Premier digs up dollars for film
PRODUCTION for the Gold Coast’s next blockbuster Hollywood film will begin shortly after the Commonwealth Games in a bid to maintain the momentum of the international sporting event.
Following yesterday’s announcement by premier Annastacia Palaszczuk that Dora The Explorer will be coming to the Gold Coast, the Bulletin can reveal production is slated to begin in July.
Ms Palaszczuk secured the shooting of the blockbuster by Paramount Pictures after a tense standoff between state and federal governments to increase the standard 16.5 per cent tax offset to attract the film.
Ms Palaszczuk had called on the federal government to almost double a tax offset for film producers to 30 per cent to clinch the deal but was turned down by federal treasurer Scott Morrison.
Instead, the Queensland Government will dip into a $20 million film attraction fund and use money budgeted for Commonwealth Games “legacy” to come up with the cash.
The movie will be filmed on the Gold Coast’s $15.5 million Sound Stage 9 at Village Roadshow Studios and on location in Canungra.
The Premier said the decision to provide competitive incentives to lure the production came down to a single criteria: creating jobs.
“This isn’t only for our film industry workers, it’s for all the other businesses we know benefit from big productions in Queensland,” the Premier said.
Dora the Explorer, carried on the Nickelodeon cable television network, has become a global phenomenon over the past 20 years.
It follows a seven-year-old American girl of Mexican heritage who explores the world with a beloved monkey Boots.
The feature film will be directed by James Bobin of
Muppets fame and is expected to feature spin-off character Diego from the show Go Diego, Go.
In the wake of the tax debacle, a delegation of Hollywood executives will descend on Canberra over the next two weeks to discuss federal offsets.
A spokesman for treasurer Scott Morrison said the Federal Government welcomed the announcement.
“It’s nice that the Queensland Government has finally come to the table and joined the Turnbull Government in investing in the Dora the Explorer movie,” the spokesman said.
“Better late than never.”