Leveraging the Power of Film for Your Destination

Jan 22, 2025

Connect With the Local Film^[1] Community: Local and regional film commissioners are a destination’s strongest allies. They have existing relationships with film studios and talent that can provide a foundation for building marketing relationships and trust. Negotiate a strategic relationship that respects roles and responsibilities and follow their lead in terms of outreach to the studios.
Get Studio Permission for ALL Content: All content including images, written testimonials, and video needs to be repurposed and used with the permission of the appropriate film studio. Borrowing equity for the purposes of publicity and promotion needs to be done with the expressed approval of the rights holder. Respecting that relationship is fundamental for building rapport and trust with the film studio.
Measure Economic Impact: Understanding how film and television production influence a visitor’s trip itinerary and incremental spend in a destination is key to building support and investment for the film tourism economy. Film tourism provides benefits to a destination in terms of ongoing spending and brand exposure long after the film production has wrapped. That “legacy” impact is one of the reasons that film tourism is so appealing to local political stakeholders and the film community. It strengthens the business case for future investment in film and television production.

Film tourism refers to the phenomenon where travelers visit a destination which featured prominently in a popular movie, video, or television show. It allows visitors to visit iconic locations – both real and fictional – and tread in the footsteps of actors and celebrities who created magic on the small screen. “Game of Thrones” (Ireland) and “Lord of the Rings” (New Zealand) are recent examples of destinations popularized by film.

How significant is the global film tourism market? According to recent data from Reports and Insights Business Research^[2], the film tourism market size will be worth US$ 128.2 billion by the end of 2032.

Film tourism destinations enhance their brand awareness and stature by connecting to the equity of locally produced movies or television series that potentially can have global audiences. The process of building a film tourism sector provides an opportunity for leaders to build long term, strategic relationships with a cultural sector that is often overlooked by the tourism community.

Destinations capitalize on the connection to popular films by showcasing local itineraries, talent, themes, businesses, and locales that all featured prominently in specific productions and/or were endorsed by featured stars and influencers. Some destinations may sell souvenirs and memorabilia related to specific productions. Others may include theme-related festivals and events to appeal to fans.

Whether local film production is strong enough to elicit overnight visitation on its own accord, or if it is an extension to a trip motivated by other factors, building a resilient, responsive film tourism sector is a powerful tool for enhancing a destination’s competitive positioning and brand appeal.

For any destination considering investment in their film tourism potential, there are several fundamental considerations that must guide their focus and forward planning if they hope to be successful.

The first fundamental is to recognize that there are many players in the film domain and usually tourism is a latecomer. Local and regional film commissioners are a destination’s strongest allies and are natural conduits to the studios (e.g. Warner Bros., Sony Pictures, Walt Disney Studios, Universal Pictures, etc.) and local stakeholders in the film and movie community. Building a supportive, strategic framework between the champions for tourism and the champions for film production is a perfect opportunity to identify roles, responsibilities, and obligations that are respectful and complementary.

The second fundamental is to realize that tourism’s true potential is to take advantage of film and movie production as a legacy opportunity. In other words, tourism’s work really begins once a production has wrapped, and film crews and production teams leave their sets. There are exceptions, but generally film crews and producers do not want visitors on live sets, and they certainly do not want live locations publicized.

The third fundamental principle is to recognize that the local film community is the steward for the relationship with the film studio – and the studio is where the assets reside. Those assets could include the talent (actors), production teams, memorabilia, marketing departments, etc.). Relationships have been developed over time and usually with a perspective of supporting an upcoming live production. Issues such as logistics, talent, set locations, permits, financial support, etc. have driven the discussion to date, and opportunities for tourism represents a new dimension. Tourism champions need to approach the studios with the counsel and support of the local film champions. No cold calls – a team approach is crucial.

The fourth principle is to recognize that all assets (print, digital, etc.) related to a specific production are the property of a studio. Destinations need to get permission for the use of all content. Resist the temptation to repurpose content found on the Internet or from a 3^rd party. That can quickly undermine the relationship with the local film community and the studios.

The fifth principle is to measure the impact that film and movie productions have on encouraging visitors to see the destination or extend an existing trip. Understanding the economic importance of incremental visitation and spend is critical to building ownership and support within the tourism community. Equally important, it allows the local film community and the studios to understand the residual impact of their productions on a destination long after a film has wrapped. That incremental impact, measured in direct spending, jobs, and taxes, goes a long way in helping studios make a business case to government for support for future productions. It also strengthens tourism’s position as a key stakeholder and partner with the studios and local film community.

The five fundamental principles set a solid foundation for building a dynamic, resilient film tourism community.

How destinations capitalize on that shared equity and goodwill is limited only by the imagination of the tourism champions involved. Tactics can run the gamut from publicizing local locations, existing sets, restaurants, and favourite attractions popularized by renown actors and celebrities, to contesting, cooperative marketing campaigns, behind-the-scenes footage, themed itineraries, testimonials, using VR to augment real locations with fictional/fantasy characters and sets, social media posts by talent, etc.

And don’t forget that most productions transcend local communities and can have a broader regional impact. That provides scope for more potential partners, more leverage for promotional activities, and more advocates for building the sector.

Film tourism offers symbiotic relationships at several levels between the film and tourism industries, providing ongoing economic benefits for destinations and memorable experiences for travelers.

What’s the potential to leverage the power of film for your destination?

[1] Movie, television, and video production is collectively referred to as “Film”

[2] https://www.reportsandinsights.com/report/film-tourism-market

GainingEdge Expert

Stephen Pearce

Partner, Tourism and Leisure