Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North-West Limerick, Fine Gael)

I am grateful to the House for facilitating us in taking this Bill at short notice. It has a simple but important objective, namely, to increase the statutory limit on the cumulative capital outlay, commitments and liabilities that the Irish Film Board may incur. As is the case with some statutory bodies that receive public funding, a limit was set by statute on such outlay when the Irish Film Board Act 1980 was enacted. This limit must be updated by the Houses of the Oireachtas every five to six years.

The Irish Film Board (Amendment) Act 2006 increased the limit from €101.5 million to €200 million. In the absence of amending legislation, spending by the IFB will reach this statutory limit by the end of the year. It is proposed, therefore, to increase this limit to €300 million to allow the IFB to continue to operate within an appropriate statutory limit, subject to the normal annual Estimates process.

The IFB has a dual mandate to develop Irish filmmaking and audiovisual production talent that can engage audiences at home and abroad, and to maintain and build the resources, craft and skills of the Irish industry through attracting international productions to Ireland. The primary function of the IFB is to provide development and production finance for Irish film and television production projects. Development loans are given to allow a project to be brought from the drawing board to the stage of being a properly researched and developed project ready to be taken to the production stage. Production loans contribute towards the cost of producing a finished film or documentary project.

Evidence of the necessity for this legislation is borne out by the activity of the Irish Film Board in recent times. Since 2000 the Irish Film Board has assisted in the development of 856 feature film projects, 142 documentaries and 74 animation projects. In the same period, the IFB has granted production finance to a total of 154 feature films, 140 documentaries, 385 shorts, 33 animation projects and 30 television drama projects.

The past six years have seen the environment in which the IFB operates undergo significant and constant evolution and development, domestically and internationally. The IFB has reflected and adapted to these changes. One cannot stand still in any endeavour if it is to succeed and the film sector is no exception. One must adapt to changing circumstances in the type of projects being developed, the audiences to be reached and the markets to be targeted.

The film and television production industry is labour intensive and, by its very nature, any investment in production creates employment. On average 70% of each production budget is spent on labour. In the past six years from 2006 to 2011 the IFB-induced spend was as follows: a total budget of the productions was €501 million; IFB investment was €58 million; and Irish spend on the productions was €252 million. Therefore, for every €1 investment by the IFB in production there is a nearly a tenfold return on that investment. In looking specifically at the value of the industry in 2010 the recent IBEC audiovisual review of film and television production in Ireland gave a total production value of €388 million for that year, a 57% increase on 2009.

The IFB has a crucial role in the development of Irish film and television production projects. It continues to play an essential part in providing the opportunities needed by emerging Irish talent and it has launched the careers of several young Irish film makers. The Irish Film Board also supports more established companies in producing Irish films which have significant commercial prospects.

For example, the IFB-funded comedy thriller "The Guard", starring Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle, has become the most successful independent Irish film in Irish box office history, grossing more than €4.13 million and is continuing its success worldwide taking more than $4 million at the US box office to date. The John Michael McDonagh-written and directed film has taken more at the Irish box office than international films such as "The King's Speech", "The Hangover 2", "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides". The film is also finding audiences around the world and has been in the top 10 in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. In the US, it has taken more than $4 million to date. With further releases planned for later this year in Germany, France, Italy and Holland the film is expected to become one of the most successful and valuable Irish film export in recent times. Such an international success will ensure that an Irish story filmed in Ireland will be projected all over the world, highlighting not only the wealth of talent and creativity the country has to offer but promoting Ireland as a film and tourist destination.

A large number of major international feature films and TV series have chosen Ireland as a film location as a result of the work the IFB does to promote Ireland at international film and television markets. The positive impact of this work is three-fold in creating jobs in Ireland; creating spend on local good and services; and promoting Ireland on the big and small screen to millions of audiences internationally. A major 12-part mini-series, "TITANIC: Blood and Steel" is an example of this work. It is being filmed in Dublin and Wicklow over 12 weeks with a budget of €12 million. I was on the set recently and I must say I was very impressed.