New Jersey Assembly Panel Approves Expansion of Film Tax Credit Program
Posted by
Tax Analysts Editorial Staff
The New Jersey Assembly Budget Committee has approved a bill that would expand the state's film tax credit if the program is reinstated.
A 2905, sponsored by Assembly Democrats, would increase the tax credit from 20 percent to 22 percent for eligible film production expenses. It would also increase the film production tax credit annual cap from $ 10 million to $ 50 million and increase the annual cap for the digital media production tax credit from $ 5 million to $ 10 million, according to a December 16 release.
Gov. Chris Christie (R) suspended the program until at least July 1, 2011, as part of his budget cuts for fiscal 2011. He said in June that he needs time to evaluate the effectiveness of the program.
In a December 16 statement, sponsors of the bill praised the program and criticized its suspension.
View the entire article on LexisNexis Tax Center
Friday, December 31, 2010
Thursday, December 30, 2010
From Michigan Public Radio
Film industry backers hope to keep credit in place
by Sarah Hulett (2010-12-29)
DETROIT, MICH. (Michigan Radio) - Supporters of Michigan's budding film industry are hoping a new governor and legislature don't spell the end of the state's generous tax credits.
Governor-elect Rick Snyder has expressed some concern that the credits could be unsustainable. Michigan offers the most generous film incentives in the country, refunding as much as 42 percent of production costs.
But Carrie Jones, who heads the Michigan Film Office, says skeptics need only look around the state to see the benefits the credits bring.
"Jobs are being created, young people are staying here, we're reshaping our image, and I think as that's investigated further and as more numbers come out and as this program has time to take root a little bit, I think that will all become clear," Jones said.
New reporting rules take effect in January that will require production companies to disclose the people employed and money spent shooting in Michigan.
by Sarah Hulett (2010-12-29)
DETROIT, MICH. (Michigan Radio) - Supporters of Michigan's budding film industry are hoping a new governor and legislature don't spell the end of the state's generous tax credits.
Governor-elect Rick Snyder has expressed some concern that the credits could be unsustainable. Michigan offers the most generous film incentives in the country, refunding as much as 42 percent of production costs.
But Carrie Jones, who heads the Michigan Film Office, says skeptics need only look around the state to see the benefits the credits bring.
"Jobs are being created, young people are staying here, we're reshaping our image, and I think as that's investigated further and as more numbers come out and as this program has time to take root a little bit, I think that will all become clear," Jones said.
New reporting rules take effect in January that will require production companies to disclose the people employed and money spent shooting in Michigan.
Monday, December 20, 2010
PolitiFact.Com Article by C. Eugene Emery, Jr.
Reports offer multiple takes on the benefit of film tax credits like Rhode Island's
By C. Eugene Emery Jr.
Published on Sunday, December 19th, 2010 at 12:01 a.m.
Want to turn a $1 investment into an $8 return in a matter of a few months? Just offer the money in the form of a tax break for movie and television production companies.
Talk about movie magic!
That's what happens, said Senate President Teresa Paiva Weed when she spoke Dec. 3 during a State House reception for the production company behind "Body of Proof," the TV drama filmed in Rhode Island and scheduled to be aired on ABC. The state's tax credit helped make that happen by subsidizing movie and television productions.
"I was one of the skeptics when the film tax credit came out. I was one of the folks that said, 'How does this work?' 'I'm not sure.' 'Will this really work?' And I have come, through much education from my colleagues over the years, to become a real believer because we now know that it works, for all the reasons I've already said. A recent study showed that the film tax credit generates $8 for every $1 of investment in our state. And I can't think of a better investment that also builds on our tourism industry."
We were curious about whether the $1 becomes $8 rate of return was really that high.
Paiva Weed said the source of her comment comes from an April 2010 report by Edward M. Mazze, professor of business at the University of Rhode Island, who concluded that from 2005 to 2009, Rhode Island gave up $56.7 million in revenue in the form of tax credits to 46 productions projects. In return, the projects generated $466 million, direct and indirectly, in wages and taxes. Dividing $466 million by $56.7 million gives you the 8-to-1 ratio.
The credit system allows a production company to get a tax credit equal to 25 percent of its Rhode Island production costs if it spends at least $300,000 on items "directly attributable to activity within the state."
Mazze's estimate comes from looking at how much the production companies claimed they spent on products and services in Rhode Island, along with wages and salaries paid in Rhode Island. To gauge the indirect benefits -- such as extra wages paid out to hotel, restaurant and catering employees hired to support the production -- he turned to the U.S. Department of Commerce, which estimates how much the direct benefit spills over into other sectors. For motion picture and TV production, the feds say that's about 84 percent of the direct benefit. Then Mazze took those estimated wages and salaries and estimated that 10.2 percent of that went toward state and local taxes, based on annual figures from The Tax Foundation, a business-backed tax policy group.
If you restrict yourself to tax revenue directly raised through the credit program, Mazze's study suggests that the state gets 60 cents in taxes for every dollar spent on the credits. (Over the past five years, the amount has fluctuated from 50 cents in 2006 to 94 cents in 2009.)
But other studies that have tried to assess the value of the credits have reached very different conclusions, and some of the numbers vary widely.
Connecticut said the credits were worth 8 cents on the dollar. A Massachusetts study pegged the number at 16 cents.
In New Mexico, one of the states with the longest history of using subsidies to attract the film industry, researchers at New Mexico State University concluded that the rate of return was just 14 cents per dollar invested. Yet five months after that August 2008 study was released, the New Mexico State Film Office issued a report by the accounting firm Ernst & Young saying that the state's film tax credit had generated $1.50 in revenue for every dollar spent.
The results are dramatically different because "when you're comparing studies, the methodologies are different, and that makes it very very tough" to compare, said Mazze.
So this is like the blind men and the elephant -- each study "sees" something different depending on what they choose to look at.
Those who look for short-term tax income usually find that the tax credit system actually costs a state money, which, earlier this month, prompted the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in Washington, D.C., to liken the belief that the subsidies are a cost-effective tool for creating jobs and income to "a Hollywood fantasy."
Mazze believes the tax credit system is more than simply calculating how many tax dollars are immediately returned to the state's coffers. "I think, down the road, you're paying less taxes."
"Any type of government spending is going to generate jobs," said Anthony V. Popp, one of the authors of the New Mexico State University study. "But from an economic development point of view, you want to develop jobs that will stay there and generate revenues over a long period of time. Because of the footlooselessness of the [film] industry, they're not developing things and staying. They're going to the state that gives them the best deal."
"The real question is, where do you spend the money so it's the best bang for the buck," Popp said. "And the fact is, if you left that with the taxpayer, what would be the net effect?"
Taking Popp's question a step further, would a tax cut of $56.7 million do more for the Rhode Island economy? As far as we know, that study hasn't been done.
So, in the end, Paiva Weed is speaking the truth when she says that a study has concluded that the state gets back $8 for every $1 invested in tax breaks for motion picture and television production. But the Masse report is one of several studies that cast the costs and benefits of film credits all over the map.
For that reason, we decided not to issue a ruling on her statement. Perhaps at some point we'll be comfortable saying whether film tax credits are a pot of gold, or just another Hollywood special effect.
