Following the lifting of the prohibition by the European Union preventing the Ciudad de la Luz film studios in Alicante from carrying out economic activity, after an intense negotiation by the Generalitat Valenciana, filming action has once again returned to the studios, the city, and the surrounding area, bringing with it, a huge financial injection.
Right now, a European production that is being filmed in several countries is recorded and will remain in the Ciudad de la Luz complex until around the month of August.
This is a medium-high budget production that will have hundreds of extras, in addition to the contingent of actors, production team and actors that exceed 150 professionals. This implies, according to calculations by the Generalitat Valenciana, 2,600 overnight stays and local spending of around two million euro.
The second production is the Spanish film with a strong presence in the Valencian sector, “La Ley del Mar”, with the recreation of an episode that occurred in 2006 in which a Spanish fishing boat, the “Francisco y Catalina” was involved in rescuing a boat with dozens of sub-Saharan immigrants.
Shooting begins this month of May and will take place in Madrid, Santa Pola, Alicante and Ciudad de la Luz. Its budget exceeds three million euro. “La Ley del mar”, which will invest more than 70% in Valencian territory, has actors such as Luis Tosar and Blanca Portillo and mobilises more than one hundred professionals including technicians and actors.
In parallel, there is an advanced negotiation for the filming of two new national productions that would land in the studios in September. This is a series, which would occupy part of the studios for eight months, and a film by Spanish producer Gerardo Herrero, RAQA, a story set in the context of jihadism.
These productions could also benefit from the Aid Program for film production promoted by the Generalitat Valenciana through the Ministry of Innovation. The grants are intended to promote a boost to the production of the film sector in the Valencian Community and “have as a frame of reference the local expenditure made by audiovisual projects and may subsidise up to twenty-five percent of the accredited local expenditure”.
“The city of light. We are back” was the motto of the campaign that was carried out in different European and American festivals and competitions, as well as in the main magazines of the sector.
The studio management are also looking for professional operations and marketing team to attract large productions.
