German Labour Minister Hubertus Heil made the case for further tax incentives to support the German film industry on Thursday during a visit to the historic Babelsberg Film Studio outside Berlin.

Babelsberg is "a huge piece of German history, but also the future," said Heil. "We have to make sure that we remain competitive in Europe and the world with the Babelsberg studios in competition with other locations."

The Babelsberg Film Studio, which opened in 1912, produced acclaimed early film classics including director Fritz Lang's epic "Metropolis," 1930's "The Blue Angel" starring Marlene Dietrich and "The Murderers Are Among Us" with Hildegard Knef.

Popular recent productions filmed at the studios include Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds" and the fourth part of the "Matrix Resurrections" with Keanu Reeves.

"Babelsberg is a flagship for the entire country, for the German film industry," said Heil. "It is an economic factor for the region, but it is also of national importance far beyond that."

The minister described the government's proposals for film tax incentives as "possibly greater leverage for investment" compared to the country's previous film funding scheme.

He contended that the money would not be given away, but used sensibly, because economic value creation in Germany is essential for jobs and protecting an important part of the country's culture.

According to current plans from the centre-left coalition government, filmmakers will be able to deduct up to 30% of their production costs from their taxes in future. In addition, at least 20% of income is to flow back into local productions via an investment obligation.

Eike Wolf, head of studio operations in Babelsberg, said that up to 4,000 jobs could be created with two or three major productions alone.

But Wolf said that productions this year have been "too quiet from our point of view" after a major project by US director Wes Anderson wrapped up at the studios.

A system with tax incentives could make Babelsberg "internationally competitive again, especially in Europe," Wolf said.

Since the German government unveiled the proposals, "interest in Hollywood is very high again," Wolf said.