National newspaper Clarin reports today that Buenos Aires is now the 4th most popular movie location in the world after Prague, Paris and New York. In the first 6 months more than 300 film permits were given out by the city authorities. Apart from the obvious drama and documentary features, by far the most permits were given out for commercials as Buenos Aires has a very good reputation for creative art directors. Lower costs in Buenos Aires also factor in though it is no longer as cheap to hire qualified technicians as it once was.
Most people know that 7 years in Tibet was shot in Argentina and that Francis Ford Coppola has a production office here and even his own boutique hotel in Buenos Aires that he rents out to visitors. However with it's many different neighborhoods and architecture from all era's, Buenos Aires can pass for almost any city in the world and the landscapes of Argentina for almost any country.
This even starts to influence local filmmakers now and the northern province of Tucuman has just presented itself as a prime candidate for shooting new westerns by financing the gaucho adventure "Aballay, The Man Without Fear", using local scenery that can put Arizona to shame on any day.
Argentina wasn't always a film maker's dream though, as can be seen on the DVD version of the terrible Highlander II: The Quickening which was entirely shot in Argentina. It includes a great 50 minute documentary called Seduced by Argentina, that is the official making-of documentary.
According to the review on DVDTalk.com: "Whatever could go wrong went wrong during the shoot, leaving the producers vulnerable to all types of trouble, corruption, and fatigue in South America. It's an amazing story to hear, told with a great degree of honesty, passion, and behind the scenes footage. It's hard to stay mad at "Highlander 2" after watching this."
Fortunately things have changed and Argentina only looks to become more popular as a production location in the coming years.
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| Set in Tibet, shot near Mendoza in the Andes around Uspallata |
This even starts to influence local filmmakers now and the northern province of Tucuman has just presented itself as a prime candidate for shooting new westerns by financing the gaucho adventure "Aballay, The Man Without Fear", using local scenery that can put Arizona to shame on any day.
Argentina wasn't always a film maker's dream though, as can be seen on the DVD version of the terrible Highlander II: The Quickening which was entirely shot in Argentina. It includes a great 50 minute documentary called Seduced by Argentina, that is the official making-of documentary.
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| Probably not the best movie ever, but also shot in Argentina |
Fortunately things have changed and Argentina only looks to become more popular as a production location in the coming years.
