Attracting tourists: movies alone won't do it
On the eve of the much-heralded launch of Baz Luhrmann's film Australia, La Trobe Head of Sport, Tourism and Hospitality, Sue Beeton, has questioned the popular wisdom that movies such as this and Crocodile Dundee encourage tourism to Australia.
Dr Beeton is author of a recently published book Film-Induced Tourism. 'When I hear talk about the power of a single movie to increase tourism, especially international tourism, I am concerned, particularly when the sites are in relatively remote areas, traditionally difficult for international visitors to access.'
Luhrmann's Australia is set in the Kimberley region, about a hundred kilometres west of Kununurra. International visitors, especially from the desirable Japanese and American markets, are usually limited for time.
'Even getting to Darwin,' says Dr Beeton, an Associate Professor in Tourism and Hospitality, 'can be a problem and may require them to forego visiting other places in Australia. I am even more concerned when government funds promote such ventures, with little if any independent research into the phenomenon of "film-induced tourism".'
Dr Beeton quotes the Tourism Australia website which explains how people can 'leverage the phenomenon that will be created as a result of the release of Baz Luhrmann's Australia. This smacks of 'boosterism,' she says.
Movies certainly are 'powerful emotional image creators' she concedes and have the potential to contribute to a tourist's desire to come to Australia and may help convert that desire into action for some visitors. But while films are part of the mix, Dr Beeton says a primary issue in attracting international visitors to Australia is the distance from its main international markets.
'We need to be realistic and pay attention to all of the research available, not simply those reports that support a particular view.'
Dr Beeton also points out that there 'are more movies that do not induce tourism than those that do, let alone those that may actively decrease visitation, such as Wolf Creek…'
See the full text of Dr Beeton's views in La Trobe Opinions.