Malaga Film Office, the one-stop shop dedicated to the audiovisual industry of Malaga City Council, attached to Malaga Procultura and attached to the Department of Culture, closed 2023 with a very positive balance of work. It addressed 588 audiovisual projects (2% more than the previous year), of which 271 were completed (5.5% more). To achieve this, it carried out 398 procedures (236 licences, 129 communications and 33 location visits) in coordination with the different competent municipal areas according to the needs of each production.
 
The Councillor for Culture and Heritage of Malaga City Council, Mariana Pineda, and the manager of Málaga Procultura, Juan Antonio Vigar, this morning presented the figures for the 2023 balance sheet.
 
Specifically, productions in the capital city last year resulted in a direct economic investment of 18.6 million euros, almost 31% more than in 2022. This economic boost not only benefits the capital, but also the province, by promoting the business fabric (direct hiring of professionals and companies in the audiovisual industry); promoting the tourism sector (spending in hotels, restaurants, transport...); encouraging the creation of new companies to respond to the existing demand and providing more qualified training.
 
The type of production that took place the most in Malaga in 2023, as in previous years, was advertising (stills, commercials, and videos, both music videos and corporate videos) with 101 productions (followed by TV and online programmes with 52 and short films with 45). However, in economic terms, it was series that invested the most (14 million), followed by feature films (1.38 million) and in third place programmes (1.35 million), exceptionally replacing advertising (with 1.3 million, between the categories of spots, corporate videos, music videos, and still photos), which is usually the one that invests the most in the city. By countries, Spain is once again the country that produced the most in Malaga, with 229 productions, followed by the United Kingdom with 10 and Germany with 8 (one in co-production with France).
 
Outstanding productions
 
Among the productions carried out partially or completely in Malaga city during 2023 that have had the greatest impact are the following:
 

• In the feature film section, the most outstanding works are: La señora que juega, by José Enrique March, produced by 73140323PC Ezekiel Montes Producciones; El correo, directed by David Calparsoro and produced by Vaca Films; Hamburgo, by director Lino Escalera, produced by Zeta Cinema, Icónica producciones and Tandem Films in co-production with Pecado Films and Cinelabs; Culpa tuya and Culpa nuestra, two films directed by Domingo González and belonging to the Culpable trilogy, and El berrido de los silencios, by director and actor Jaime Ordóñez, from Malaga.

 

• TV Series include Marbella, produced by Buen Día Estudios for Movistar; Machos alfa, produced by Contubernio Films for Netflix; Urban. La vida es nuestra by Alea Media for Prime Video. Documentary series: Luz en la oscuridad, about the disappearance of David Guerrero Guevara, better known as el niño pintor of Malaga, for Movistar Plus+, and Los secretos de la Operación Malaya and Todo cambia, both for RTVE Play.

 
And although they weren't filming in 2023, we were able to enjoy several premieres of other series, shot in 2022, such as La chica de nieve, by Atípica Films for Netflix. Malaga is once again the setting for its second part, El juego del alma (a new adaptation of the novel by Malaga writer Javier Castillo, in which once again David Ulloa and Laura Alvea are directing). Another premiere was Los Farad, by director Mariano Barroso, produced by Mod Producciones for Prime Video.
 
Among the international series, three fiction series were produced by the Malaga-based Fresco Film service in collaboration with A Film Location: Rivals for Netflix and two for Disney+, We Were the Lucky Ones and Kaos created by Chalie Covell (The end of the f***ing world).
 

• In TV programmes, the ones that stand out are the national programmes for TVE, MasterChef Celebrity T8, produced by Shine Iberia as well as Maestros de la costura; Imprescindibles, Aquí la tierra and De tapas por España for la 2, and Pipper en ruta.

 
Malaga also hosted the casting of the programme Operación Triunfo for Prime Video, the humour programme Entre compadres for Canal Sur, and it was visited by La Sexta to record Más vale tarde -un país para viajárselo. In addition, we celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the death of the artist Pablo R. Picasso and the twentieth birthday of Museo Picasso. This has left us with different productions about the genius from Malaga, such as Los pasos de Pablo Picasso for the German channel Deutsche Welle; España de Picasso, for the Brazilian channel Bandeirantes and the podcast Los cuadros de Pablo for RTVE, among others.
 
On an international level, we can highlight Amazing Race, produced by Serfedent with the collaboration of Aráez Media from Málaga for CBS; Monty Don's Spanish Gardens for the BBC; House Hunters International; Better Late Than Never and many others tourism and gastronomic programmes such as BBC Travel Show, James Martin's Spanish adventure, Taste of silk road with Chef Wan (Malaysia) and Chef on tour, with chef Charles Webb.
 

• In documentaries, the highlights include Lucía en la telaraña II, Imbroda: El legado del maestro and La mujer de la foto, 38 días (post-production). A brief history of the future and Bedekr.

