Australia has become an increasingly important destination for international film and television production. Its diverse filming locations, established production infrastructure, experienced crews, and government incentives have helped attract major Hollywood studios and international streaming platforms.
Productions such as Marvel's Thor: Ragnarok, Thor: Love and Thunder, and DC's Aquaman demonstrate the country's ability to accommodate large-scale productions. However, Australia's screen industry is not defined by international productions alone. Its domestic film and television sector, post-production capabilities, and regional production centers also contribute to its position in the global entertainment business.
In previous installments of this Comparative Studies series, we examined the United Kingdom's film production landscape and Vancouver's position as a major production hub within Canada. Australia offers another perspective on the competition for global film and television investment, particularly through its network of regional production centers, studio infrastructure, and government incentives.
The question is not simply whether Australia can attract international productions. It is how its infrastructure, regional advantages, incentives, and domestic industry compare with other established markets and whether international investment can translate into long-term growth for Australian screen businesses and storytellers.
The Global Competition for Film and Television Production
Film production is an international business. Studios and production companies evaluate locations according to a combination of financial incentives, studio availability, local crews, production services, logistical considerations, and creative requirements.
The United Kingdom has built a strong international reputation through its established studio infrastructure, technical workforce, and production services. Facilities such as Pinewood and Shepperton have supported major franchises and high-end television productions.
Canada has developed a competitive position through its production centers in Vancouver and Toronto, federal and provincial incentives, and established production-service networks. Its proximity to the United States has also made it an attractive location for productions seeking access to North American crews and infrastructure.
Australia competes through a different combination of advantages. Its locations can accommodate a wide range of visual environments, while its studios, production crews, and post-production businesses support projects that require substantial production capacity.
The country also offers access to multiple regional production markets within one national industry. Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia, and South Australia each contribute different facilities, locations, incentives, and production capabilities.
This distinction matters. Australia is not one uniform production destination. Its competitive position is shaped by the strengths and limitations of the individual states and territories that make up its screen industry.
Hollywood in Australia: From Thor to Aquaman
International productions provide a useful way to understand Australia's production capabilities.
Marvel's Thor: Ragnarok was filmed at Village Roadshow Studios on the Gold Coast, alongside locations across Queensland. The production used the studio's sound stages and supporting facilities, demonstrating how Queensland could accommodate a large-scale franchise production.
The Gold Coast's combination of studio infrastructure, production services, and nearby locations made it particularly suitable for a project requiring extensive controlled environments and location work.
Marvel's Thor: Love and Thunder provides another example. The production filmed at Disney Studios Australia in Sydney, with additional production activity and post-production work taking place across multiple Australian states.
The difference between these two productions is worth examining. Both demonstrate Australia's ability to support major franchise filmmaking, but they also illustrate that international production activity is distributed across different regional markets rather than concentrated in one studio location.
DC's Aquaman further demonstrates Queensland's capabilities. Its production benefited from the facilities at Village Roadshow Studios, including sound stages and water tanks, as well as the region's production workforce and supplier network.
These projects are more than recognizable Hollywood titles. They illustrate how studio facilities, local crews, equipment providers, construction teams, and specialist production services work together to support international filmmaking.
However, attracting a major production does not automatically establish a sustainable domestic industry. The longer-term question is whether the investment creates continuing employment, strengthens local companies, develops talent, and supports Australian-owned projects after international productions move elsewhere.
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Australia's Production Regions: Five Markets, Different Strengths
One of the most important distinctions in examining Australia's film industry is understanding the differences between its regional production centers.
Unlike a country whose international production identity is closely associated with a small number of major cities, Australia's screen industry operates through several state-based production ecosystems. Each competes for investment while contributing different facilities, locations, and services.
Screen Australia's 2024–25 Drama Report provides a useful snapshot of this distribution. Queensland accounted for approximately 34% of reported state and territory production expenditure, New South Wales 31%, and Victoria 27%. South Australia and Western Australia each accounted for approximately 3%, with the remaining share distributed across other states and territories.
These figures reflect production expenditure during a particular reporting period, not a permanent ranking of each state's overall industry capacity. Individual high-budget productions can significantly influence annual results.
Queensland: Large-Scale Production and Studio Infrastructure
Queensland has developed a recognizable position in international film production, particularly through its Gold Coast facilities and access to diverse filming locations.
Village Roadshow Studios is one of the state's most significant production assets. Its facilities include nine sound stages, production offices, workshops, backlot space, and specialized water tanks. These resources make the complex particularly useful for productions requiring substantial controlled environments, construction facilities, and water-based filming.