By C. Eugene Emery Jr.
Published on Sunday, December 19th, 2010 at 12:01 a.m.
Want to turn a $1 investment into an $8 return in a matter of a few months? Just offer the money in the form of a tax break for movie and television production companies.
Talk about movie magic!
That's what happens, said Senate President Teresa Paiva Weed when she spoke Dec. 3 during a State House reception for the production company behind "Body of Proof," the TV drama filmed in Rhode Island and scheduled to be aired on ABC. The state's tax credit helped make that happen by subsidizing movie and television productions.
"I was one of the skeptics when the film tax credit came out. I was one of the folks that said, 'How does this work?' 'I'm not sure.' 'Will this really work?' And I have come, through much education from my colleagues over the years, to become a real believer because we now know that it works, for all the reasons I've already said. A recent study showed that the film tax credit generates $8 for every $1 of investment in our state. And I can't think of a better investment that also builds on our tourism industry."
We were curious about whether the $1 becomes $8 rate of return was really that high.
Paiva Weed said the source of her comment comes from an April 2010 report by Edward M. Mazze, professor of business at the University of Rhode Island, who concluded that from 2005 to 2009, Rhode Island gave up $56.7 million in revenue in the form of tax credits to 46 productions projects. In return, the projects generated $466 million, direct and indirectly, in wages and taxes. Dividing $466 million by $56.7 million gives you the 8-to-1 ratio.
The credit system allows a production company to get a tax credit equal to 25 percent of its Rhode Island production costs if it spends at least $300,000 on items "directly attributable to activity within the state."
Mazze's estimate comes from looking at how much the production companies claimed they spent on products and services in Rhode Island, along with wages and salaries paid in Rhode Island. To gauge the indirect benefits -- such as extra wages paid out to hotel, restaurant and catering employees hired to support the production -- he turned to the U.S. Department of Commerce, which estimates how much the direct benefit spills over into other sectors. For motion picture and TV production, the feds say that's about 84 percent of the direct benefit. Then Mazze took those estimated wages and salaries and estimated that 10.2 percent of that went toward state and local taxes, based on annual figures from The Tax Foundation, a business-backed tax policy group.
If you restrict yourself to tax revenue directly raised through the credit program, Mazze's study suggests that the state gets 60 cents in taxes for every dollar spent on the credits. (Over the past five years, the amount has fluctuated from 50 cents in 2006 to 94 cents in 2009.)
But other studies that have tried to assess the value of the credits have reached very different conclusions, and some of the numbers vary widely.
Connecticut said the credits were worth 8 cents on the dollar. A Massachusetts study pegged the number at 16 cents.
In New Mexico, one of the states with the longest history of using subsidies to attract the film industry, researchers at New Mexico State University concluded that the rate of return was just 14 cents per dollar invested. Yet five months after that August 2008 study was released, the New Mexico State Film Office issued a report by the accounting firm Ernst & Young saying that the state's film tax credit had generated $1.50 in revenue for every dollar spent.
The results are dramatically different because "when you're comparing studies, the methodologies are different, and that makes it very very tough" to compare, said Mazze.
So this is like the blind men and the elephant -- each study "sees" something different depending on what they choose to look at.
Those who look for short-term tax income usually find that the tax credit system actually costs a state money, which, earlier this month, prompted the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in Washington, D.C., to liken the belief that the subsidies are a cost-effective tool for creating jobs and income to "a Hollywood fantasy."
Mazze believes the tax credit system is more than simply calculating how many tax dollars are immediately returned to the state's coffers. "I think, down the road, you're paying less taxes."
"Any type of government spending is going to generate jobs," said Anthony V. Popp, one of the authors of the New Mexico State University study. "But from an economic development point of view, you want to develop jobs that will stay there and generate revenues over a long period of time. Because of the footlooselessness of the [film] industry, they're not developing things and staying. They're going to the state that gives them the best deal."
"The real question is, where do you spend the money so it's the best bang for the buck," Popp said. "And the fact is, if you left that with the taxpayer, what would be the net effect?"
Taking Popp's question a step further, would a tax cut of $56.7 million do more for the Rhode Island economy? As far as we know, that study hasn't been done.
So, in the end, Paiva Weed is speaking the truth when she says that a study has concluded that the state gets back $8 for every $1 invested in tax breaks for motion picture and television production. But the Masse report is one of several studies that cast the costs and benefits of film credits all over the map.
For that reason, we decided not to issue a ruling on her statement. Perhaps at some point we'll be comfortable saying whether film tax credits are a pot of gold, or just another Hollywood special effect.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
From Beverly Lewis at the Sacramento Bee
By Beverly Lewis
Published: Sunday, Dec. 19, 2010 - 12:00 am | Page 3E
Re "You get red ink with that popcorn" (Forum, Dec. 12)
In his column, Dan Morain ignores the point that the Film & TV Tax Credit Program is a jobs program. Productions hire hundreds of workers and spend millions of dollars that support small businesses. In the first two years of the program, participating productions are estimated to bring $2 billion in direct spending to California, including $740 million in wages paid to "below-the-line" crew – electricians, drivers, etc. – generating much needed California tax revenue.
Why a tax credit at all? In 2000 a 14-month study determined $10 billion exited the Hollywood film industry due to incentives elsewhere, when three states were offering credits. Now 42 states have credits. California's new program targets those productions most likely to leave the state.
Ever watch the credits at the end of a film? Those names were mostly Californians; now they're not because incentives elsewhere require filmmakers to hire residents in those states in order to get their tax credits. By 2000 almost every American TV movie was shot in Canada. Since 1997, more than 36,000 California film jobs disappeared as well as dollars to our local communities from location production. New Mexico legislators aped Canada's success and more by integrating their incentives with their university infrastructure. This includes technical post-production and computer jobs which can start at $65,000.
Productions in the California program are selected by lottery not content. While it's easy to disparage provocative titles like "Walter the Farting Dog" – a noted children's book written by a National Magazine Award winner – we all have favorite films, cars or clothes we prefer to buy over others. This does not make a valid argument for ignoring a major industry at risk. Other productions qualifying for tax credits this year include one on Hemingway and one for the Hallmark Channel. Because of the lottery, studios don't influence selection process. Ten percent of the funds go to independent films; this year 39 percent of the selectees are independents.
As for efforts that resulted in this legislation, after nine years of educating Sacramento legislators to the impact of disappearing production, stakeholders like union representatives, employers and film commissioners representing communities all over the state can say this tax credit program was a long time coming, and it is a modest one at that.
Producers, like General Motors, will still make their product somewhere, but if they shoot here the dollars stay here. It's that simple.
Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2010/12/19/3266408/hollywood-tax-credit-keeps-jobs.html#ixzz18Z0CJhCG
Published: Sunday, Dec. 19, 2010 - 12:00 am | Page 3E
Re "You get red ink with that popcorn" (Forum, Dec. 12)
In his column, Dan Morain ignores the point that the Film & TV Tax Credit Program is a jobs program. Productions hire hundreds of workers and spend millions of dollars that support small businesses. In the first two years of the program, participating productions are estimated to bring $2 billion in direct spending to California, including $740 million in wages paid to "below-the-line" crew – electricians, drivers, etc. – generating much needed California tax revenue.
