Thailand’s Film Industry Reforms, Soft Power Outreach Detailed at Taiwan Creative Content Fest

Executives at The Taiwan Creative Content Fest were told Tuesday that Thailand will soon increase its location production rebate system to 30% of applicable spending, up from the current 20%. They were also told that $6.7 million of new funding is being made available for the year to next October.

Both commitments were made by “Adam” Chalermchatri Yukol as part of a wide-ranging and detailed presentation on Thailand’s long-awaited soft power initiatives. Yukol is president of the film and series subcommittee of Thailand’s National Soft Power Committee (THACCA).

THACCA covers 11 creative sectors from fashion to Muay Thai boxing and film. It is intended to bring about economic transformation of the cultural industries by uniting the efforts of different ministries and delivering joined-up policies. It should also enable more collaboration between public and private sectors.

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Change in Thailand is achingly slow and Yukol does not envisage the necessary legislation being completed soon or for THACCA to be fully established before 2027. In the interim period, sector-related committees can start to work on reform.

An increase in location incentives to a more globally competitive 30% has been promised before. Legislation was approved by the Thai cabinet back in February 2023, but the party of government has changed in the interim and the approvals for the uplift has not been completed.

After a similar presentation in Tokyo last week Yukol told Variety that the 30% rebate would finally be completed by the end of this year and said that he should be held accountable for that commitment.

In Taipei, Yukol said that film policy should be built around four pillars: helping content creators collaborate and produce; encouraging investors from government, the private sector and overseas to become more involved, by enabling bank credit for film and the establishment of co-production funding; audience development which would in turn spur reinvestment; and improvement of government agencies. “Thailand has one of the highest corruption rates in the world,” he said.

The necessary processes of reform in Thailand appears to reach almost all sectors. And Yukol has divided the tasks into short-, medium- and longer-term goals.

In the short term he called for: the nationwide expansion of one-stop location shooting permitting (up from four cities at present); the passage of a Film Act, by the end of this year; the launch of a creator fund; encouragement for the establishment of trade and industry guilds; the location rebates; tax exemptions for equipment imports; and improved workplace safety.

The medium-term reform program should cover financial support for the development of ‘micro-cinemas’ which would show art-house and specialty films; co-production incentives (by 2026); international promotion; event improvement; workforce development; establishment of a Thai Film Council, which would centralize all film policy, equipment skills testing, the launch of a location promotion event; and the revival of a national film festival, which Yukol referred to as the Bangkok Film Festival. A previous state-backed Bangkok film festival collapsed following a corruption scandal.

Longer term ambitions include; improved art appreciation; more global content exports; development of cinemas in rural areas ;and the construction of media business zones in the Eastern economic corridor. This stretches from Eastern Bangkok to U-Tapao Airport, passing Pattaya and a movie-theme park which opened in 2022.

Yukol also said that film censorship should be eased, that awards shows should be upgraded and that there should be support for LGBTQ films. Thailand is a leading purveyor of boys’ love (aka BL) TV content.

Details of how the $6.7 million of content funding might be deployed should be announced within the next couple of weeks.