benefits, such as a tax deduction of up to 40%, the most attractive in the whole of Spain, the boost of the Patronage law or the significant public funding that irrigates projects at all stages of production.
On the other hand, the support experienced by the sector has gone beyond the financial aspect. There has also been a commitment to the consolidation of festivals that already have a solid trajectory or the accompaniment from the public sphere to the agents of the sector in the production process.
Just two months ago, Navarra formally presented Navarra Film Industry, the brand that brings together the professional audiovisual sector in the region and aims to project the community as a territory for the development of the industry.
The presentation was accompanied by the publication of a new website that brings together information on many of the differential advantages of the region. From official aids such as Generazinema, for the production of films and other audiovisual works that are in the project phase, to the particularities of the tax incentive or the Patronage Law and the services offered by the Navarra Film Commission to accompany filming in the region.
In addition, the website includes, for the first time, information on all the Navarran productions that are in different stages of development and that, through this platform, will have a channel that will allow them to access financing, inform if they are in pre-sales or distribution or if they are looking for co-production.
A powerful sector
The Navarra Film Industry brand is the confirmation of the industry’s muscle. Navarra currently has a very competitive ecosystem, which places it as a relevant player in the sector. The achievement of this milestone, however, has not been due to chance or luck, but several key decisions to achieve this development. The first of these was the strategic reflection process carried out in 2015 on what were then nothing more than incipient trends. There, the Autonomous Community anticipated phenomena as commonplace today as the digitization of content or new consumption habits and formats such as on-demand television.
At the same time, a close, agile and fluid public-private collaboration was established, which facilitated the birth and consolidation of the Audiovisual Cluster of Navarra (Clavna). This currently brings together a large group of 40 local companies, which provide the degree of professionalism, knowledge and innovation required for increasingly complex filming in terms of structure, support and logistics.
The combination of both elements allowed the audiovisual industry of Navarra to be incorporated as a ‘strategic sector’ in the smart specialization strategy (S3 and later S4).
At the same time, the number of shootings carried out in the region has increased notably. This is reflected in the data provided by the Navarra Film Commission and NICDO. For example, in 2019, Navarra hosted 100; in 2020, 95; and last year, 141.
"Investing in talent, training and innovation will allow us to be attentive to new trends and respond to upcoming needs and habits."
Virginia Jönas
Visual Comunicación
Unique benefits and advantages
The industry also benefits from a tax deduction of up to 40%, the most attractive of all the State, since its approval in the previous legislature. Or various lines of financing promoted by industry agents, which in the last year have reached 1.38 million euros of investment.
The call with the largest economic amount is Generazinema Producción, with 937,499.51 euros, which in the last fiscal year has allowed twenty-three companies to produce eighteen films, including feature films and short films. On the other hand, the Generazinema Development call, of a multi-annual nature, has a financial endowment of 250,000 euros. The purpose of this line of aid is to support projects in the development phase, that is, those in which the preparation and design of an audiovisual production is being carried out, and which last year benefited twelve companies. In addition, Generazinema Exhibición contemplates 100,000 euros in aid for the programming of film exhibition activities.
Likewise, Navarra’s Cultural Patronage Law offers important tax benefits to those companies and individuals who collaborate with cultural and artistic projects considered of social interest. This tax benefit reaches an 80% deduction of the personal income tax in the first 150 euros and 40% in the rest, in the case of individuals; likewise, it reaches 30% of the net quota in the first 300 euros and 20% in the following ones in the case of companies.
In any case, the support that the sector has experienced has gone beyond the financial aspect. There has also been a commitment to the consolidation of festivals that already have a trajectory and certain renown outside our borders, such as ‘Conecta Fiction’ or ‘Lo que viene’. The latter has promoted the opportunities offered by Tudela and the Ribera region, in the south of the community, as a film set. In its last edition, its promoters announced as a “great novelty” the launching of an accelerator for eight audiovisual projects in their early stages.
"We need project leaders tailored to what the international market demands."
Carlos Fernández de Vigo
Dr. Platypus & Ms. Wombat
A giant set
And we must not forget that, in addition to all of the above, Navarra’s assets in the form of natural, urban and historical settings of great beauty and scenic value must also be taken into account. These are ideal proposals to host national or international productions, attracted by the reference of quality and professionalism with which the world of cinema associates the region.
Navarra has positioned itself as an important location for filming series and movies. Thanks to its architecture and natural landscapes, it is increasingly common to see armies of savages on horseback (as in the case of Game of Thrones) or creatures as grotesque as those that appear in ‘The Witches of Zugarramundi‘, whose director, Álex de la Iglesia, called Navarre “one of the most cinematographically attractive places in Europe”.
Precisely, the Navarre public entity NICDO has designed an advisory service beforehand on the filming locations that best meet the interests and needs of each project. It also offers a list of images of locations that facilitate the search for the most suitable spaces for each project and facilitate contact with professionals and companies specializing in locations.
"Navarra is one of the most cinematographically attractive places in Europe".
Alex de la Iglesia
Film director
Emerging success stories
Thanks to the public-private drive to dynamize the sector, in recent years very prominent companies are emerging and consolidating in various stages of the value chain.
Arena Comunicación is a clear example. This Navarra-based production company, with more than twenty years of experience, stands out for the production of documentaries such as ‘Pura Vida’, which was seen in a multitude of territories, channels and platforms, from the United States to Japan; ‘Muros’, produced for Discovery Channel; or ‘Dardara’, which reached the top of the box office in its premiere.
Another paradigmatic example is Visual Comunicación, a local production company, which has been present, for example, in different series and documentaries made for the ‘Olympic Channel’ of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) since 2017. It has also worked for firms such as Endesa or Gamesa Electric, among others, and developed the audiovisual content for the Michelin Guide since 2018.
Beyond cinema, Navarra’s sector has other recognized alternatives within the new audiovisual languages and technologies. This is the case of Dr. Platypus & Ms. Wombat, which has led the first experience in animation for the training program of the Navarran Employment Service. Another of its outstanding projects has been ‘Emotional films‘, where 40 professionals from the sector have collaborated with researchers from the University of Navarra and the Public University of Navarra (UPNA).