Why a tax credit at all? In 2000 a 14-month study determined $10 billion exited the Hollywood film industry due to incentives elsewhere, when three states were offering credits. Now 42 states have credits. California's new program targets those productions most likely to leave the state.
Ever watch the credits at the end of a film? Those names were mostly Californians; now they're not because incentives elsewhere require filmmakers to hire residents in those states in order to get their tax credits. By 2000 almost every American TV movie was shot in Canada. Since 1997, more than 36,000 California film jobs disappeared as well as dollars to our local communities from location production. New Mexico legislators aped Canada's success and more by integrating their incentives with their university infrastructure. This includes technical post-production and computer jobs which can start at $65,000.
Productions in the California program are selected by lottery not content. While it's easy to disparage provocative titles like "Walter the Farting Dog" – a noted children's book written by a National Magazine Award winner – we all have favorite films, cars or clothes we prefer to buy over others. This does not make a valid argument for ignoring a major industry at risk. Other productions qualifying for tax credits this year include one on Hemingway and one for the Hallmark Channel. Because of the lottery, studios don't influence selection process. Ten percent of the funds go to independent films; this year 39 percent of the selectees are independents.
As for efforts that resulted in this legislation, after nine years of educating Sacramento legislators to the impact of disappearing production, stakeholders like union representatives, employers and film commissioners representing communities all over the state can say this tax credit program was a long time coming, and it is a modest one at that.
Producers, like General Motors, will still make their product somewhere, but if they shoot here the dollars stay here. It's that simple.
Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2010/12/19/3266408/hollywood-tax-credit-keeps-jobs.html#ixzz18Z0CJhCG
Saturday, December 18, 2010
by Jessica Beym/Gloucester County Times
Tax credits for film and digital media would expand under proposed legislation
Published: Friday, December 17, 2010, 1:44 PM
Jessica Beym/Gloucester County Times By Jessica Beym/Gloucester County Times
Legislation to expand New Jersey’s film and digital media production tax credit once it’s restored in 2011 was released this week 7-0-4 by an Assembly panel.
The bill (A-2905) as of July 1, 2011 increases the annual program cap for the film production tax credit from $10 million to $50 million and for the digital media production tax credit from $5 million to $10 million.
The bill also provides for a tax credit equal to 22 percent, instead of the current 20 percent, of eligible production expenses if the expenses represent purchases of goods from businesses located in Urban Enterprise Zones or purchases of services performed by residents of a UEZ.
The measure is part of the Legislature’s Back to Work NJ job creation and economic development package.
An Ernst & Young study of the economic and fiscal impacts of the New Mexico film production tax credit concluded that 2007 film productions generated 9,209 jobs in New Mexico, $487.5 million in additional income and $891.8 million in additional economic activity.
A June 2009 study of Pennsylvania’s Film Production Tax Credit conducted by Economic Research Associates yielded similar positive results. The bill was released by the Assembly Budget Committee.
Published: Friday, December 17, 2010, 1:44 PM
Jessica Beym/Gloucester County Times By Jessica Beym/Gloucester County Times
Legislation to expand New Jersey’s film and digital media production tax credit once it’s restored in 2011 was released this week 7-0-4 by an Assembly panel.
The bill (A-2905) as of July 1, 2011 increases the annual program cap for the film production tax credit from $10 million to $50 million and for the digital media production tax credit from $5 million to $10 million.
The bill also provides for a tax credit equal to 22 percent, instead of the current 20 percent, of eligible production expenses if the expenses represent purchases of goods from businesses located in Urban Enterprise Zones or purchases of services performed by residents of a UEZ.
The measure is part of the Legislature’s Back to Work NJ job creation and economic development package.
An Ernst & Young study of the economic and fiscal impacts of the New Mexico film production tax credit concluded that 2007 film productions generated 9,209 jobs in New Mexico, $487.5 million in additional income and $891.8 million in additional economic activity.
A June 2009 study of Pennsylvania’s Film Production Tax Credit conducted by Economic Research Associates yielded similar positive results. The bill was released by the Assembly Budget Committee.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
From RealFilmCareer.Com
Pennsylvania attracts star power thanks to the state’s film tax credit
Pennsylvania towns might be landing on more star maps these days.
The state’s film tax credit, which was adopted in 2007, has attracted some big business, including 20th Century Fox, to the area.
“Unstoppable” – the Denzel Washington drama which barreled through the box office last month – was filmed throughout Central Pennsylvania.
Jane Saul of the Pennsylvania Film Office works with studios that are interested in using The Keystone State as a backdrop. She helps them save money through the tax credit, which gives feature films, television films and television shows intended for national audiences a 25-cent credit for every dollar of qualified expenditure.
“If a movie has a $100 million budget, they are going to get back $25 million,” Saul said.
To be eligible, production companies have to use 60 percent or more of their budgets in Pennsylvania.
Before cameras start rolling, Saul said the film office helps the studio scout locations.
For “Unstoppable,” she researched the state’s railroad history as well as towns that would be able to accommodate the film’s cast and crew. Since the movie was an “extremely large project,” Saul said it was filmed in a large area.
Unfortunately for local film buffs, none of the movie was shot in York County. But the economic effects can be felt through many communities.
Saul said most people have the perception that the tax credit only helps movie studios.
“The reality is that for the commonwealth it’s putting people to work,” she said.
From hotels to restaurants to dry cleaners, local businesses see a boom when film crews are in town.
According to the state Department of Community and Economic Development, the program paid for itself in the first year by generating $524.6 million in total statewide economic impact, including 4,000 new jobs with total wages of $146.4 million.
The tax credit isn’t about Hollywood glamour, Saul said, but having Washington on a local set is a nice side effect.
Pennsylvania had one of the first tax credits, but Saul said more states have started offering similar programs.
“We still have one of the best incentives,” she said.
And, since most people support job creation, Saul said, the tax incentive is supported by both Democrats and Republicans.
The state’s 2010-11 budget included $60 million for the film tax credit. If there is no vote to change the incentive in the 2011-12 budget, it will get $75 million, Saul said.
The film tax credit helped draw other recent releases – the Anne Hathaway and Jake Gyllenhaal romantic comedy “Love and Other Drugs” and the Russell Crowe action flick “The Next Three Days” – to The Keystone State.
Saul said the movie “Safe” is being shot in the Philadelphia area, and Fox has its sights on Pittsburgh for the new television series “Locke & Key”.
I have to admit that I haven’t seen “Unstoppable” yet. (“Some Like It Hot” is a train film that’s much more my speed.)
But I wouldn’t mind bumping into stars like Washington, Crowe and Jake Gyllenhaal on the streets of York someday soon. POPeye is a bi-weekly column focusing on the ever-changing landscape of popular culture. To reach writer Erin McCracken, call 771-2051 or send an e-mail to emccracken@ydr.com.
Local filmmaker uses crowdfunding to finance new project:
Jeff Crawford of Transdimensional Films is working on his first full-length feature “Making It Through.”
