Austria continues to entice international film, TV and streaming productions with targeted funding, diverse locations and impressive infrastructure, despite the slashing of a key incentive that has rattled the local industry.
The country’s film funding programs, while reduced, still offer a wide range of support, particularly for international productions, and it boasts a slew of factors that make it a location hot spot.
“Even in the context of recent funding cuts, Austria remains a highly attractive destination for international productions thanks to its modern studios, excellent post-production facilities and highly skilled, internationally experienced film crews,” says Nina-Anica Keidies, film commissioner at Film in Austria.
Last year the Austrian government, facing soaring debt and a faltering economy, implemented far-reaching budget cuts that hit the Austrian Film Institute (part of the culture ministry) and its ÖFI Plus location-based automatic funding program. Aimed at Austrian films and co-productions intended for theatrical release, the ÖFI Plus program has been all but scrapped, with its budget slashed from €44.3 million ($52.7 million) in 2025 to a mere €2.5 million for 2026. At the same time, ÖFI Classic funding for culturally relevant films was raised from €21 million to €39 million. According to the Austrian Film Institute, a solution is being sought to restart the ÖFI Plus incentive by next year.
Austria’s other major incentive program, FISA Plus, is, unlike ÖFI Plus, part of the economy ministry. While it also saw its annual budget cut, it was by a less severe 30%, from €80 million in 2025 to €55 million this year.
FISA Plus supports international film, TV and streaming productions as well as service productions via a 30% rebate plus a 5% green bonus for projects that meet environmental sustainability requirements, with maximum funding at €5 million per film and €7.5 million per series.
Since its launch in 2023, FISA Plus has supported 193 projects with €180 million, generating €485 million in production spending in Austria, “including 55 international service productions and 61 international projects that came to Austria only for post production,” Keidies stresses. “This demonstrates a strong demand for the successful funding program.”
In 2025, more than 47 film productions in Austria were supported by FISA Plus funding program.
Keidies adds: “The diversity and quality of the country’s infrastructure – from state-of-the-art studios and specialized service providers to sustainable production options – are frequently cited by international producers as decisive advantages. These factors ensure that Austria continues to be well positioned in the global market and able to attract ambitious projects. Nevertheless, access to funding remains a crucial factor for many large-scale productions when choosing a location.”
The Netflix hit “Crooks” returned to Vienna for Season 2, backed by the Vienna Film Incentive.
Sebastian Kreuzberger
Austria has in recent years proved a particularly attractive location for streaming and theatrical productions, among them Netflix’s German crime show “Crooks” and black comedy “Murder Mindfully” as well as its upcoming Spanish series “The Map of Longing,” Keidies adds.
Leonine Studios’ “Bibi Blocksberg – Die Verhexte Zeitreise,” the latest installment in its hit big-screen franchise about a precocious girl witch, likewise shot on location in the country last year, securing some €1.9 million from FISA Plus in the process.
Other local and international pics that lensed in Austria include Gastón Solnicki’s “The Souffleur,” starring Willem Dafoe as a hotel manager grappling with change, which shot in Vienna; and Sven Unterwaldt’s “Woodwalkers 2,” which continues the adventures of a shapeshifting cougar attending a school for fellow Woodwalkers. Filmed in the Alpine state of Tyrol, the pic, produced by Germany’s Blue Eyes Fiction, Studiocanal, Austria’s Dor Film Wien and Filmvergnuegen in Italy, benefitted from nearly €1.66 million in ÖFI Plus funding.
Norbert Lechner’s “The Secret Floor,” which follows 12-year-old Karli, who, while in an old hotel in the Alps, is magically transported to 1938, where he befriends a girl and a boy amid the growing menace of Nazi Germany. The film shot on location at the historic Südbahnhotel in Semmering and at the Grand Hotel de l’Europe in Bad Gastein.
