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Audiovisual industry generates R$ 4,7 billion and consolidates Rio as the largest filming hub in Latin America.
Published on 02/06/2026 - 18:16 | Updated on 02/06/2026 - 18:17
The sector has registered growth exceeding 60% in the last five years. Art: Press Release The audiovisual sector in Rio de Janeiro is experiencing strong economic growth, expanding production, and consolidating its international presence. Data from the “Anuário do Audiovisual Carioca 2026” (Rio Audiovisual Yearbook 2026), prepared by the municipal secretariats of Economic Development (SMDE), Culture (SMC), Riofilme, and Riotur, indicate that the segment generated approximately R$ 4,7 billion in the Rio de Janeiro economy in 2025, a 61,2% increase compared to 2020. During the same period, the ISS (Service Tax) revenue from audiovisual activities grew by 62,8%, reaching approximately R$ 70 million in 2025.
The survey indicates that the audiovisual production chain currently comprises more than 2,7 companies in the municipality, with 96% focused on film production or post-production. In 2024, the sector registered 19,7 formal jobs and a positive balance of 5.575 new jobs created between 2021 and February 2026. Furthermore, Rio has more than 7,8 Individual Microentrepreneurs (MEIs) linked to audiovisual activities.
– The creative economy occupies a strategic position in the economic development of Rio, with audiovisual production being one of its most relevant segments. The municipality has a consistent policy of incentivizing the sector. The city registers approximately 11 filming days in public locations per year, a volume that surpasses even important international centers like Paris – emphasizes the mayor of Rio, Eduardo Cavaliere.
Audiovisual production is also growing. In 2025 alone, 10.930 filming days were authorized in public areas of the city, consolidating Rio as the most filmed city in Latin America, ahead of Mexico City. This number represents a 24% increase compared to 2024. Series, feature films, and advertising productions lead the volume of filming in the capital of Rio de Janeiro.
The study also highlights the strengthening of Rio's international presence in the audiovisual sector. Foreign productions from countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, Portugal, Chile, and the United Arab Emirates have been filmed in the city in recent years. Major international productions, such as Godzilla vs. Kong: The New Empire, had scenes filmed in Rio de Janeiro.
One of the main drivers of this growth is the cash rebate mechanism, a public policy aimed at attracting national and international productions. Between 2022 and 2025, the program mobilized R$ 166,5 million, with R$ 29,1 million in public investment and R$ 138,4 million in resources attracted to the city. According to the survey, for every R$ 1 invested by the municipality, R$ 6,47 is generated in the sector's economy.
– If we were to translate the recent trajectory of Rio de Janeiro's economic development into a narrative, it would bring together new strategic fronts that are interconnected: from innovation to data centers and artificial intelligence to the financial market, passing through the energy transition and the carbon credit market. This set of agendas reveals the multifaceted and integrated nature of the policies aimed at the city's growth and adds to a sector that has been consolidating – the creative economy, which involves Carnival and the most important cultural events and industries in the city – highlights the Municipal Secretary of Economic Development of the Rio de Janeiro City Hall, Osmar Lima.
The Rio de Janeiro City Hall, through RioFilme, invested approximately R$ 282 million in over 600 projects between 2021 and the first quarter of 2026. The goal is to strengthen the production chain, increase Rio's international competitiveness, and encourage job and income generation.
The Rio de Janeiro City Hall, through RioFilme, invested approximately R$ 282 million in over 600 projects between 2021 and the first quarter of 2026. The goal is to strengthen the production chain, expand Rio's international competitiveness, and encourage job and income generation. "The data from this study confirm the strategic importance of audiovisual production, whose cultural, economic, and social impact significantly contributes to consolidating Rio as a global creative hub," states the Rio de Janeiro Municipal Secretary of Culture, Lucas Padilha.
The yearbook also highlights the advances in diversity and inclusion promoted by public calls for proposals in the audiovisual sector. Among the selected projects, proposals led by Black people increased from 26% to 48%. Projects led by women represent 73% of the selected proposals. There was also significant growth in the participation of Indigenous people, transgender people, elderly people, and residents of areas with lower HDI (Human Development Index) in the city.
Beyond its economic strength, Rio remains the main consumer market for Brazilian cinema. Between 1995 and 2024, the state accounted for, on average, 71% of the audience and 70% of the revenue of national cinema. In 2024, 68 films produced in the state were released, practically equaling the historical record of 2017.
– The launch of the Rio de Janeiro Audiovisual Industry Yearbook represents a milestone. More than just gathering data and evidence, the publication reaffirms the commitment to transparency and the recognition of audiovisual production as a strategic driver of economic, cultural, and social development for the city. At the helm of RioFilme, we have been working to consolidate a simple yet strategic vision: audiovisual production needs to be treated as an industry, a public policy, and a tool for social transformation. At this decisive moment for the sector, Rio is not content to be merely a backdrop. Rio is a platform. We hope that the Yearbook will contribute to this platform generating more films, more series, more jobs, more companies, more inclusion, more self-esteem, and more development for the people of Rio – says the president of RioFilme, Leonardo Edde.
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