The movie is about an alcoholic actor, who must decide if he wants to reconnect with his estranged daughter. It features many local actors, including some faces from York Little Theatre, and is being shot in York County.
About $5,000 is privately financed for the movie, but Crawford wrote in an e-mail message that he’s trying to raise more money for the film. He decided to use the crowdfunding site IndieGoGo. People and organizations post information about their creative projects or causes on the site in order to raise awareness and funds.
Crawford’s goal is to raise $9,000 in about 100 days.
For details, visit www.indiegogo.com/MakingItThrough.
A runaway train in York County?
“Unstoppable,” which hit theaters Nov. 12, is based on actual events. A train engineer (Denzel Washington) and conductor (Chris Pine) have to stop a runaway train before it barrels into a populated area.
York Daily Record/Sunday News editor Jim McClure brought up a mysterious case of a runaway train in York County on his blog www.yorkblog.com/yorktownsquare. The story isn’t nearly as dramatic, but it’s still intriguing.
One night in August 1996, a train car weighing 135 tons thundered 9.5 miles from New Freedom to Seven Valleys on the old Northern Central Railroad. Heritage Rail Trail County Park was closed that night and the 1954 Western Maryland Fast Freight Line No. 1689 drifted harmlessly to a stop. No arrests were ever made.
Here is an excerpt form the 1996 York Daily Record story:
Bill Elmer’s telephone rang at just after 9 (p.m. Aug. 15, 1996).
Seven Valleys fire company authorities told him a runaway train car was heading down the tracks. They asked him to go outside to the Northern Central Railway behind his store and make sure nobody was in the way.
Children often play near the rails. In fact, the grocer said he found several little ones playing nearby that night.
“I made sure all the kids were moved away from the tracks,” he said.
Then, the tracks rumbled. Elmer said he thought he heard the roar of a diesel, but Northern Central officials later told him the engine hadn’t been running. It was dark. No lights beamed from the approaching locomotive.
“It was like a ghost train coming along,” Elmer said. “I didn’t see anyone on the train.”
Pennsylvania towns might be landing on more star maps these days.
The state’s film tax credit, which was adopted in 2007, has attracted some big business, including 20th Century Fox, to the area.
“Unstoppable” – the Denzel Washington drama which barreled through the box office last month – was filmed throughout Central Pennsylvania.
Jane Saul of the Pennsylvania Film Office works with studios that are interested in using The Keystone State as a backdrop. She helps them save money through the tax credit, which gives feature films, television films and television shows intended for national audiences a 25-cent credit for every dollar of qualified expenditure.
“If a movie has a $100 million budget, they are going to get back $25 million,” Saul said.
To be eligible, production companies have to use 60 percent or more of their budgets in Pennsylvania.
Before cameras start rolling, Saul said the film office helps the studio scout locations.
For “Unstoppable,” she researched the state’s railroad history as well as towns that would be able to accommodate the film’s cast and crew. Since the movie was an “extremely large project,” Saul said it was filmed in a large area.
Unfortunately for local film buffs, none of the movie was shot in York County. But the economic effects can be felt through many communities.
Saul said most people have the perception that the tax credit only helps movie studios.
“The reality is that for the commonwealth it’s putting people to work,” she said.
From hotels to restaurants to dry cleaners, local businesses see a boom when film crews are in town.
According to the state Department of Community and Economic Development, the program paid for itself in the first year by generating $524.6 million in total statewide economic impact, including 4,000 new jobs with total wages of $146.4 million.
The tax credit isn’t about Hollywood glamour, Saul said, but having Washington on a local set is a nice side effect.
Pennsylvania had one of the first tax credits, but Saul said more states have started offering similar programs.
“We still have one of the best incentives,” she said.
And, since most people support job creation, Saul said, the tax incentive is supported by both Democrats and Republicans.
The state’s 2010-11 budget included $60 million for the film tax credit. If there is no vote to change the incentive in the 2011-12 budget, it will get $75 million, Saul said.
The film tax credit helped draw other recent releases – the Anne Hathaway and Jake Gyllenhaal romantic comedy “Love and Other Drugs” and the Russell Crowe action flick “The Next Three Days” – to The Keystone State.
Saul said the movie “Safe” is being shot in the Philadelphia area, and Fox has its sights on Pittsburgh for the new television series “Locke & Key”.
I have to admit that I haven’t seen “Unstoppable” yet. (“Some Like It Hot” is a train film that’s much more my speed.)
But I wouldn’t mind bumping into stars like Washington, Crowe and Jake Gyllenhaal on the streets of York someday soon. POPeye is a bi-weekly column focusing on the ever-changing landscape of popular culture. To reach writer Erin McCracken, call 771-2051 or send an e-mail to emccracken@ydr.com.
Local filmmaker uses crowdfunding to finance new project:
Jeff Crawford of Transdimensional Films is working on his first full-length feature “Making It Through.”
The movie is about an alcoholic actor, who must decide if he wants to reconnect with his estranged daughter. It features many local actors, including some faces from York Little Theatre, and is being shot in York County.
About $5,000 is privately financed for the movie, but Crawford wrote in an e-mail message that he’s trying to raise more money for the film. He decided to use the crowdfunding site IndieGoGo. People and organizations post information about their creative projects or causes on the site in order to raise awareness and funds.
Crawford’s goal is to raise $9,000 in about 100 days.
For details, visit www.indiegogo.com/MakingItThrough.
A runaway train in York County?
“Unstoppable,” which hit theaters Nov. 12, is based on actual events. A train engineer (Denzel Washington) and conductor (Chris Pine) have to stop a runaway train before it barrels into a populated area.
York Daily Record/Sunday News editor Jim McClure brought up a mysterious case of a runaway train in York County on his blog www.yorkblog.com/yorktownsquare. The story isn’t nearly as dramatic, but it’s still intriguing.
One night in August 1996, a train car weighing 135 tons thundered 9.5 miles from New Freedom to Seven Valleys on the old Northern Central Railroad. Heritage Rail Trail County Park was closed that night and the 1954 Western Maryland Fast Freight Line No. 1689 drifted harmlessly to a stop. No arrests were ever made.
Here is an excerpt form the 1996 York Daily Record story:
Bill Elmer’s telephone rang at just after 9 (p.m. Aug. 15, 1996).
Seven Valleys fire company authorities told him a runaway train car was heading down the tracks. They asked him to go outside to the Northern Central Railway behind his store and make sure nobody was in the way.
Children often play near the rails. In fact, the grocer said he found several little ones playing nearby that night.
“I made sure all the kids were moved away from the tracks,” he said.
Then, the tracks rumbled. Elmer said he thought he heard the roar of a diesel, but Northern Central officials later told him the engine hadn’t been running. It was dark. No lights beamed from the approaching locomotive.
“It was like a ghost train coming along,” Elmer said. “I didn’t see anyone on the train.”
Saturday, December 11, 2010
From GBP News...
Film Industry Confident Tax Breaks Will Stay
By Orlando Montoya
Updated: 22 hours ago
SAVANNAH, Ga. —
Filming at Medin Studios in Savannah. Film officials say the new studios are a good example of how Georgia's tax credits have produced private investment.