The state's production infrastructure extends beyond the Gold Coast. Screen Queensland operates studio facilities in Brisbane and Cairns, providing additional options for productions seeking different locations and regional production support.
Queensland's geography is also an important advantage. Its beaches, tropical environments, rainforests, urban areas, and varied landscapes can provide multiple visual settings without requiring a production to leave the state.
The state's international production profile is illustrated by Thor: Ragnarok and Aquaman. Both productions demonstrate how Queensland's facilities and local production workforce can support large-scale studio filmmaking.
However, Queensland's production performance should not be measured solely by the number of recognizable international titles. Its long-term advantage depends on maintaining studio capacity, supporting local production businesses, and developing a workforce capable of meeting demand across multiple projects.
New South Wales: Sydney's Established Production and Post-Production Network
New South Wales, particularly Sydney, occupies a central position in Australia's screen industry.
Disney Studios Australia, located in Moore Park, is a major integrated production facility. Its infrastructure includes sound stages, an interior water tank, production offices, workshops, and backlot facilities. The studio has supported productions ranging from The Matrix films and The Great Gatsby to Thor: Love and Thunder.
Sydney also benefits from a broader concentration of production companies, post-production businesses, visual effects services, creative professionals, and media organizations.
This makes New South Wales particularly significant when examining the relationship between physical production and the wider entertainment business. A production's requirements do not end when filming wraps. Editing, visual effects, sound, production management, and other technical services are essential parts of the production pipeline.
Yet the state faces an infrastructure challenge. Screen NSW has identified a shortage of major production space in Sydney, with productions reportedly moving interstate or overseas because of limited capacity.
In response, the New South Wales government committed AU$100 million toward the development of a second major Sydney film studio. The proposed project is intended to expand production capacity, attract international productions, and create opportunities for local businesses and workers.
This creates an interesting comparison with Queensland. While Queensland benefits from a substantial studio complex and multiple regional facilities, Sydney's established production and post-production network gives New South Wales a different competitive advantage. Its challenge is ensuring that available physical infrastructure keeps pace with industry demand.
Victoria: Production, Creative Industries, and Technical Services
Victoria has an established screen production presence, with Melbourne serving as an important center for film, television, animation, and post-production.
Docklands Studios Melbourne is a major component of the state's physical production infrastructure. Its sound stages, production facilities, and supporting services provide space for both local and international projects.
Victoria's screen industry also benefits from Melbourne's broader creative economy, which includes production companies, independent filmmakers, digital media businesses, and technical specialists.
Its competitive position is not based exclusively on studio size. The state has opportunities to attract projects that require a combination of production facilities, experienced practitioners, post-production services, and access to Melbourne and regional Victorian locations.
The Victorian Screen Incentive supports physical production as well as digital games, animation, post-production, and visual effects. This broader approach is important because it recognizes that the screen industry extends beyond filming.
Victoria's challenge is to continue translating its creative and technical capabilities into a consistent pipeline of production work. Competition with Queensland and New South Wales means that studio access, incentive funding, workforce development, and business growth all matter.
Western Australia: Expanding Production Capacity
Western Australia represents an important area of expansion within Australia's production landscape.
Historically, the state's geographic distance from the country's eastern production centers has presented logistical considerations for productions. However, its locations and developing infrastructure offer opportunities to attract projects seeking environments and production options that differ from Sydney, Melbourne, and the Gold Coast.
Perth Film Studios adds a significant new facility to this market. The complex includes four sound stages, workshops, production support areas, and a backlot, expanding the state's ability to accommodate studio-based productions.
Western Australia also offers production incentives. Its Production Attraction Incentive is designed to attract eligible high-profile productions, while its post-production, digital, and visual effects incentive supports qualifying work undertaken by local businesses.
This distinction is important. A state does not necessarily need to compete with the largest studio centers on the same terms. It can develop a competitive position by combining distinctive locations, targeted financial support, and specialized production services.
For Western Australia, the next stage is building a consistent production pipeline that supports the new infrastructure, creates recurring employment, and encourages screen businesses to expand their local operations.
South Australia: Flexible Studios and an Emerging Production Identity
South Australia provides another example of how regional production markets can compete through a combination of facilities, incentives, and local industry support.
Adelaide Studios is a key production facility, offering sound stages and supporting production spaces. The South Australian Film Corporation also works with producers to connect projects with local crews, production services, and post-production businesses.
The state has attracted productions including The Babadook, Mortal Kombat, The Tourist, and Talk to Me. More recently, the work of South Australian filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou has helped bring international attention to the state's creative talent.
