Cinema is leaving Moscow: who's paying for the new geography of Russian filming?
Rebates return up to 30–45% of producers' costs and trigger a "provincial" film boom. But without infrastructure and clear rules, this decentralization remains fragile.
Anna Malgina (film journalist and film researcher)
In recent years, a noticeable shift has been taking place in Russian cinema. It's not always evident in festival listings, but it's clearly visible on a map of the country. More and more films and series are being filmed outside of Moscow and St. Petersburg—in the Murmansk region, Kaliningrad, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, and Bashkortostan. This process is rarely discussed as a cultural phenomenon, but rather as an economic tool. At issue is the film rebate system: a mechanism that reimburses producers for a portion of their production costs for filming in a specific region.
Technically, a rebate isn't a tax deduction, but a subsidy that a filmmaker receives after fulfilling a number of conditions: a certain number of days of filming in a region, a specified volume of local expenses, and the correct paperwork and compliance with procedures. This model has long been used internationally, but in Russia, it only became systemic relatively recently, with the launch of a federal program overseen by the Russian Export Center jointly with the Ministry of Economic Development.
Under this scheme, the base rebate is 30% of costs. Additional bonuses are possible: up to +10% for infrastructure use and another +5% for full post-production at Russian studios. In total, this allows for the reimbursement of up to approximately 45% of a project's costs. Formally, this is compensation for funds spent within the region—on locations, personnel, services, and accommodation. In practice, rebates are becoming one of the few tools that truly allow regions to be more than just a backdrop, but a place where meaning is produced.
This is especially important for projects with limited budgets—documentaries, independent films, and low-budget feature films. Without such support, they often simply couldn't be filmed outside of Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Money that comes back – and not always on time
According to the industry publication Cinemaplex, in 2024, the Murmansk Region compensated film producers for costs totaling approximately 29 million rubles, offering a refund of up to 30% of expenses. The region has consistently develops this program, focusing on northern landscapes and logistical support for film crews. From January to July 2025, the region took off over 30 films, TV series and documentaries.
The Kaliningrad region has become one of the most notable Russian regions in terms of rebate volume: in 2024, film producers were paid more than 33 million rubles in subsidies for filming in the region, and the region entered In the top 5 Russian territories for this indicator. In 2025, the Kaliningrad region authorities will compensate film producers' expenses. singled out 28 million rubles from the regional budget, and filming notifications were received from six film companies.
The rebate system in the Kaliningrad region has been in place for a long time: the region was one of the first pilots for this mechanism, and over the years of support, the film subsidies paid out have increased many times over. exceeds initial amounts. At the same time, some of the payments were postponed to the next period: not all projects were able to meet the formal requirements of the program, which immediately designated The weak point of the system is its bureaucratic rigidity.
In Krasnoyarsk Krai and the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, rebates have also become a significant factor: the regions declare their support for film production as part of a long-term cultural strategy, but emphasize that the amounts are still limited and cannot compete with those in the capitals.
Bashkiria is just entering this process: in 2025, the region announced the launch of a rebate program and, concurrently, support for animation and documentary projects. This is a typical example of a "slow start," when the region initially forms rules, and only then the influx of projects.
The regional Film Production Support Center explained that in the Murmansk region, the return is up to 30% of the funds spent on filming, and that attracting projects here connected Not only with rebates, but also with unique landscapes for outdoor filming, especially winter scenes that are difficult to shoot in capital cities.
The rebate system is also developing in other Russian regions. For example, in Primorsky Krai, 27 million rubles have been allocated to compensate film producers for their expenses in 2025. Begins selection of films for participation in the rebate program.
Where movies are filmed – and why it matters
Economics is directly linked to aesthetics here. When a film is shot not in a "presumed location" but where it's intended, the very language of cinema changes. This is especially noticeable in documentaries and borderland films, where the landscape, climate, and pace of life cease to be a neutral backdrop. Directors and producers increasingly emphasize that regional filming isn't just about money. It's an opportunity to work with non-professional actors, local stories, and a vibrant social context. But it's precisely here that the tension between potential and reality arises.
