Spain regains its lustre as Hollywood’s favourite backdrop

Almería was the stand-in location for many US Westerns, and the rest of Spain is enjoying extra screen time across many genres.

During the 1960s, a great deal of the famous Spaghetti Westerns – seemingly depicting the harsh, dry, semi-desert landscapes of the American west – were actually filmed in the arid desert in Almería, southeast Spain…

And although the wagons have since rolled out of town (although there is a famous theme park that still stands there as testament to the region’s contribution to western cinema), elsewhere Spain is making a name for itself as one of the favoured filming locations for some of Hollywood’s and TV’s biggest productions.

HBO’s extremely popular Game of Thrones has already filmed in Seville in Andalucía, and scenes from season six were shot last year in the Bardenas Reales nature reserve in Navarra, northeastern Spain.

Elsewhere, BBC crews have been camped on Fuerteventura numerous times to film action scenes for Doctor Who, while new series Penny Dreadful is set to resurrect Almería’s western heritage having shot many scenes in the desert there last year.

Aside from the vast array of landscapes available to film crews right across Spain – from arid deserts and sub-tropical beaches to snow-capped mountains and dense woodland – Spain has made filming in the country financially attractive, offering a series of tax incentives to filmmakers.

And while the tax breaks offered by France and Germany are more generous – 30% and 40% respectively, compared to Spain’s 15% – Spain is actually a cheaper location in which to shoot, Carlos Rosado, the President of the Spain Film Commission (SFC) told El Pais newspaper.

“Our people in Spain are well trained, we have a profound cultural heritage, the climate is better and it’s easy to get around,” said Rosado. “In the morning you’re in the snow on a mountain and in the afternoon you’re on a tropical beach. It’s a small country full of contrasts.

As the industry has matured, many film studios have found that they no longer need to ship as much equipment – or staff – as previously, with Spain increasingly well equipped to cater for all sorts of requirements. “We don’t just provide extras; we can contribute anything from electricians to actors.”

For Spain, the benefits are obvious. Aside from the emergent tourist trails, where fans of the various shows visit the locations where certain scenes were filmed, the country receives a steady economic shot in the arm, too. “Around 40% of our budget is spent on services, local workers and hotels,” added Rosado.

“In the film Exodus [starring Christian Bale], they spent €800,000 on petrol, for example. Another factor – it’s good for Spain’s reputation. If HBO are happy, that has a knock-on effect and the local industry grows.”