As the director of the Funchal International Film Festival I must say there are clear benefits to the local economy derived from visitors coming to the venue. The concept of cultural tourism resides essentially on the fusion between the cultural proposals (including arts and entertainment) with the social components (from its historically richest till night life…) in an attractive tourist destination. A film festival that takes place in such a location it’s easier to promote since the necessary marketing is done regularly by the local tourism department as a political authority. In this case, the geographical location of the venue is also an argument for a visit: the island has a good weather, with fine temperatures, general security, direct short flights from Europe, natural beauty, five stars hotels, etc. There is no doubt that if this combination of tourism + film festival is successful, it will influence the decision of the dates to visit the island. The number of touristic products for sale, such as special packages in hotels (reduced rates during the festival, visits to museums and historic places, meals on restaurants and others attractions) will also increase. Another benefit to local economies and tourism is that filmmakers who attend the festival may regard those places as a possible setting for their future films, which will in turn promote the destination. Finally, it was very interesting to know that a filmmaker opted to buy her second house in Madeira after visiting us for the film festival! The Funchal International Film Festival in Madeira Islands is only in its 3rd edition but has already started catching the attention of filmmakers, producers and tourists!