While Georgia's overall economy remains stagnant, the state's film industry is booming.
Film industry officials believe that will keep them in good stead with state lawmakers who are reviewing all of Georgia's tax credits next year.
Georgia's film industry received a boost when lawmakers a few years ago approved tax breaks of up to 30% to bring film projects to the state.
A tax commission, however, is meeting to decide the future of all Georgia tax breaks.
Savannah Film Office director Jay Self says, he's confident film tax credits will survive because of the jobs they bring.
"I believe the Georgia incentive will stay where it is," Self says. "I believe that our advantage then begins to grow because our crew base grows, our infrastructure grows."
The Georgia Department of Economic Development's Film Office interim director Greg Torre says, film activity in Georgia stagnanted before the current tax credits went into effect.
"We think they're working," Torre says. "We've seen over a 400% increase in economic impact since late 2008 when they were signed into law."
The tax commission hasn't yet said which tax breaks are going or staying.
Lawmakers will vote up-or-down on their package of recommendations in the legislative session that begins next month.
By Orlando Montoya
Updated: 22 hours ago
SAVANNAH, Ga. —
Filming at Medin Studios in Savannah. Film officials say the new studios are a good example of how Georgia's tax credits have produced private investment.
While Georgia's overall economy remains stagnant, the state's film industry is booming.
Film industry officials believe that will keep them in good stead with state lawmakers who are reviewing all of Georgia's tax credits next year.
Georgia's film industry received a boost when lawmakers a few years ago approved tax breaks of up to 30% to bring film projects to the state.
A tax commission, however, is meeting to decide the future of all Georgia tax breaks.
Savannah Film Office director Jay Self says, he's confident film tax credits will survive because of the jobs they bring.
"I believe the Georgia incentive will stay where it is," Self says. "I believe that our advantage then begins to grow because our crew base grows, our infrastructure grows."
The Georgia Department of Economic Development's Film Office interim director Greg Torre says, film activity in Georgia stagnanted before the current tax credits went into effect.
"We think they're working," Torre says. "We've seen over a 400% increase in economic impact since late 2008 when they were signed into law."
The tax commission hasn't yet said which tax breaks are going or staying.
Lawmakers will vote up-or-down on their package of recommendations in the legislative session that begins next month.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
From the AP: Missouri Film Rally
Film industry supporters rally to preserve Missouri tax credits
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Associated Press
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Film industry boosters urged state lawmakers yesterday to refrain from shouting “cut” when it comes to a tax credit program targeted for elimination in Missouri.
The $4.5 million annual program is among $220 million worth of incentives proposed for elimination by the state’s Tax Credit Review Commission. The panel was created by Gov. Jay Nixon to find ways to reduce Missouri’s array of income tax credits.
Members of the Missouri Motion Media Association said the commission underestimated the economic benefit of the state’s film industry. They pointed to the recent success of Oscar-hopeful “Winter’s Bone,” which was filmed in southwest Missouri, and the George Clooney movie “Up in the Air,” filmed in St. Louis.
“Without the state tax credits, we will have no film industry in Missouri,” said Shawn McClaren, a film producer based in Kansas City.
The tax credit commission recommended that the film industry’s share be redirected to a new tax credit program that would encourage “angel” investments in early-stage, technology-based Missouri companies.
“This tax credit serves too narrow of an industry and fails to provide a positive return on investment to the state,” the commission concluded.
That recommendation will be considered by Missouri lawmakers in the upcoming legislative session.
Missouri was among the first states to offer tax credits to the movie industry, but its incentive program was quickly eclipsed but other states such as Louisiana and New Mexico that offer either higher caps on tax credits or have no limits at all.
Jerry Jones, who directs the state’s film commission, said Missouri ranks 32nd among the 42 states that offer credits in terms of available fiscal relief. The state caps payments at $1.5 million per project.
Sen. Kurt Schaefer, a Columbia Republican and a board member of the statewide industry group, opposes elimination of film industry tax credits. “At a time when we’re not only losing the jobs we have here but are also not attracting any new ones, it’s a dangerous proposition to take off the table economic incentives that we know work,” he said. “The message we’re sending is that we’re not going to be competitive with other states.”
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Associated Press
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Film industry boosters urged state lawmakers yesterday to refrain from shouting “cut” when it comes to a tax credit program targeted for elimination in Missouri.
The $4.5 million annual program is among $220 million worth of incentives proposed for elimination by the state’s Tax Credit Review Commission. The panel was created by Gov. Jay Nixon to find ways to reduce Missouri’s array of income tax credits.
Members of the Missouri Motion Media Association said the commission underestimated the economic benefit of the state’s film industry. They pointed to the recent success of Oscar-hopeful “Winter’s Bone,” which was filmed in southwest Missouri, and the George Clooney movie “Up in the Air,” filmed in St. Louis.
“Without the state tax credits, we will have no film industry in Missouri,” said Shawn McClaren, a film producer based in Kansas City.
The tax credit commission recommended that the film industry’s share be redirected to a new tax credit program that would encourage “angel” investments in early-stage, technology-based Missouri companies.
“This tax credit serves too narrow of an industry and fails to provide a positive return on investment to the state,” the commission concluded.
That recommendation will be considered by Missouri lawmakers in the upcoming legislative session.
Missouri was among the first states to offer tax credits to the movie industry, but its incentive program was quickly eclipsed but other states such as Louisiana and New Mexico that offer either higher caps on tax credits or have no limits at all.
Jerry Jones, who directs the state’s film commission, said Missouri ranks 32nd among the 42 states that offer credits in terms of available fiscal relief. The state caps payments at $1.5 million per project.
Sen. Kurt Schaefer, a Columbia Republican and a board member of the statewide industry group, opposes elimination of film industry tax credits. “At a time when we’re not only losing the jobs we have here but are also not attracting any new ones, it’s a dangerous proposition to take off the table economic incentives that we know work,” he said. “The message we’re sending is that we’re not going to be competitive with other states.”
Monday, December 6, 2010
from Examiner.com
Georgia film tax cuts spark movie boom
* December 5th, 2010 1:02 pm ET
Georgia’s tax incentives for film companies provide an example of how low tax rates can spark an economic boom. In 2008, Governor Sonny Perdue signed the Georgia Entertainment Industry Investment Act (http://www.georgia.org/SiteCollectionDocuments/Industries/Entertainment/...) into law to create incentives for motion picture filming in Georgia.
The heart of the law is a 20% tax credit for companies that spend a minimum of $500,000 on production or post-production of films in Georgia. Companies can also get an additional 10% tax credit for including a Georgia logo on the finished project (subject to qualification). The credit is transferrable in the case that the company has little or no tax liability in Georgia. In some cases, companies can also get a sales tax exemption for goods and services bought in Georgia, an incentive introduced in 2002.
