Creative industries policies and conditions of cinema labor in Colombia in the 21st century

In Colombia in 2012 the second "cinema law", called Location Colombia [Filmación Colombia] Law 1556, was enacted with the aim of taking advantage of the nation's natural landscapes as film locations and hoping to improve the capability of the local audiovisual industry. By 2018, 32 international film productions had received benefits from the Location Colombia law. Based on those results the Ministry of Culture has considered the law a success story. This article brings forth the results of the first series of qualitative semi-structured interviews (n = 10) with Colombian workers who had taken part in films supported by the Location Colombia law. They provided their insights on local labor conditions, knowledge transfer and production capability. The results present a picture of precarious services offered at a low price and with governmental incentives that invite runaway productions with minor improvements in the working conditions in the local audiovisual sector.