Ms Sirinart says the Film Office may need a bigger budget to keep up with demand from foreign productions. (Photo from Thailand Film Office)

The cash rebate for filming in Thailand is growing in popularity as various foreign-led productions line up for the incentives.

An estimated 150 million baht will be refunded to four big-budget feature films shot in Thailand in the first half of the year, up from 68 million baht for seven films receiving the rebate in 2018.

The soaring use of the perk reflects more foreign producers choosing Thailand as a desirable filming location and should help promote tourism.

Sirinart Theenanondh, chief of the film business promotion section at the Thailand Film Office under the Tourism Department, said the department has a budget of at least 100 million baht to manage the incentive programme.

The growing popularity may prompt the agency to seek a higher budget in the future.

Ms Sirinart attributed the greater coming of foreign film productions to the incentive programme, which has few strict conditions but fast payment.

The 15% cash rebate is eligible for foreign film productions that spend more than 50 million baht. The incentive measures will add up to 2% for films that promote Thai tourism and another 3% for hiring key Thai personnel on set. The incentive programme does not include TV commercial production, however.

Ms Sirinart said Thailand introduced the cash rebate policy at the 69th Cannes Film Festival in 2016 and it took effect in January 2017.

"Producers and directors at the film festivals all agree that incentives make it easier to decide where to shoot their upcoming projects because this is one of the efficient ways to save on budget," she said. "Our incentive programme is straightforward and comes with fast payment because we have to operate within each budget year."

Most of the films shot in Bangkok, Chon Buri, Samut Prakan and Pathum Thani in the first six months of 2019 were action and war pictures that require studio work.

The agency is promoting second-tier provinces as filming locations, as well as local operators who can facilitate specific needs for filming.

"Every time Thailand welcomes a film production, the perks will contribute to locals in the filming area because they offer daily services to cast and crew members, like laundry and cooking," Ms Sirinart said.

Last year a total of 714 foreign productions, including documentaries, TV dramas, series, advertising, short films and feature films, were shot in Thailand. Some 410 productions were shot here during the first six months this year.

At the start of the year, Dhaka, an American film starring Chris Hemsworth, was filming at locations in Nakhon Pathom and at Studio Park Thailand in Samut Prakan.

"We received praise from producers about how the local crew worked efficiently with the big foreign team and especially for the studio, which provided equipment and other services that meet Hollywood standards," Ms Sirinart said.

She said the Thailand Film Office also held inbound roadshows to invite producers and directors for location sightseeing. Last September, eight filmmakers from seven countries visited Bangkok, Chiang Rai and Phuket.

"From that trip, we already have a project with a budget of at least 250 million baht that will start filming in Thailand next month," Ms Sirinart said. "We plan to continue this inbound roadshow next year to attract more projects."