Laufey Gudjónsdóttir
Director of the Icelandic Film Centre
Creative Industries / Iceland
Putting Iceland on the big screen
The Icelandic Film Centre is the key driver in the country’s growing film industry, through its financial support scheme, promotion of Icelandic productions abroad, and work to further develop film culture, as Director Laufey Gudjónsdóttir explains.
How do you attract international film productions?
Iceland set up a financial support scheme in the 1980’s and added reimbursement scheme in the 2000s for film productions. Currently, 25% of production costs incurred in the country are reimbursed, while certain major productions receive up to 35%. But the key to attracting major film productions are the talented and reputable film crews. And then, of course, the mesmerizing Icelandic landscapes and an infrastructure that works.
How successful have you been as a co-production partner?
In many ways, Icelanders were the architects of the co-production model. I’m proud that more and more well-established nations actively seek co-productions from Iceland. It was not only about money, it was also about talent pool, which has proved to be among the major benefits out of co-production. Film makers from Iceland are great storytellers, creative, credible and reliable.
