The federal government says it will stand up for the Australian film industry, in response to Donald Trump’s 100% tariffs on film productions made outside the US.
“The Movie Industry in America is DYING a very fast death. Other Countries are offering all sorts of incentives to draw our filmmakers and studios away from the United States,” the US president posted on Truth Social on Sunday.
“Hollywood, and many other areas within the USA, are being devastated.”
Australia is such a popular location for foreign film productions, it is sometimes dubbed “Hollywood Down Under” with recent large-scale productions including The Fall Guy, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes and Thor: Ragnarok.
The federal government’s location offset scheme offers a 30% rebate for big-budget film projects shot in Australia, with additional post-production rebates, and state governments offering further sweeteners.
But the imposition of tariffs could mean these incentives are no longer attractive enough for productions aimed at the massive US market.
Trump’s move will send shock waves through the industry globally, according to industry peak body Screen Producers Australia (SPA).
“At this stage, it is unclear what this announcement means in practice or how it will be applied and implemented”, said the SPA chief executive, Matthew Deaner.
“There are many unknowns for our industry, but until we know more, there’s no doubt it will send shock waves worldwide.”
The arts minster, Tony Burke, said he was monitoring the situation closely.
“Nobody should be under any doubt that we will be standing up unequivocally for the rights of the Australian screen industry,” Burke said in a statement.
after newsletter promotion
Foreign productions are big business for the local screen industry, according to the latest Screen Australia figures.
Just under half of the A$1.7bn spent on screen production in Australia during 2023-24 was on international productions, with $767m spent making foreign film and television.
It’s not yet clear how the tariffs might be imposed but they could also affect the export of Australian content to the US market, potentially making tickets more expensive for films such as George Miller’s Mad Max series.
In Trump’s announcement on social media, he described film incentives as a threat to the US by foreign nations.
“This is a concerted effort by other Nations and, therefore, a National Security threat,” Trump’s post said.