NEWS

When the budget for 2016 was presented, the Municipal Council majority voted by a broad to award a grant to support the Copenhagen Film Fund’s work, in order to create growth and employment in the Capital Region.

The Municipality doubled its grant to the Fund, and it now stands at 15 million kroner for the coming year.

As a result, the Fund now has even greater scope to invest in overseas Film and TV productions, thereby attracting production to the capital, creating jobs and continued growth.

Carl Christian Ebbesen, Copenhagen’s Culture Mayor, warmly welcomes this broad based support for backing the Fund.

“There is a great deal of competition involved in allotting funding priorities in a budget, so this is an expression of the respect that exists for the good work done by the Copenhagen Film Fund in attracting overseas Film Production. The majority of our members concur that the money we are awarding will be recouped many times over for the benefit of the entire capital,” Carl Christian Ebbesen says.

This grant means that the Municipality of Copenhagen is still the Fund’s major contributor. The Fund is currently in discussions with its other contributors, including, among others, the Capital Region and a variety of Zealand Municipalities and private investors – this with the intent of bringing in another 15 million kroner of investment in 2016.

“The Copenhagen Municipality’s contribution demonstrates that the Fund is succeeding in developing the film business into a growth industry. It sends out a strong signal in line with the Industry Minister Troels Lund Poulsen’s statement that creative business such as Film and TV haver great potential as drivers of growth. For this reason, our goal over the coming year is to involve the State in attracting production from overseas, thereby creating additional growth and employment, while at the same time contributing to the development of the Danish film business,” says CEO at Copenhagen Film Fund, Thomas Gammeltoft.

The Copenhagen Film Fund was set up in 2013, and over the past three years has invested in film and TV productions choosing to shoot in the region, thereby bringing in revenue. These include high-end series such as Wallander, Barnaby, and The Bridge. Most recently, the Fund has invested in two major feature films, The Danish Girl and The Wave, both selected for the Toronto International Film Festival. Norway’s The Wave has already sold to 130 countries and has been seen by 500,000 Norwegians since its premiere on August 28th.

A report from Copenhagen Economics shows that the Fund’s investments have produced substantial returns. For every Danish krone invested in a production, the Capital Region has recouped between 3.5 and 6.00 kroner for the city coffers. This means that investments made by the Fund have benefited the region to the tune of 100-160 million kroner.