Spain Film Commission has unveiled a preview of Film Data España, a new digital platform designed to connect audiovisual productions, filming locations, and the territory. The presentation took place during Iberseries & Platino Industria, which is being held in Madrid.
The project arrives at a time when the Spanish audiovisual industry is seeking more efficient tools to manage information about locations, a key factor in attracting national and international film shoots and boosting the economic development of the involved territories.
What is Film Data España
Film Data España was created with the goal of gathering, structuring, and geolocating data on productions and filming sites, transforming that information into an accessible resource for both industry professionals and public administrations.
The pilot version presented incorporates several key features:
- An interactive map to browse productions and locations.
- Detailed files for each location.
- Natural language search tools.
- A collaborative model open to the network of Film Commissions and Film Offices.
Who participated in the presentation
The presentation event featured Carla Redondo, Director General of Digitalization and Audiovisual Communication Services at the Ministry for Digital Transformation; Carmen Páez, Undersecretary of Culture at the Spanish Ministry of Culture; Juan Manuel Guimeráns, President of Spain Film Commission; and José Velasco, CEO of PLIA.
Guimeráns highlighted that Spain possesses a great diversity of locations and a network of film commissions and film offices that possess extensive knowledge of the territory. As he explained, Film Data España seeks to turn that knowledge into a shared tool that reinforces the industry's work and makes what the country can offer to a production more visible.
The President of Spain Film Commission emphasized that this pilot is born with the ambition to grow through collaboration between administrations, territories, and the audiovisual sector.
The role of digitalization and culture
Carla Redondo noted that digital transformation adds value when it converts data into useful services with the capacity to evolve. In her speech, she indicated that Film Data España is moving in that direction by offering a structured and interoperable base that facilitates access to information and opens new possibilities for use in a strategic sector.
For her part, Carmen Páez recalled that locations are not just settings, but are part of the cultural identity of the works and the territories that host them. The Undersecretary of Culture explained that documenting this link contributes to recognizing and projecting the cultural, historical, natural, and urban heritage associated with film shoots.
Funding and institutional support
The initiative has public funding from the Ministry of Culture and the Secretary of State for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence (SEDIA), which falls under the Ministry for Digital Transformation and Civil Service. This latter line of support is part of the Spain Audiovisual Hub program.
How the platform will work
Film Data España is organized around an interactive map that allows users to explore productions and filming locations, with access to the information associated with each of them.
The collaborative dimension will be one of the central pillars of the project. Film commissions and film offices will be able to contribute their direct knowledge of the territory, enrich the available information, and help build a joint vision of the diversity of locations existing in Spain.
José Velasco, CEO of PLIA, the company in charge of the technological development, explained that the work consists of translating a complex architecture into a simple user experience. The goal, he noted, is for those who use the platform to be able to move between a production, its locations, and the territory intuitively, without needing to think about the technology behind it.
Pilot phase and next steps
Film Data España is currently in the pilot phase. This stage will allow for testing the platform's functionality on a representative set of productions and locations, evaluating the user experience, and defining the criteria that will guide its future growth.
The project also includes a demonstration environment that will show how an audiovisual work can be linked to information about the places where it was filmed. From this first phase, the platform's architecture has been designed with the capacity to address future connections with other digital environments.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Film Data España?
It is a digital platform promoted by Spain Film Commission that seeks to connect audiovisual productions with their filming locations in Spain through an interactive map and search tools.
Where was the project presented?
The preview of the platform was presented at Iberseries & Platino Industria, an event held in Madrid.
Who funds Film Data España?
It has public funding from the Ministry of Culture and the Secretary of State for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence (SEDIA), of the Ministry for Digital Transformation and Civil Service, within the framework of the Spain Audiovisual Hub.
What phase is the platform in?
It is currently in the pilot phase, a period intended to test its operation with a representative set of productions and locations before its final development.
Who developed the platform’s technology?
The technological development has been the responsibility of PLIA, a company whose CEO, José Velasco, participated in the project's presentation.
What role do film commissions and film offices have in the project?
They will be able to contribute their knowledge of the territory and enrich the information available on the platform, within a collaborative model that seeks to build a shared vision of locations in Spain.
