Johannes, which films shot in the Innsbruck region are among the most famous?
The most famous films include: Klammer - Chasing the line, Totenfrau, Andreas Hofer - Die Freiheit des Adlers, Metzger, Yuvvraaj, Tiger Zinder Hai and from earlier times also Sisi, Berge in Flammen, Der Rebell or Mario.
Where do most of the production teams come from geographically?
Most productions come from German-speaking countries, followed by projects from other European countries as well as from India. Basically, Cine Tirol is interested in acquiring film projects, including feature films, documentaries and commercials as well as music videos, from Austria and abroad and promotes the film region Tyrol with the respective regions at international film festivals and trade events, for example in Berlin and Cannes.
One hears again and again of Bollywood productions, which are rather unknown with us, but are celebrated in India. What do Indian filmmakers look for when they want to film here? Are there recurring elements that are particularly in demand here?
Indian filmmakers in Tyrol are looking above all for alpine to high alpine locations, but also for lakes, rivers and waterfalls as well as historical and modern architecture, in order to shoot both the feature scenes and the so-called "songs" with the respective choreographies at these locations. From an Indian point of view, mountains stand for landscapes of beauty and purity, as places with a pleasant climate and clean water; and it should be added that mountains also have a mythological significance for Indian culture as the seat of the gods and are therefore particularly desirable locations. We were able to bring over 90 Indian productions from India to Tyrol, not only from Bollywood, but also from other film capitals such as Hyderabad, Chennai and Bangalore.
Wow, 90 Indian film productions that have shot in Tyrol! This inevitably makes me wonder: Where do the stars of such big productions usually live when they shoot here in the Innsbruck area?
They like to stay in the hotels of the city of Innsbruck, for example in the Hotel Schwarzer Adler, in the Hotel Adlers, in the Leipziger Hof and in the Stage12 - in Kematen the Hotel Edelmanns has established itself as a film hotel through the production of Aus die Maus by Uli Brée and Einsatz in den Alpen.
Nice! Last year I was able to chat with Uli Brée, Nina Proll and Gregor Bloeb about Aus die Maus. For the three of them, as Tyroleans (by choice), this production was in a way also a home game
Seen from the outside, the film industry is certainly changing enormously, enormously quickly. How have the productions filmed here changed over the last 10 years?
Especially in the technical area, the development has been enormous - just when I think of the use of drones for aerial shots! And of course the entry of streaming services like Netflix has also led to a change. Basically, the demand for content has increased enormously during this period, and both locations and film studios are benefiting from this.
What role does the sustainability aspect play and how exactly can you imagine the implementation of a "green filming" project?
Increasing environmental awareness and the urgency to reduce pollutant emissions make a rethink necessary in the film industry as well. The ecological footprint caused by film production must be reduced wherever possible. Green filming describes the process of using resource-conserving and ecologically sustainable production methods to produce films that are as climate-neutral as possible. To this end, the entire film production process is examined along all trades and production phases, from preparation through the entire shooting period and from post-production to exploitation, with a view to finding green action alternatives and subsequently converting them.
As a rule, the following fields are examined: production office, transport for people and material, accommodation, technology and lighting, set design with locations 'on location' or in the studio and decoration construction, costume design, catering, waste management. By analyzing the hotspots, potential CO₂ savings and optimization measures can be identified. CO₂ emissions that cannot be avoided can be offset through CO₂ compensation.
(Author's note: Johannes told us much more at this point, but that would go beyond the scope here. You can read all the details on this exciting topic on the Green Filming Tirol site at www.cine.tirol/green-filming-tirol)
Assuming you have never been to Innsbruck and would like to get in the mood for your next vacation with a few films. Which films would you recommend?
- The Mountain Doctor I, which was filmed in Wildermieming aka "Sonnenstein
- Home is here by Innsbruck-based screenwriter and director Tereza Kotyk
- Wild Innsbruck - an extraordinary documentary by filmmaker and biologist Patrick Centurioni
- Totenfrau based on a novel by the Tyrolean author Bernhard Aichner;
- Die Nordkette - a spectacular documentary by Gerald Salmina
- Yuvvraaj by the Indian master director Subhash Ghai
- Alpenzoo Innsbruck - gene pool of the Alps, a documentary film
- Mario: I find Tyrol's first TV series particularly impressive - Mario was a "street sweeper" in my youth in the 60s: the adventures of twelve-year-old boy Mario and his avalanche dog Trux, especially in the Kühtai, were extremely exciting and we all wanted to be able to ski as great as he did..
