South Africa’s film industry is working towards restarting the adjudication of production incentives by the end of September following an announcement that meetings will resume on August 27.
The restart is expected to begin by clearing a backlog of applications that industry stakeholders say has undermined confidence in South Africa as an international filming destination and has resulted in loss of tourism investment and jobs, as reported by Tourism Update.
Delon Bakker, Chairperson of the Independent Producers Organisation (IPO), told Tourism Update that discussions between industry and government resulted in a framework aimed at restarting the adjudication process and developing new incentive guidelines.
The first priority is the resumption of Adjudication Committee meetings. “We are currently working towards starting this by the end of September. This will effectively deal with the backlog of projects that moved into principal photography but never received rebate outcomes,” said Bakker.
The next priority is the development of a new set of incentive guidelines that have undergone necessary and meaningful industry consultation. “For us, that consultation is critical. The objective is to ensure that the future incentive framework is workable, competitive and informed by the realities of the industry,” Bakker said.
Since 2004, South Africa has offered film and television production incentives to attract international and local productions. Administered by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC), the schemes offer grants based on qualifying South African production expenditure, ranging from 25% for foreign productions to 35% for qualifying South African productions with a maximum grant of R25 million (US$1.6 million) per project. The incentives have helped make South Africa an attractive filming destination for international and local productions.
However, industry stakeholders say payouts have been delayed and administrative challenges have eroded confidence in the programme. The Adjudication Committee has not met since March 2024. The DTIC says adjudication meetings can only resume once additional budget has been secured. In its 2024/25 report, the DTIC refers to 80 applications between May 2024 and December 2025, representing approximately R1 billion (US$62 million) in potential incentives, but none have been approved.
Tourism opportunity
Bakker said the resumption of a strong production incentive could result in a significant influx of international production into South Africa.
“The appetite for the country has never disappeared. What the country needs is certainty around its incentive systems.”
The natural relationship between the tourism and screen industries enables the production incentive to create a global shop window for South African tourism, added Bakker.
The IPO is actively looking at engaging with relevant government departments and stakeholders to create a coordinated strategy linking the film industry with tourism authorities and destination marketing organisations.
James Byrne, Co-Founder of the International Tourism Film Festival Africa, said the relationship between the two sectors goes beyond destination exposure as productions generate tourism-related expenditure.
“Film and tourism are inextricably linked. Whatever a production company spends, I would estimate that 15% goes towards tourism product and service offerings.”
But, said Byrne, the benefits do not stop there and they do not happen automatically. For film to drive leisure tourism, destinations need to be deliberately incorporated into the way productions are marketed.
For example, he pointed out, when Cape Town is used as a substitute for another destination in a film, it should say “shot in Cape Town, South Africa, come and check this place out”.
Attracting productions is only the first step. For the tourism sector to benefit, Byrne said the film and tourism industries need to work together to ensure South Africa's locations are not simply used as backdrops but as recognisable parts of the stories being told.