Skepticism from within the industry
Despite the official rhetoric of success, filmmakers themselves often speak cautiously about rebates. Director and producer Anton Maslov, in a public discussion of regional cinema, put it bluntly: "I know of only two clusters of Russian cinema—Moscow and Yakutia. We would be happy to came to every region of our country, but for this there must be cameras, professionals, and rebates.”
Everything about this phrase is crucial: rebates are described as the final element of the chain, not its foundation. Without infrastructure, specialists, and local producers, financial compensation alone won't solve the problem.
Representatives of the Northwest film industry express similar concerns, noting that many producers simply don't understand how to work with the rebate system, while the regions, in turn, fear the risks and delay payments. As a result, the mechanism intended to streamline production sometimes becomes a source of additional stress.
The region as a subject, not a decoration
Nevertheless, even in their imperfect form, rebates have already changed the rules of the game. They have allowed regions to assert themselves not through exotica or "provincialism," but through production. Importantly, many projects produced with their help remain small in budget—but this is precisely what makes them sensitive to the environment.
We're not talking about mainstream cinema, but rather about works that intertwine the personal and the social: stories about family, growing up, memory, war, and women's experiences. Regional cinema increasingly speaks of freedom not as an abstract category, but as a bodily, everyday, and geographically situated experience. And in this sense, rebates become part of a broader cultural process—the decentralization of the gaze.
Natalia Nazarova's film "Philately," which won the Grand Prix in the feature competition at the 2024 Window to Europe festival in Vyborg, became a shining example of how regional stories can gain national and critical acclaim thanks to their attention to place and people. The film tells the story of a young woman from a northern coastal town who works at a post office and collects stamps. Her story is simple yet deeply human, and the acting duo received a special mention from the jury for their poignancy. Filmed in the Murmansk region, the film's success drew critics who praised it as a fresh, sincere voice of "Russian cinema of the future," unafraid of intimate intonations and "small themes."
If we recall how Andrey Zvyagintsev's film "Leviathan" unexpectedly unleashed a cultural and tourist frenzy on the long-obscure Murmansk town of Teriberka—with crowds of visitors eager to see the drama's "setting" and the whale skeleton left behind—it becomes clear: cinema has the power to reimagine and enliven the space in which it is filmed, and to transform the cultural landscape of an entire region.
Economic support in the form of rebates is only one aspect of the process. Far more important is its impact on the film itself. When a film is shot where it was originally conceived, the distance between the author and the medium disappears. Local stories cease to be abstract and acquire concreteness—in language, traditions, culture, and social reality. Themes of family, memory, and belonging gain a fleshed-out quality that cannot be replicated in the capital.
This is especially important for a country with a vast territory and profound cultural differences between regions. By encouraging filming outside the center, rebates become a mechanism for cultural decentralization: they expand narrative rights, foster the emergence of new voices, and strengthen regional identity in cinema.
Yulia Trofimova's film "The Big Land" (2025) became a notable event for the Far East and a shining example of how regional rebates work for the development of Russian filmmaking: in Primorsky Krai, film companies were paid a record rebate of approximately 11 million rubles for their work on this film, which amounted to approximately 40% of the production costs in the region and made Primorye will be one of the leaders in supporting film production in the Far East in 2024.
Filming took place in May–June 2024 on locations on the Bruce Peninsula near the lighthouse and in Vladivostok. The harsh natural environment and remote lighthouses steel Not just a backdrop, but a metaphor for the inner state of the heroine—a young mother returning to her home and confronting the ghosts of the past. The film was recognized at the 2025 Window to Europe festival for Mikhail Dementyev's cinematography and received the Producers Guild of Russia Award.
A delicate balance
It's important to understand: rebates don't solve the structural problems of Russian cinema. They don't replace institutions, don't shape the market, and don't guarantee sustainability. Moreover, dependence on regional budgets makes the system vulnerable: priorities can shift, payments can be delayed, and regulations can become more stringent.
But it's precisely in this fragility that their significance emerges. Rebates don't function as a one-size-fits-all solution, but as a window of opportunity. For some, it's a chance to make a film where it's actually set. For others, it's a reason to believe for the first time that filmmaking is possible outside the center.
Today, the question is no longer just economic—where is it cheaper to film?—it's cultural and political: who has the right to tell a story and where does that story come from? And in this sense, the rebate system, with all its flaws, has already become part of the new geography of Russian cinema.