Two years after the act became law, Georgia’s film industry is booming (http://www.11alive.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=166286&catid=3). Georgia is one of the top five locations to film (http://www.11alive.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=166286&catid=3) and the most popular in the southeast. The increasing number of films being made in Georgia has led to more jobs for Georgians. These jobs range from acting in bit parts to casting to providing logistical support for film crews. Although many of these jobs are part-time or temporary, they do provide relief for those who are unemployed from full-time jobs. In total, Georgia’s film industry provides almost 25,000 jobs (http://www.georgia.org/GeorgiaIndustries/Entertainment/FilmTV/Pages/Film...) and $1.28 billion (http://www.mpaa.org/policy/state-by-state) in wages for Georgia workers. Even part-time jobs are valuable since the national unemployment rate recently rose to 9.8% in December (http://www.gpb.org/news/2010/12/03/unemployment-rate-rises-to-9-8) and Georgia’s unemployment was last reported even higher at 9.9% (http://www.dol.state.ga.us/).
In addition to the tax incentives, film crews are also attracted by Georgia’s diverse locations. The state has everything from beaches to mountains, farm fields to swamps, and small towns to major cities. Production companies can also draw on experienced local actors for bit parts and background.
Many of the films made in Georgia (http://www.georgia.org/GeorgiaIndustries/Entertainment/FilmTV/Pages/Geor...) have received critical and popular acclaim. Some of the movies recently made in Georgia include The Blind Side starring Sandra Bullock and Tim McGraw, Zombieland starring Woody Harrelson, and Due Date with Robert Downey, Jr. and Zach Galifianakis. Tyler Perry has also made a number of movies in Georgia that were also set in the state.
The economic impact of the tax incentives goes beyond the film industry however. Property owners are paid when the studios use their property as a set. In many cases, this includes government property as well. Additionally, local hotels and restaurants sell food and rent rooms to on-location production crews. Other Georgia businesses that deal with the production companies also earn sales revenues and, in the case of popular films, old production sites could lead to new tourism.
Unlike the film companies, which get tax credits, the other businesses and local workers pay their state and local taxes in full. By giving film companies a break on their taxes, the General Assembly helped Georgia’s film industry to grow. As more film money comes into Georgia, jobs are created and Georgia companies do more business. This translates into more tax revenues for the state.
It might be tempting to say that large movie corporations don’t need a generous tax break, but without these incentives many of the companies would have filmed elsewhere. Along with them would have gone the jobs and other assorted revenues. However, in Georgia the General Assembly realized that when it comes to taxes, if you cut it, they will come.
* December 5th, 2010 1:02 pm ET
Georgia’s tax incentives for film companies provide an example of how low tax rates can spark an economic boom. In 2008, Governor Sonny Perdue signed the Georgia Entertainment Industry Investment Act (http://www.georgia.org/SiteCollectionDocuments/Industries/Entertainment/...) into law to create incentives for motion picture filming in Georgia.
The heart of the law is a 20% tax credit for companies that spend a minimum of $500,000 on production or post-production of films in Georgia. Companies can also get an additional 10% tax credit for including a Georgia logo on the finished project (subject to qualification). The credit is transferrable in the case that the company has little or no tax liability in Georgia. In some cases, companies can also get a sales tax exemption for goods and services bought in Georgia, an incentive introduced in 2002.
Two years after the act became law, Georgia’s film industry is booming (http://www.11alive.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=166286&catid=3). Georgia is one of the top five locations to film (http://www.11alive.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=166286&catid=3) and the most popular in the southeast. The increasing number of films being made in Georgia has led to more jobs for Georgians. These jobs range from acting in bit parts to casting to providing logistical support for film crews. Although many of these jobs are part-time or temporary, they do provide relief for those who are unemployed from full-time jobs. In total, Georgia’s film industry provides almost 25,000 jobs (http://www.georgia.org/GeorgiaIndustries/Entertainment/FilmTV/Pages/Film...) and $1.28 billion (http://www.mpaa.org/policy/state-by-state) in wages for Georgia workers. Even part-time jobs are valuable since the national unemployment rate recently rose to 9.8% in December (http://www.gpb.org/news/2010/12/03/unemployment-rate-rises-to-9-8) and Georgia’s unemployment was last reported even higher at 9.9% (http://www.dol.state.ga.us/).
In addition to the tax incentives, film crews are also attracted by Georgia’s diverse locations. The state has everything from beaches to mountains, farm fields to swamps, and small towns to major cities. Production companies can also draw on experienced local actors for bit parts and background.
Many of the films made in Georgia (http://www.georgia.org/GeorgiaIndustries/Entertainment/FilmTV/Pages/Geor...) have received critical and popular acclaim. Some of the movies recently made in Georgia include The Blind Side starring Sandra Bullock and Tim McGraw, Zombieland starring Woody Harrelson, and Due Date with Robert Downey, Jr. and Zach Galifianakis. Tyler Perry has also made a number of movies in Georgia that were also set in the state.
The economic impact of the tax incentives goes beyond the film industry however. Property owners are paid when the studios use their property as a set. In many cases, this includes government property as well. Additionally, local hotels and restaurants sell food and rent rooms to on-location production crews. Other Georgia businesses that deal with the production companies also earn sales revenues and, in the case of popular films, old production sites could lead to new tourism.
Unlike the film companies, which get tax credits, the other businesses and local workers pay their state and local taxes in full. By giving film companies a break on their taxes, the General Assembly helped Georgia’s film industry to grow. As more film money comes into Georgia, jobs are created and Georgia companies do more business. This translates into more tax revenues for the state.
It might be tempting to say that large movie corporations don’t need a generous tax break, but without these incentives many of the companies would have filmed elsewhere. Along with them would have gone the jobs and other assorted revenues. However, in Georgia the General Assembly realized that when it comes to taxes, if you cut it, they will come.
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Have Faith: Things Are Not Dead, Just Winged
Do not give up hope, fellow Iowa actors, and crew. There is a warm ray of hope shining and our governor-elect is on our side.
photo: me with fellow actor, Neil Wells in "The Banshee", filmed several years back...
From Projo.com
‘Body of Proof’ filming injects $30 million into state economy
By Jenna Pelletier
Journal staff writer
PROVIDENCE –– They like us –– they really like us.
The cast and crew of the new ABC series “Body of Proof,” gushed at the State House Friday about their experiences filming in Rhode Island for the last five months. No doubt the comments were just the sort of good publicity the Rhode Island Film and TV Office and other advocates of the state’s film and TV production tax credit like to hear.
Stars Dana Delany and Jeri Ryan joined Film and TV Office executive director Steven Feinberg and elected officials in celebrating the near completion of filming the premiere season’s 13 episodes. Though the drama is set in Philadelphia, it is being filmed entirely in Rhode Island.
“Having produced ten feature films and two hundred hours of television all over the United States and out of the country, I can tell you this has been my best experience to date,” said executive producer Matt Gross. “The state supports the needs of production like no other I have ever been to.”
Gross credited the state’s film and television production incentive for drawing the project to Rhode Island. The law provides a 25-percent transferable tax credit for all production-related spending in Rhode Island. “Body of Proof” has spent about $30 million in Rhode Island so far, according to Feinberg.
The tax incentive isn’t the only advantage of filming in the state, Gross said.
He raved about the food, including restaurants Bacaro, Nick’s on Broadway and Al Forno.
Other draws? Rhode Island has diverse landscapes, is easy to navigate and residents and law enforcement have been more than willing to make way for the cameras, he said.