South Australia's incentive structure includes production investment support and a post-production, digital, and visual effects rebate. Its approach provides an opportunity to attract projects that may benefit from a smaller production environment, local industry relationships, and access to distinctive locations.
Compared with Queensland and New South Wales, South Australia operates on a smaller production scale. Its competitive advantage is therefore less about matching the largest studio complexes and more about offering a flexible production environment that can support projects while strengthening local businesses and talent.
What the Regional Comparison Reveals
The differences between Australia's production regions become clearer when their respective strengths are considered together.
Queensland is particularly competitive in large-scale studio production, water-based filming, and access to varied locations. New South Wales benefits from Sydney's established production network, post-production businesses, and concentration of technical services. Victoria combines studio facilities with a broad creative and technical economy, including animation and digital production.
Western Australia is expanding its production capacity through Perth Film Studios and targeted incentives, while South Australia offers a smaller but established production environment supported by Adelaide Studios and local industry development.
These regional markets are not interchangeable. A production requiring extensive water-based filming and major studio facilities may find Queensland particularly attractive. A project seeking access to Sydney's production and post-production network may favor New South Wales. Victoria offers a different combination of creative and technical services, while Western Australia and South Australia provide additional options through developing facilities and targeted support.
This regional diversity is an advantage, but it also creates competition within Australia itself. States must demonstrate why a production should choose their facilities, crews, locations, and services rather than those available elsewhere in the country.
Production Incentives: Australia Compared With the UK and Canada
Financial incentives are among the most influential factors in international production decisions. However, comparing headline percentages without examining their eligibility requirements and expenditure calculations can create a misleading picture.
Australia's federal screen production incentives include three major programs.
The Location Offset provides a 30% rebate on qualifying Australian production expenditure for eligible large-budget productions. The Producer Offset provides a 40% rebate for eligible feature films and 30% for other qualifying formats that meet the significant Australian content requirements. The Post, Digital and Visual Effects (PDV) Offset provides a 30% rebate for qualifying post-production, digital, and visual effects work undertaken in Australia, regardless of where the project is filmed.
State and territory programs may provide additional support, subject to their individual conditions. These programs are not automatically interchangeable, and productions must assess the eligibility and interaction of each incentive before structuring a project.
The United Kingdom operates through its Audio-Visual Expenditure Credit (AVEC). Its headline rates include 34% for qualifying films and high-end television, 39% for qualifying animation and children's television, and 53% for qualifying independent films. Eligible visual effects expenditure can also receive an enhanced rate under specified conditions.
Canada's federal Film or Video Production Services Tax Credit (PSTC) provides a 16% credit on qualifying Canadian labour expenditure. Provincial and territorial programs can provide additional support, depending on the location and nature of the production.
These percentages should not be interpreted as a direct ranking of which country offers the largest financial benefit. Australia, the UK, and Canada calculate their incentives using different expenditure bases, eligibility rules, and qualifying conditions.
The practical value of an incentive depends on the production's budget, format, local spending, workforce requirements, and ability to meet the relevant program criteria.
For producers, the decision is therefore not simply about identifying the highest percentage. It is about determining which location provides the strongest overall financial and operational proposition.
Beyond Filming: Visual Effects and Post-Production
A film's production process does not end when principal photography is completed. Visual effects, editing, sound design, animation, color grading, and other post-production services are essential to modern film and television production.
Australia has developed a significant post-production and visual effects sector, with businesses operating across several states. New South Wales and Victoria have established technical networks, while other regions are developing their own capabilities.
The federal PDV Offset is particularly relevant to this part of the industry because qualifying work can receive support even when the production was filmed outside Australia.
This creates an opportunity for Australia to participate in international projects beyond physical filming. A production may shoot in another country while completing eligible visual effects or post-production work with Australian companies.
The UK and Canada also compete strongly in this area. London's post-production and VFX network supports major studio productions, while Vancouver and Toronto have developed substantial technical and production-service ecosystems.
For Australia, the challenge is ensuring that increased international work strengthens local businesses and creates sustainable employment rather than relying exclusively on temporary project demand.
The Workforce Question: Can Australia Sustain Its Growth?
Production infrastructure is only one part of a competitive screen industry. Studios require experienced production managers, cinematographers, technicians, construction teams, editors, accountants, coordinators, and other specialists to operate effectively.
Screen Australia's 2026 Production Infrastructure and Capacity Analysis identified several challenges affecting the industry's long-term capacity. These included skills gaps, limited career progression, business scalability, and infrastructure constraints.
