GapBusters is a new audiovisual production company (for cinema and TV fiction) that plans to focus on co-producing films with high commercial potential and with budgets of at least €5 million. The firm was created by three partners that have long been an active part of the Belgian and international film landscape: Frakas Productions (Raw [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Julia Ducournau
scheda film] by Julia Ducournau, Daguerrotype [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, All Yours [+leggi anche:
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intervista: David Lambert
scheda film] by David Lambert), Tarantula (Baden Baden [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Rachel Lang, All Cats Are Grey [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Savina Dellicour, The Wakhan Front [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Clément Cogitore, Pasolini [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Abel Ferrara
scheda film] by Abel Ferrara) and the Pôle Image de Liège (Liège Image Hub – PIL), a consortium of audiovisual service providers. Incidentally, the company will be established at the PIL, and will thus be able to benefit from various services at highly competitive prices.

GapBusters’ main funding tool will be the Belgian Tax Shelter, the fundraising activities for which will be entrusted to Casa Kafka Pictures. GapBusters guarantees 50% of financing on expenditure made in Belgium by European, Canadian, Chinese, Israeli, Tunisian and Moroccan producers, with Chilean, Brazilian and Mexican producers to be added soon; these countries either have a co-production agreement with Belgium or are in the process of finalising one. In 2015, more than €150 million were raised by the Tax Shelter in Belgium. GapBusters was founded by seasoned professionals who are used to working on international co-productions (and who are familiar with national or international support mechanisms such as Eurimages), and also guarantees preferential access to the highly beneficial Tax Shelter.

GapBusters plans to strengthen its activities by also creating a distribution arm, which will aim to distribute between five and eight films a year in the Benelux countries, supported by Wallimage Entreprises. Discussions are under way with French distributors in order to automate acquisition bidding for rights in the two territories, according to the films.