“In L.A., people don’t always have a lot of patience for film crews shooting on location,” said actress Ryan, who plays Delany’s boss on the show. “I’ve never been anywhere where people are so genuinely happy to see you shooting on their streets.”
The production has led to the creation of about 170 (temporary) full-time jobs, said state Senate President M. Teresa Paiva Weed, who was joined at the celebration by elected officials including Speaker of the House Speaker Gordon D. Fox, Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch and Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis.
“I was one of the skeptics when the film-tax credits came out ... but have come ... to be a real believer because we now know that it works,” said Paiva Weed. She cited a recent study showing film-tax credit generates $8 for every $1 of investment from the state, adding, “I don’t think there’s a better investment that also builds on our tourism industry.”
Delany, who plays neurosurgeon-turned-medical examiner Dr. Megan Hunt, is a Connecticut native. She said she hadn’t been to Providence in decades but was pleasantly surprised to discover the city’s rich creative culture. Delany has been living in Downcity Providence during filming.
Shooting is expected to wrap in mid-December, said ABC publicist Marsha Smith.
The series is scheduled to premier on Tuesday, March 29, at 10 p.m. If the show is renewed, Feinberg said he is hopeful the cast and crew will return for more filming next year.
“I’m learning that people don’t leave — or they come back,” said Delany. “I just want to say, I hope that I’ll be back.”
By Jenna Pelletier
Journal staff writer
PROVIDENCE –– They like us –– they really like us.
The cast and crew of the new ABC series “Body of Proof,” gushed at the State House Friday about their experiences filming in Rhode Island for the last five months. No doubt the comments were just the sort of good publicity the Rhode Island Film and TV Office and other advocates of the state’s film and TV production tax credit like to hear.
Stars Dana Delany and Jeri Ryan joined Film and TV Office executive director Steven Feinberg and elected officials in celebrating the near completion of filming the premiere season’s 13 episodes. Though the drama is set in Philadelphia, it is being filmed entirely in Rhode Island.
“Having produced ten feature films and two hundred hours of television all over the United States and out of the country, I can tell you this has been my best experience to date,” said executive producer Matt Gross. “The state supports the needs of production like no other I have ever been to.”
Gross credited the state’s film and television production incentive for drawing the project to Rhode Island. The law provides a 25-percent transferable tax credit for all production-related spending in Rhode Island. “Body of Proof” has spent about $30 million in Rhode Island so far, according to Feinberg.
The tax incentive isn’t the only advantage of filming in the state, Gross said.
He raved about the food, including restaurants Bacaro, Nick’s on Broadway and Al Forno.
Other draws? Rhode Island has diverse landscapes, is easy to navigate and residents and law enforcement have been more than willing to make way for the cameras, he said.
“In L.A., people don’t always have a lot of patience for film crews shooting on location,” said actress Ryan, who plays Delany’s boss on the show. “I’ve never been anywhere where people are so genuinely happy to see you shooting on their streets.”
The production has led to the creation of about 170 (temporary) full-time jobs, said state Senate President M. Teresa Paiva Weed, who was joined at the celebration by elected officials including Speaker of the House Speaker Gordon D. Fox, Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch and Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis.
“I was one of the skeptics when the film-tax credits came out ... but have come ... to be a real believer because we now know that it works,” said Paiva Weed. She cited a recent study showing film-tax credit generates $8 for every $1 of investment from the state, adding, “I don’t think there’s a better investment that also builds on our tourism industry.”
Delany, who plays neurosurgeon-turned-medical examiner Dr. Megan Hunt, is a Connecticut native. She said she hadn’t been to Providence in decades but was pleasantly surprised to discover the city’s rich creative culture. Delany has been living in Downcity Providence during filming.
Shooting is expected to wrap in mid-December, said ABC publicist Marsha Smith.
The series is scheduled to premier on Tuesday, March 29, at 10 p.m. If the show is renewed, Feinberg said he is hopeful the cast and crew will return for more filming next year.
“I’m learning that people don’t leave — or they come back,” said Delany. “I just want to say, I hope that I’ll be back.”
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Huge Disappointments, Many Lies
When Jay and I made weekly trips to the Iowa Capitol last session, we were given assurances by key republicans that Branstad would continue with the film program. For that reason, I voted for Branstad, and now see that politicians say things you long to hear, then do things opposite to their promises. Despite this sickening setback I will continue my fight to get the film program back on track. An important meeting with an Iowa senator is scheduled on the 18th, a senator who promises to rewrite the present film bill.
From AP: Wisc. To Discuss Film Tax Incentives
Associated Press - November 30, 2010 5:05 AM ET
MADISON, Wis. (AP) - The future of Wisconsin's film tax incentives will be discussed before a screening of the Tony Shalhoub film "Feed the Fish."
The screening and panel discussion is Dec. 8 in Madison.
"Feed the Fish" qualified for tax incentives when it was being filmed in northern Door County in 2009. Gov. Jim Doyle dramatically scaled back the incentives last year but Gov.-elect Scott Walker said during the campaign he wants to retool the program.
Actor and producer Mark Metcalf is moderating the panel discussion that will include four Wisconsin filmmakers and three board members of Film Wisconsin. Ideas for improving the incentive program were to be discussed.
"Feed the Fish" premiered in Wisconsin earlier this year. Shalhoub is a Green Bay native.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) - The future of Wisconsin's film tax incentives will be discussed before a screening of the Tony Shalhoub film "Feed the Fish."
The screening and panel discussion is Dec. 8 in Madison.
"Feed the Fish" qualified for tax incentives when it was being filmed in northern Door County in 2009. Gov. Jim Doyle dramatically scaled back the incentives last year but Gov.-elect Scott Walker said during the campaign he wants to retool the program.
Actor and producer Mark Metcalf is moderating the panel discussion that will include four Wisconsin filmmakers and three board members of Film Wisconsin. Ideas for improving the incentive program were to be discussed.
"Feed the Fish" premiered in Wisconsin earlier this year. Shalhoub is a Green Bay native.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Article from TheWrap.Com by Brent Lang
(pic is of me, NOT Brent... he's probably cuter!)
MPAA Slaps Back at Film Tax Incentive Study
By Brent Lang
Published: November 17, 2010 @ 6:08 pm
The Motion Picture Association of America is hitting back at a new report from a Washington-based think tank that is harshly critical of states' use of production tax incentives.
In the study released on Wednesday, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities argues that incentives don't create enough new jobs to justify the loss in tax revenue.
It noted that facing budget shortfalls, several states, such as New Jersey, are suspending their programs.
Where one organization sees the incentives as a boondoggle, the other labels them an invaluable economic stimulus.
Read also: Come Back, Woody -- Lots of U.S. States Are Still Good to Hollyw'd!
The MPAA, one of the biggest boosters for film tax credits, questioned the accuracy of the report's findings and suggested that the center was prejuidicial towards tax credits.
"This politically motivated, slipshod report by a think tank in Washington, D.C., demonstrates no understanding of the film and television industry, nor the importance of the jobs and economic development produced by these tax credits in states all across our nation,” said Vans Stevenson, senior vice president of state government affairs at the MPAA.
