Members
Members of the AFCI are Film Commissions from around the world. A film commission is a purpose-built organization or department set up by an interested city, county, state / province or federal government with the specific mandate of promoting and developing filming activity within the jurisdiction. The primary goal of any film commission is to attract film and video production to an area in order to accrue locally realized benefits from hiring local crews and talent, renting local equipment, using hotel rooms, rental cars, catering services, or any number of goods and services supplied on location. In other words, Film Offices attract Film & TV productions to their locations, and then ensure that the location capitalizes on that production activity.
Member Film Commissions have typically been established by cities, counties, states / provinces or federal governments, and are generally operated and funded by various agencies of government, such as the governor's office, the mayor's office, chambers of commerce, convention and visitors’ bureaus, tourism offices and business and economic development departments.
AFCI Locations Show
In 1985, the AFCI partnered with the American Film Marketing Association to host Location Expo, the first on-location trade show for film and television production. Film Commissions from around the world gathered to promote their locations and services to American producers. The first Location Expo attracted 60 film commissioners and some 1,200 people from the film industry to a Los Angeles exhibition site. During the next four years, the Expo's space demands increased so that by 1990 the show had to be held at a site different from the AFM conference. Attendance tripled. Then in 1991, Expo relocated with the AFM to Santa Monica. The annual trade show, now an AFCI-sponsored event and known as the AFCI Global Finance and Locations Show, soon became too large to be held in conjunction with AFM, moved its event to early spring, and welcomes over 200+ film commissions and commercial affiliates exhibiting their services to more than 3,000 delegates.
The AFCI has been a sponsor of the Location Managers Guild Awards since their inaugural event in 2014, which is currently scheduled to coincide with the AFCI Location Show to take advantage of the number of film commissioners and international location professionals attending the show. A representative of the AFCI has typically been the presenter for the award for best film commission.
Cineposium
Cineposium is an educational and networking event for film commissions first held in 1976. A program of educational seminars, it is designed to teach film commissioners about the management and processes of the film commission business. The event rotates among its active members, with recent locations including Jecheon (2013), New York (2014), Barcelona (2015), Atlanta (2016), and Los Angeles (2017).
The AFCI also participates in a number of other film festivals and markets, sponsoring panels and events at the American Film Market, Berlinale, Busan Film Festival, Festival de Cannes, and Sundance Film Festival.
The Australian Trade and Investment Commission, or Austrade, is the Australian Government's trade, investment and education promotion agency which was also given responsibility for tourism policy, programs and research from 2013. Austrade was established under the Australian Trade Commission Act 1985. It is a non-corporate Commonwealth entity under the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013, and a statutory agency under the Public Service Act 1999. Austrade is part of the Foreign Affairs and Trade portfolio.
Dennis Dreith is a musician, record producer and a television & motion picture composer, arranger, and conductor. He is also known as an influential advocate for performer's rights.
The location manager is a member of the film crew responsible for finding and securing locations to be used, obtaining all fire, police and other governmental permits, and coordinating the logistics for the production to complete its work. They are also the public face of the production, and responsible for addressing issues that arise due to the production's impact on the community.
The New Hampshire Film and Television Office is a government agency of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. It is a member of the Association of Film Commissioners International (AFCI). The office existed as early as 1983, but was then dormant for over a decade until being revived in 1998.
Film commissions are quasi-governmental, non-profit, public organizations that attract motion media production crews to shoot on location in their respective localities, and offer support so that productions can accomplish their work smoothly.
The American Film Market (AFM) is a film industry event held each year in early November.
The White Sands International Film Festival (WSIFF) started in Alamogordo, New Mexico, as a week long event in March 2008 to showcases narrative and documentary films. The festival was created to support the work of Hispanic and New Mexican Filmmakers. The festival moved to Las Cruces, New Mexico, in 2009.
The North Carolina Film Office, originally called the "North Carolina Film Commission," is a member of the Association of Film Commissioners International.
The Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD) is a department of the State of Georgia. The department plans, manages and mobilizes state resources to attract new business investment to Georgia, drive the expansion of existing industry and small business, locate new markets for Georgia products, inspire tourists to visit Georgia and promote the state as a top destination for arts events and film, music and digital entertainment projects.
Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB) is an apex Government body mandated to promote Pakistan's IT Industry in local and international markets. PSEB facilitates the IT industry through a series of projects and programs. PSEB was established through an executive order vide Cabinet Division's notification dated 12 June 1995.
The San Diego Film Commission is a nonprofit, government-funded office that promotes and facilitates film and television production in the city. Created in 1976 by mayor Pete Wilson, it was originally called the San Diego Motion Picture and Television Bureau.
Manitoba Film and Music (MFM), officially Manitoba Film & Sound Recording Development Corporation, is the primary support for the film and television sector of Manitoba, and runs the provincial film commission. As a Crown corporation, it is funded by the provincial government through the Department of Sport, Culture and Heritage.
Rino Piccolo is an international film producer, and film commissioner. Through his academic studies he achieved a doctoral degree in Business Economics at the University of Federico II in Naples, and a diploma at the Università popolare dello spettacolo, a three years theater and arts school.
The Bangladesh Election Commission, abbreviated and publicly referred to as EC, is an independent constitutional body that operates the legal functions of election laws in Bangladesh.
The Maryland Department of Commerce is a government agency in the state of Maryland in the United States. Although it was originally founded in 1884, the department came to be recognized as the Department of Commerce in 2015.
The Serbia Film Commission is a private non-profit association of Serbian film companies and freelancers. In July 2009, 16 prominent film industry representatives established the Serbia Film Commission as an association of companies and freelancers based on best practice models of film commissions around the globe. The Association is governed by the Board of Directors and managed by an Executive Director.
The Royal Film Commission – Jordan (RFC) was established to develop an internationally competitive Jordanian film industry.
The Vienna Film Commission is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the local film industry. As a free of charge service by the City of Vienna it supports national and international film and TV productions that aim to shoot feature films, TV shows, documentaries, commercials or student films in Vienna.
The Trinidad & Tobago Film Company Limited (FilmTT)is the state agency established in 2006 to facilitate the growth and development of the film and audio-visual sector in Trinidad & Tobago. As a subsidiary of the Trinidad and Tobago Creative Industries Company Limited, FilmTT works on all aspects of film sector development, promotes Trinidad & Tobago as a film production location, and provides Film Commission services to local and incoming productions. FilmTT's mission is to maximise the economic and creative potential of Trinidad and Tobago's screen industries for the benefit of the country and its people.
The Malta Film Commission is a quasi-governmental, non-profit, public organization based in Malta. Their primary purpose is to attract film productions to come to Malta for the benefit of the Maltese Economy. Its offices are located at the Malta Film Studios in Kalkara. The first proposal for a film commission was lobbied by Malcolm Scerri-Ferrante in 1997. The commission was then created as a film liaison office in 1999. Over the 22 years it has been operating, numerous financing incentives have been presented in 2005, 2008 and in 2014. The current film commissioner is Johann Grech. The implementation of new strategy has led to a large growth in the industry, with over 50 productions filmed in Malta resulting in more than €200 million being injected into Malta's economy via these incentives. The Film Commission also provides support for smaller film services within the country. Recently, the commission have organized the first edition of the Malta Film Awards. They were held on the 29th January 2022.