The study highlighted capacity concerns across both physical production and post-production. Roles identified as areas of concern included line producers, location managers, production accountants, production coordinators, production managers, VFX supervisors, technical directors, editors, and VFX editors.
These findings matter because international production growth can increase demand for experienced workers faster than the local industry can develop and retain them.
The issue also connects to the regional comparison. A state may have a sound stage and attractive incentives, but without enough experienced crew and supporting businesses, its ability to accommodate multiple productions at once can be limited.
Australia's long-term competitiveness will depend on more than attracting projects. It will require investment in training, career progression, local production companies, and the infrastructure that allows workers and businesses to operate between major productions.
International Success Versus Domestic Production
One of the most important questions surrounding Australia's screen industry is whether the growth of international production translates into stronger domestic storytelling.
Screen Australia's 2024–25 Drama Report recorded approximately AU$2.7 billion in expenditure across Australian and international drama production, a 43% increase from the previous year.
International activity accounted for a substantial portion of this growth. Australian productions represented approximately AU$1.1 billion in expenditure across 71 titles. Although spending on Australian titles increased by 14%, the number of Australian titles entering production declined from 89 to 71.
Australian titles accounted for approximately 40% of total expenditure, down from 50% in the previous reporting year.
These figures reveal a more complicated picture than the headline production record suggests.
International productions bring economic activity, employment, investment in facilities, and opportunities for local suppliers. They can also provide valuable experience for Australian crews and technical specialists.
However, a successful international production market does not automatically guarantee that Australian-owned projects receive sufficient investment or that local filmmakers can consistently develop and produce their own work.
The distinction is important for all three countries in this series.
The UK has a substantial international production sector alongside its domestic film and television industry. Canada has developed a production-services market while continuing to support Canadian content and co-productions. Australia faces a similar challenge: maintaining its appeal to international studios while ensuring that its own creative sector remains viable.
The goal should not be to choose between international and domestic production. Both can contribute to a healthy screen ecosystem. The challenge is ensuring that the benefits of international investment extend beyond the immediate production period.
Which Market Has the Competitive Advantage?
Australia, the United Kingdom, and Canada each offer different advantages to international film and television productions.
The United Kingdom benefits from established studio infrastructure, experienced technical networks, and a mature production ecosystem. Its competitive position is reinforced by its ability to support large-scale productions while providing access to a wide range of specialist services.
Canada offers a combination of production infrastructure, skilled crews, proximity to the United States, and federal and provincial incentives. Vancouver and Toronto have become recognizable production centers in the international industry.
Australia's strengths include its locations, major studio facilities, federal incentives, and regional production options. Its ability to accommodate international productions across several states gives it flexibility, while its PDV sector creates opportunities to attract work beyond physical filming.
There is no universal winner. The best location depends on the production's creative requirements, financial structure, schedule, technical needs, and access to qualified workers.
For a production requiring extensive water-based filming and large studio facilities, Queensland may be attractive. A project seeking access to Sydney's established production and post-production network may find New South Wales more suitable. Victoria offers a combination of studio infrastructure and creative services, while Western Australia and South Australia provide additional options through developing facilities and targeted support.
The comparison illustrates that international competitiveness is not determined by incentives alone. Infrastructure, workforce capacity, business development, and the ability to deliver projects efficiently are equally important.
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Australia's Next Chapter in Global Production
Australia has established itself as a serious participant in the international film and television production market. Its studios have hosted major franchises, its regional production centers offer different advantages, and its incentives provide a financial framework for attracting international work.
However, the next stage of development will require more than continued growth in international production expenditure.
The country must address workforce capacity, expand infrastructure where demand requires it, support local production businesses, and ensure that Australian filmmakers have opportunities to develop and produce their own work.
The regional comparison also demonstrates that Australia's future will not be shaped by one city or one studio. Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia, and South Australia each have a role in building the country's overall production capacity.
Compared with the UK and Canada, Australia has a competitive combination of facilities, locations, incentives, and technical services. Its long-term position will depend on how effectively it turns those advantages into a sustainable industry, one capable of attracting global productions while continuing to create stories of its own.
The real measure of success is not simply how many international productions choose Australia. It is whether those productions help build an industry that remains strong after the cameras stop rolling.
This analysis is part of Art Imitating Life's Comparative Studies series, examining how different countries and production hubs compete for international film and television projects. Continue exploring our previous studies of the United Kingdom and Vancouver, Canada, to see how their production infrastructure, incentives, and industry strategies compare with Australia's.
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