18/01/2016 - Almost €12 million were spent in the country by productions last year

While Andrew Davies’ adaptation of War and Peace becomes a big hit in the UK as it airs in a weekly primetime slot on the BBC, Lithuania is sharing a modicum of the praise, as the show is one of the many foreign productions shot in the Baltic country last year. 2015 saw the highest number of foreign productions come to Lithuania since new tax incentives were announced to entice international productions and investment to the area.

Aside from War and Peace, other projects have included British film The Eichmann Show – Paul Andrew Williams’ movie based on the Nuremberg Trials, starring Anthony LaPaglia and Martin Freeman – Finnish productions Bordertown, The Midwife [+see also:
trailer
film profile] and 2 Nights Till Morning [+see also:
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trailer
interview: Mikko Kuparinen
film profile], and projects hailing from Sweden, Russia, Spain and the Netherlands.

In 2014, the Lithuanian Film Centre (LFC) issued 17 qualification certificates for film productions or co-productions in Lithuania, comprising five commissioned production projects, one national production and 11 co-productions. That same year, four of the planned projects were completed – all production work was finished, and €251,512 were secured from investors in the process.

In 2015, the LFC issued 20 qualification certificates, comprising six commissioned productions, six national productions and eight co-productions. That same year, the LFC issued 22 investment certificates confirming that €2,668,506 had been granted by private investors aiming to exploit the corporate tax exemption. This support provided by 17 profitable companies helped to implement 15 productions and co-productions.

Rolandas Kvietkauskas, director of the LFC, said: “The remarkable results in 2015 demonstrate the potential of the Lithuanian film industry as well as the effectiveness of the incentive scheme. Some of the films shot in our country have already been released internationally, and have been nominated or awarded at festivals. It is very important that – in using the scheme – we increase international cooperation, stimulate private investment and contribute to the valuable area of audiovisual content. Though several films are currently in production, we are waiting on a number of new projects.”