AFP, Budapest :
Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Hugh Jackman. Spotting hunky Hollywood actors is no big deal any more in Budapest, now one of Europe’s top hubs for foreign film productions thanks to attractive tax breaks and cutting-edge facilities.
Some of the biggest US blockbusters in 2016 were filmed here, including action comedy “Spy” with Jude Law and new mystery thriller “Inferno” featuring Tom Hanks.
The 60-year-old star of the sequel to Dan Brown’s famous “Da Vinci Code” spent several weeks in the Hungarian capital during the shooting. “It is one of the most beautiful cities in the world,” Hanks gushed following his stay.
Budapest was back in the headlines when heartthrob Gosling was in town for five months to film the follow-up to the 1982 sci-fi classic “Blade Runner” earlier this year.
The January cover story of glossy US men’s magazine GQ showed Gosling posing in stylish photographs captured at the city’s most beautiful spots.
A marketing triumph for the Hungarian government, except for a minor jarring note.
In one of the photos Gosling, unaware of subtle political rivalries, was seen lazing around in a hotel bed with a copy of the Magyar Nemzet newspaper, owned by the nemesis of right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
The PR glitch was swiftly fixed by the pro-government broadcaster TV2, which showed the image but blurred the paper’s name.
The owner of TV2 is close Orban ally Andy Vajna, who has been state film commissioner since 2011.
Often referred to as “Mister Cinema”, the magnate spent most of his career working in Hollywood and produced numerous smash hits including the “Rambo” and “Terminator” movies.
Vajna is one of the masterminds credited with boosting Budapest’s reputation as a world-class film capital, notably by co-financing the state-of-the-art Korda Studios.
Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Hugh Jackman. Spotting hunky Hollywood actors is no big deal any more in Budapest, now one of Europe’s top hubs for foreign film productions thanks to attractive tax breaks and cutting-edge facilities.
Some of the biggest US blockbusters in 2016 were filmed here, including action comedy “Spy” with Jude Law and new mystery thriller “Inferno” featuring Tom Hanks.
The 60-year-old star of the sequel to Dan Brown’s famous “Da Vinci Code” spent several weeks in the Hungarian capital during the shooting. “It is one of the most beautiful cities in the world,” Hanks gushed following his stay.
Budapest was back in the headlines when heartthrob Gosling was in town for five months to film the follow-up to the 1982 sci-fi classic “Blade Runner” earlier this year.
The January cover story of glossy US men’s magazine GQ showed Gosling posing in stylish photographs captured at the city’s most beautiful spots.
A marketing triumph for the Hungarian government, except for a minor jarring note.
In one of the photos Gosling, unaware of subtle political rivalries, was seen lazing around in a hotel bed with a copy of the Magyar Nemzet newspaper, owned by the nemesis of right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
The PR glitch was swiftly fixed by the pro-government broadcaster TV2, which showed the image but blurred the paper’s name.
The owner of TV2 is close Orban ally Andy Vajna, who has been state film commissioner since 2011.
Often referred to as “Mister Cinema”, the magnate spent most of his career working in Hollywood and produced numerous smash hits including the “Rambo” and “Terminator” movies.
Vajna is one of the masterminds credited with boosting Budapest’s reputation as a world-class film capital, notably by co-financing the state-of-the-art Korda Studios.
