deckard

UK Film Council welcomes new tax credit for lower budget British films.
source: The U.K. Film Council.



New Tax Credit will ensure UK continues to be able to produce films such as The Full Monty, Calendar Girls, Bend It Like Beckham, and 28 Days Later


The UK Film Council today welcomed the Government’s announcement of details of the future tax credit to support the production of lower budget UK films post July 2005.

The Inland Revenue has confirmed that the new relief will apply to 100% of the film’s budget, and will be directly available to production companies only, not to individuals, so maximising the benefit going directly back to film-makers.

The credit will be available for British films with qualifying production expenditure of up to £20million. Current lower budget film incentive Section 48, which enabled the production of recent Brit hits The Full Monty, Bend It Like Beckham, Calendar Girls, and 28 Days Later was previously only available to films with a budget of up to £15 million.

The announcement follows detailed discussions with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the UK Film Council, and industry representatives including PACT and BSAC. The relief will take effect from the beginning of July 2005 when current tax incentive ‘Section 48’ expires.

Unlike Section 48, which had a built in expiry date, the new tax credit is a permanent measure with no ‘sunset clause’.

According to transitional arrangements announced today, films which have begun principal photography before 2 July 2005 will still be able to qualify for the current incentive Section 48, as long as the completion date is completed no later than 5 April 2006, and the acquisition date is not later than 31 December 2006.

Welcoming the news, UK Film Council Chief Executive Officer John Woodward said;

“Film is a £5 billion a year British industry and a rich and popular part of our culture, and this is a welcome recognition of its economic and creative importance. As with Section 48, the new tax credit will take a few months to bed down, but it is extremely good news that the new relief will apply to 100% of a film’s spending on production in the UK, and increases the budget of films which can qualify for support from £15 million to £20 million.

“Section 48 was due to expire in July 2005 and it was clear that the search should be for a new type of tax incentive which delivered a benefit direct to filmmakers and reduced the role and reward to middlemen.

“As well as securing this vital support and effective support for film production, we look forward to continuing discussions on how to improve film distribution in the longer term.”

The film and video industries now employ a record 57,429 people. The workforce has increased by 77% since 1994 compared with an increase in the overall UK workforce of 13.%.

A step in the right direction.......Regards,Decks.

"and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock"