Kenya hoping for film industry boost

NAIROBI: When Out of Africa was filmed in Kenya three decades ago, the images of elegant safaris drew tourists in droves but it has struggled to repeat that success.

Now Kenya wants to put itself back on the film-makers’ map, competing for business that often ends up in South Africa, by offering tax incentives and touting scenery that ranges from dusty savanna to tropical forest and white beaches.

“We’ve been losing out hugely to South Africa, certainly in terms of feature films, and the main reason has been their tax rebate system,” said Chris Foot, chairman of the Kenya Film Commission, a state corporation.

So Kenya is fighting back. The government has given initial approval for a 30 percent tax rebate on film productions, has agreed to drop duties on film equipment imports and is setting up a liaison office to assist crews through Kenyan bureaucracy. A special visa for film crews is in the works too.

The East African nation is competing with South Africa as the location for a new film about Kenyan conservationist Richard Leakey, directed by Angelina Jolie and possibly starring Brad Pitt.

Foot says drawing in foreign films and encouraging local production could within three years create an industry that employs 250 000 and account for 2 percent of gross domestic product. – Reuters

PICTURE: AP ON THE MOVE: A herd of adult and baby elephants walk in the dawn light as the highest mountain in Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, rises in the background, in Amboseli National Park, southern Kenya.