BACKPACKERS have long trekked to Prague in search of beautiful architecture and cheap brews. Now film-makers are heading to the Czech Republic’s capital for beautiful architecture and cheap crews.

British film studios — already battling the effects of a weak dollar and uncertainty over tax incentives — have recently been contending with the aggressive tactics of rivals in Central Europe.

Warner Brothers, the Hollywood studio owned by Time Warner, has confirmed that it is considering using Barrandov Studios in Prague to shoot parts of the fifth Harry Potter film, instead of using Leavesden Studios in Watford, as well as sites in Scotland.

Separately, Eon Productions, the London company behind the James Bond films, is also thought to be weighing up a shift to either Prague or Budapest for its forthcoming remake of Casino Royale.

Film-makers estimate that they can reduce their shooting budget by up to a third by using locations such as Prague, which have been luring Hollywood money since the mid-1990s.

Studios are being built all over Eastern and Central Europe. British investors are getting in on the act. Grosvenor Park, the film financing firm based in London, is in partnership to build a $20 million (£11.3 million) studio in Serbia and Montenegro.

Tom Cruise was among the first major stars to work in Central Europe when the Barrandov Studios were used to shoot Mission: Impossible in 1996. Since then the studios have hosted films such as A Knight’s Tale, The Bourne Identity, Van Helsing and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

The mere suggestion of James Bond leaving Pinewood, the Buckinghamshire film studio, would have provoked snorts of derision only a few years ago. Since 1962, 18 of the Bond films have been made at the studios.

But British film producers believe that they have little choice but to look to Central Europe, despite the prospect of using less talented crews.

“The tax situation and the exchange rate means that we have to explore how and where the film can be made most economically,” one producer said.

“Our hope is (to make films) in the UK but if, financially, it proves advantageous to film elsewhere, then relocating is something we have to consider.”

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