 

• Short films include 7:11 Cuarzo, by the production company Danidogfilms, directed and scripted by Daniel Ortiz Entrambasaguas; Feria, by the Malaga director and actor Julio Espinosa; and Violencias periféricas, which marked the debut of its director Davinia Burgos, always involved in production and distribution in Malaga (Ojos Abiertos Films). Also, the short films of the students of SchoolTraining Escuela de Cine y Sonido, Studio Atralla, ESAEM, UMA, those of the Escuela de Cine de Málaga and the participants of the Hack Mafiz project (section of the Malaga Festival dedicated to young digital creators).

 

• In institutional and national promotional videos we find Mi nombre es Keta and La escalera, both produced by the audiovisual team of the Malaga Local Police. Those promoting tourism in Malaga such as I feel guilty of your best moments (Beon/Montape) by the Tourism Department of the City Council and the pieces Ya sabes dónde encontrarme (Teatro Soho Televisión) and Grita mi nombre (Narita / Dispar) by Turismo Costa del Sol. Also, promoting fashion in Malaga we find through the Malaga de Moda project, also by the Diputación Provincial de Málaga, such as Pasarela Larios Málaga Fashion Week 2023, produced by Héqate Producciones for Nueva Moda, among others.

 
Among the advertising productions that have chosen locations in Malaga we find:
 

• Music videos: Málaga City Remix and Bad Boy by Gordo Master, Nunca Más by Fali Torreblanca and Mañana by Chambao.

 

• Advertising spots: Cruzcampo Tremenda (Lievre), EasyJet Summer (Virtual Films) and Dunkin' Frozen (El señor de los vídeos). Fancine always knocks twice (Muchoojo - The Beatles' mother), Wolkswagen Summer Vibes (The Arts Workshop) and Zumba (Huxley), Marzook SS23 (Martina California), as well as those of Polo Creative Studio such as Justalia 2023, Whisky Battle, Dunkin Navidad 2023, Royal Bliss The Spritz Collection, among others.

 

• Still photo: Highlights include Toyota, Puma, Cervezas Alhambra "Focus Sur", Peugeot 308, Henry Cotton's Spring & Summer Collection, JD Sports Campaign, Shein and Lexus.

In video games, Un Hacker Accidental by Novelingo stands out, which can be found in Polo Digital.
 
Many of these productions can be seen on the Málaga Film Office YouTube channel, where they are promoted by type of production, but also by location and grouping/objective.
 
130 million investment in the city since 2001
Malaga Film Office has been coordinating for 22 years and free of charge all the needs that audiovisual productions have in the city, promoting Malaga as a location, its professionals and audiovisual companies and all the projects that are produced in the capital (including video games and animation). Since its creation in September 2021, Malaga Film Office has addressed almost 8,000 projects, of which almost 4,000 have been shot, with an economic investment for the city of almost 130 million euros thanks to the more than 5,000 procedures carried out. Last year was the second in investment after 2019, the year before the pandemic, in which investment reached 23 million euros.
 
As part of the Andalusian Film Commission's Film City Network, the national Spain Film Commission, the European EUFCN and the International AFCI, Malaga Film Office is a resource that contributes to attracting investment to our city through the audiovisual industry. Productions are an important source of wealth for Malaga, due to the direct economic impact, but also indirect and induced through the dissemination of the city image around the world, also promoting film tourism or screen tourism (according to data from the UNWTO, between 80 and 100 million people in the world choose where to travel depending on the productions they see).
 
The work of Malaga Film Office focuses on attracting projects and advising on the advantages of filming in our city, offering all the possibilities that Malaga has as a setting for audiovisual productions as well as the effective management of resources to provide production companies with the maximum possibilities to attract their interest. The daily work, among other tasks, is based on the specific search for municipal locations and the processing of the necessary permissions for the proper development of each production. This is only possible in coordination with the municipal areas that authorise them, always offering them assistance so that professionals and companies with extensive experience in the industry can carry out their projects successfully.
 
Environmental sustainability commitment
 
Everything is done based on a strong commitment to the environment, committed to sustainable development practices that prevent and reduce the environmental impact caused by audiovisual activities. Along these lines, together with Promálaga and the Environmental Advisory Centre, part of the City Council's Environment Department, the Malaga Film Office offers the sustainable production seal, which certifies the good practices in this area of the companies that choose Malaga as a location for their audiovisual work.
 
The aim of this initiative, which makes Malaga a model, is to raise awareness and involve the entire audiovisual industry. It awarded three seals during 2023 (making nine since the initiative began in 2021): to the Malaga production company Fresco Film Services for the series We Were the Lucky Ones and Rivals, and to Shine Iberia for the programme Master Chef Celebrity T8, proving its involvement in the audiovisual field to protect the most important location we have, the planet.
 
In addition, in order to achieve its objectives, the Malaga Film Office carries out other temporary promotional activities, such as attending technical round tables, meetings, forums, fairs, markets and festivals. It also carries out training activities and collaborates with different public and private organisations.
 
All these activities make this office a crucial tool for the audiovisual industry and the city.