Bilbao Bizkaia Film Commission receives 78 projects in the first quarter of 2018

A total of 78 audiovisual projects, 31 from the Basque Country, 29 from the rest of Spain and 18 international examples have shown their interest in filming in locations throughout Bilbao and Biscay in the first quarter of 2018, reports Bilbao Bizkaia Film Commissions. Of all of these, 33 were started or completed in January, February and March. These figures reveal the pull of Bilbao Bizkaia as a reference to be taken into account in the film industry. 

The value of its landscapes, which include San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, recognised as the “Second Best European Location of the Decade”, competitive tax incentives and a professional sector with accredited trajectory and experience, all combine to give it the edge. Particularly worthy of mention are two fiction features, -70 Binladens and El Hoyo-, and a television series, - Presunto culpable-, produced by Boomerang TV for Antena 3, filmed in Urdaibai, natural biosphere reserve.  

70 Binladens, directed by Koldo Serra and starring Emma Suárez, Nathalie Poza and Hugo Silva, began filming in Bilbao on 2 March.  Filming for El Hoyo (The Hole) with Iván Massagué and Antonia San Juan working under the direction of Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia, is getting underway in an industrial estate, located by the Nervión estuary, a stage for a fantasy thriller that explores the dimensions and limits of human solidarity.

Advertising has also set its sights on Bilbao Bizkaia. If 2017 saw prestigious international brands including Volkswagen, Volvo, Coca Cola, Tag Hauer, Ocaso Seguros and BBVA choose the city and province to give impetus to their projects, the first quarter of 2018 is looking very good.  Apple has filmed the advert for a new application in Bilbao, soon to be shown to the world.