Berlin, 18 February 2025

"We need to talk" - under this motto, the Association of Technical Companies for Film and Television (VTFF) invited producers, broadcasters, politicians and technical-creative service providers to a major exchange of views at the 3rd Green Tec Day (GTD) on the Monday of the Berlinale (17 February). The consensus of the panellists was that a tax incentive model must be introduced in order to restore Germany's international competitiveness as a film location as quickly as possible. A new federal government must create the legal basis with high priority. And: the industry can only emerge from the crisis together; talking to each other must lead to joint action.

In his keynote speech to the packed auditorium at the Bavarian representative office in Berlin, VTFF Managing Director Achim Rohnke emphasised the background to the two panels. According to a VTFF survey, technical and creative service providers are expecting a 27 per cent drop in turnover in the production year 2025. This means that service providers will lose around 80 million euros in revenue, while the entire German film and TV industry will lose around 750 million euros in production volume. "The impact on jobs, investments and returns is catastrophic. Service providers and producers are in SOS mode," said Rohnke, referring to the ten core demands of the "Appeal 25" published by the VTFF on the same day (https://www.vtff.de/2025/02/17/vtff-so-wird-der-produktionsstandort-deutschland-wieder-fit/).

In their analysis of the crisis, the participants of the panel "On the state of the production industry in Germany" were largely in agreement: labour and energy costs in Germany are too high, and the low production volume allows for little innovation. The international competitiveness of the German film and TV industry is not given due to the reform of film funding, which has only been implemented in fragments so far. "This was a huge opportunity that was missed," criticised Markus Schäfer, CEO of ZDF Studios, to the politicians, who were represented in the panel by Michael Sacher, MP for the Green Party. The consequences of the poor framework conditions are mainly borne by the technical-creative service providers. "We are fighting on all fronts, both for domestic productions and for German productions, which are increasingly being realised abroad," explained Andrea Peters, CEO of the costume house "Theaterkunst". The panel hoped that the introduction of an uncapped and automated tax incentive system would boost production. "It is so important that the tax model is introduced," said Benjamin Benedict, producer and CEO of Wiedemann & Berg.

In addition to overcoming the crisis, the industry is in the midst of a transformation process driven by artificial intelligence. "All trades need to get out of their comfort zone," demanded Philipp Kreuzer, producer and Managing Director of Maze Pictures. Production processes need to be reorganised together and new job profiles need to be created.

The crisis can only be overcome through a joint effort by all market participants, according to the general credo - but this is still lacking. "Where are the strategic partnerships, where are the win-win situations?" asked Jörg Bachmaier, the new CEO of Studio Babelsberg. There is still a lack of joint action, for example in the early involvement of service providers in production planning, as Christina Caspers-Römer, CEO of VFX studio Trixter, added. "Let's all sit down together and strengthen our communication."

The panel "Quo Vadis - Green Production?" focussed on the introduction of ecological standards in the production of films and TV projects. There was a great deal of consensus on the path being taken. According to Carl Bergengruen, head of MFG and chairman of the Green Shooting working group, around 1,000 productions a year are already produced in Germany in accordance with green standards. "Green is the new normal," says Jonas Sticherling from ARD subsidiary Degeto. On the part of the technical-creative service providers, however, the economic problems with the eco-turnaround are increasing in view of the crisis in the industry. Kai Habermann, Managing Director of PRG Cinegate, therefore called for the introduction of a green bonus, i.e. an investment subsidy for green technologies at rental companies and studios.

The panels were moderated by green shooting expert Professor Philip Gassmann.