On the TV front, hit local series from public broadcaster ORF, such as medical drama “Pflegeleicht” and detective shows “Die Toten von Salzburg,” “Soko Donau” and “Schnell Ermittelt,” have continued to film across the country, Keidies notes. “These projects make use of Austria’s varied locations — from urban settings and historical backdrops to alpine landscapes — showcasing multiple regions and contributing to a vibrant year for film production.”
“Austria has much to offer,” she adds. “Whether it’s Alpine mountain roads, remote villages, rich forests, historical and contemporary architecture, or vibrant urban life — it is a country of remarkable diversity.”
Indeed, it is that rich diversity that continues to attract filmmakers.
“As the national film commission, we frequently receive inquiries for locations featuring majestic mountains, picturesque alpine roads and historic sites, as well as iconic cities like Vienna and Salzburg. These contrasts within short travel distances make Austria an exceptionally versatile filming destination.”
Despite funding reductions, international producers remain keen to shoot in the country, Keidies says.
“We have a strong funding scheme with a fixed annual budget. This naturally limits the number of productions we can support; however, we notice that demand remains consistently high. Due to the shared language, we continue to maintain strong working relations with Germany, but we continue to receive requests from all over the world, including the U.K., the U.S. or Spain.”
While competition in countries like Hungary and the Czech Republic remains high, Austria has managed to hold its own due to a number of factors.
“First, Austria has the funding scheme FISA Plus with a location-based incentive of 30% plus an additional 5% green bonus on production costs in Austria, which is highly competitive,” Keidies points out.
“Furthermore, under FISA Plus, it is also possible to apply for funding exclusively for post-production or music recordings carried out in Austria, offering additional flexibility for international projects.”
Austria also offers regional funding programs in all of its nine states, including the Vienna Film Fund, the Vienna Film Incentive and the Cine Tirol Production Incentive.
“Additionally, only a few countries in the world can consider themselves fortunate to be home to Alpine regions, and Austria is one of them,” Keidies notes. “One of the advantages of a comparatively small country lies also in the relatively short distances and the resulting efficient infrastructure. Moreover, Austria offers, as mentioned, an exceptional variety of locations — from breathtaking Alpine landscapes to historic cities, stunning architecture both historical and contemporary, as well as castles and palaces. This diversity makes Austria an outstanding destination for productions seeking unique and versatile settings.
“Combined with highly skilled film professionals boasting international experience, multilingual capabilities, and solid training, Austria provides an outstanding environment for productions of every scale.”
Among Austria’s latest film productions, six high-profile titles will be premiering at this year’s Berlin Film Festival:
“Rose,” Markus Schleinzer’s competition screener starring Sandra Hüller (“The Zone of Interest”), follows a mysterious soldier in 17th-century Germany who arrives at an isolated Protestant village claiming to be the heir to an abandoned farmstead, arousing suspicions among the locals.
“The Loneliest Man in Town,” by Tizza Covi and Rainer Frimmel, likewise unspooling in competition, centers on a blues musician facing the loss of his home, only for a long-forgotten dream to suddenly resurface.
Ulrike Ottinger’s “The Blood Countess,” which premieres in Berlinale Special Gala, stars Isabelle Huppert and Birgit Minichmayr as a notorious noblewoman and her maid who embark on a quest for the elixir of life, the buried history of their ancestors and a book that threatens to destroy their kingdom.
Adrian Goiginger’s “Four Minus Three,” which unspools in Panorama, follows Barbara, a professional clown struggling with a tragic loss that puts her hope and humanity to the ultimate test.
Sebastian Brameshuber’s “London,” likewise premiering in Panorama, offers a portrait of today’s Europe as it follows Bobby, who drives back and forth between Vienna and Salzburg, picking up strangers along the way and engaging with them in conversations that range from the everyday to the deeply personal.
“Wax & Gold,” Ruth Beckermann’s Berlinale Special Presentation entry, looks at a grand hotel in Addis Ababa that was opened at the end of the 1960s by Emperor Haile Selassie and explores Ethiopia’s past and present, interweaving fact and fiction.