A threat by US President Donald Trump to impose tariffs of up to 100% on films produced outside the United States is unlikely to affect foreign film shoots in Thailand in the short term, as most productions have already been planned, according to the Tourism Department.
Trump’s recent announcement has sent shockwaves throughout the global film industry, including in Thailand, which earned 1 billion baht from US film productions last year.
Hollywood executives said on Monday that the plan “makes no sense” and simply shows that Trump does not understand how the industry works.
Jaturon Phakdeewanit, director-general of the Tourism Department, said the measure should not impact foreign film shoots over the next few years, as most films have already been scheduled to be shot in Thailand and utilise production facilities in the country.
Mr Jaturon said the department had already contacted a Thai production coordinator who deals directly with six US studios, and was informed that key industry figures in the US are holding discussions with the White House, hoping to learn additional details.
He said it’s unclear how the tariff would be imposed on such films, since movies are considered to be a form of intellectual property rather than goods.
Making a film in the US can be four to five times more expensive than making one in Thailand, but studios are drawn to foreign locations for reasons other than costs.
Moreover, Thailand already offers attractive incentives, such as a cash rebate of up to 30% in an effort to lure more foreign film productions.
Therefore, Trump’s plan should not impact this year’s 10-billion-baht revenue target for foreign film productions, which was revised up from 7.5 billion baht.
The department will continue to monitor any potential long-term impacts that may arise, said Mr Jaturon.
According to the department, Thailand earned 3.3 billion baht from 34 US film shoots in 2023, and 2.06 billion baht from 35 shoots in 2022.
Last year, Hong Kong productions edged out the US for top spot in Thailand, generating 1.32 billion baht from 23 films.
To mitigate risk from Trump’s policy proposal, the Tourism Department is looking to other potential markets, such as the UK, Europe, China and Hong Kong, which also have several large productions with budgets of 1 billion baht of more, said Mr Jaturon.
The department has asked the government for 850 million baht from the central budget for the cash rebate scheme dedicated to large productions this year, on top of the 350 million received earlier.
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