In addition to wars of words, the two organizations also launched a battle of empirical evidence.
The center said that subsidies have minimal impact on state economies, because film makers usually reerve the best jobs for highly paid talent brought in from other states, while giving part-time work to in-state residents.
Further, the report noted that a recent study by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue -- a state that has bet heavily on subsidies -- found that the state lost $88,000 in tax revenue for every new job created by the program.
The MPPA countered that the film and television industry supports more than 2.4 million jobs and generates about $13 billion in taxes and $40 billion in payments to vendors, suppliers and others nationwide.
Regardless of the merits of their relative arguments, tax credits have become an increasingly contentious issue recently. Some states such as Louisiana and New Mexico have had enormous success in attracting Hollywood productions, but others such as Iowa have shuttered their programs following high-profile scandals about the way funds are administered.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
From ReelChicago.Com..thanks, John Busbee!
Film Wisconsin
Filmmakers tax credit to be restored?
Gov.-elect Walker offers legislature a positive plan
Dave Fantle: Film Wisconsin board chair
Dave Fantle is optimistic about changes for Wisconsin’s chances of having the state’s severely curtailed filmmakers tax credits restored in the legislative session that begins in January.
Republican Governor-elect Scott Walker said during the election that he favored raising the $500,000 cap that Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle had imposed on the tax credit last year.
“Film Wisconsin is obviously encouraged by his response,” says Fantle, board chair of the embattled de facto Film Wisconsin.
“We look forward to working with Walker’s staff and key lawmakers to restore the film, television and video gaming tax credits so we can create jobs and bring greater economic impact to Wisconsin.
“It’s a little too early to say much as the key legislative players have just been named. We have a lot of friends in both parties who want to restore the credits.”
After Wisconsin’s film commission was dissolved in 2005, industry advocates launched the public/private partnership Film Wisconsin to advocate for an incentive. In 2006, the legislature passed a highly competitive 25% production credit and 15% infrastructure credit.
In the credits’ first year in effect, 2008, Wisconsin attracted eight major features, including portions of Michael Mann’s blockbuster Johnny Depp-starring John Dillinger biopic “Public Enemies,” plus 16 TV series and three national commercials.
“Public Enemies” reportedly received $4.6 million in credits against just $5 million in spending, meaning Wisconsin taxpayers effectively covered 92% of the film’s in-state production costs.
In response to outcry over the payout, Wisconsin lawmakers proposed a $1.5 million annual cap on credits. In June 2009, Doyle used his veto authority to reduce the cap to $500,000. Production has dropped off precipitously since then.
During the just-concluded election, VISIT Milwaukee, the city’s convention and tourism bureau where Fantle is VP for PR, issued a questionnaire to gubernatorial candidates, to which Walker responded in part:
Gov. Elect Scott Walker
“Governor Doyle did not give the program a fair chance to take hold. Reasonable and sustainable incentives that give an emphasis in putting Wisconsin people to work and growing this industry for the state should receive serious consideration.”
Walker continued: “As Governor I will encourage members of the legislature to take a close look at the current program, and recommend any revisions to the current law that could do the following:
* Put an emphasis on creating Wisconsin jobs and infrastructure investment.
* Provide an attractive return on investment for the taxpayers.
* Remove the $500,000 program limit and recommend an amount that would make Wisconsin competitive.
* Require a comprehensive program evaluation after each fiscal year.
* Investigate the role the Department of Tourism should again play in marketing the state for film and television and partnering with local convention & visitors bureaus in this effort.”
Now Fantle and Film Wisconsin supporters are waiting to see if their optimism is justified. —Ed M. Koziarski
Ed M. Koziarski is co-director of the feature film “The First Breath of Tengan Rei”. Email: Ed M. Koziarski
Filmmakers tax credit to be restored?
Gov.-elect Walker offers legislature a positive plan
Dave Fantle: Film Wisconsin board chair
Dave Fantle is optimistic about changes for Wisconsin’s chances of having the state’s severely curtailed filmmakers tax credits restored in the legislative session that begins in January.
Republican Governor-elect Scott Walker said during the election that he favored raising the $500,000 cap that Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle had imposed on the tax credit last year.
“Film Wisconsin is obviously encouraged by his response,” says Fantle, board chair of the embattled de facto Film Wisconsin.
“We look forward to working with Walker’s staff and key lawmakers to restore the film, television and video gaming tax credits so we can create jobs and bring greater economic impact to Wisconsin.
“It’s a little too early to say much as the key legislative players have just been named. We have a lot of friends in both parties who want to restore the credits.”
After Wisconsin’s film commission was dissolved in 2005, industry advocates launched the public/private partnership Film Wisconsin to advocate for an incentive. In 2006, the legislature passed a highly competitive 25% production credit and 15% infrastructure credit.
In the credits’ first year in effect, 2008, Wisconsin attracted eight major features, including portions of Michael Mann’s blockbuster Johnny Depp-starring John Dillinger biopic “Public Enemies,” plus 16 TV series and three national commercials.
“Public Enemies” reportedly received $4.6 million in credits against just $5 million in spending, meaning Wisconsin taxpayers effectively covered 92% of the film’s in-state production costs.
In response to outcry over the payout, Wisconsin lawmakers proposed a $1.5 million annual cap on credits. In June 2009, Doyle used his veto authority to reduce the cap to $500,000. Production has dropped off precipitously since then.
During the just-concluded election, VISIT Milwaukee, the city’s convention and tourism bureau where Fantle is VP for PR, issued a questionnaire to gubernatorial candidates, to which Walker responded in part:
Gov. Elect Scott Walker
“Governor Doyle did not give the program a fair chance to take hold. Reasonable and sustainable incentives that give an emphasis in putting Wisconsin people to work and growing this industry for the state should receive serious consideration.”
Walker continued: “As Governor I will encourage members of the legislature to take a close look at the current program, and recommend any revisions to the current law that could do the following:
* Put an emphasis on creating Wisconsin jobs and infrastructure investment.
* Provide an attractive return on investment for the taxpayers.
* Remove the $500,000 program limit and recommend an amount that would make Wisconsin competitive.
* Require a comprehensive program evaluation after each fiscal year.
* Investigate the role the Department of Tourism should again play in marketing the state for film and television and partnering with local convention & visitors bureaus in this effort.”
Now Fantle and Film Wisconsin supporters are waiting to see if their optimism is justified. —Ed M. Koziarski
Ed M. Koziarski is co-director of the feature film “The First Breath of Tengan Rei”. Email: Ed M. Koziarski
Sunday, November 14, 2010
From KCUN-TV in Tucson
Hollywood executives fight to bring film industry back to Tucson
Posted: Nov 13, 2010 5:27 PM Updated: Nov 13, 2010 5:37 PM
Reporter: Ileana Diaz
TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - Hollywood executives want to bring the mult-million dollar film industry back to Tucson, but they are facing obstacles.
Once upon a time in old Tucson, there were lights, cameras and action. Now, rarely much of that goes on. Production companies are choosing other destinations like New Mexico, so KGUN9 asked film executives why.
"There are two reasons we look at a place. One for the locations for the creative vision of the director and from the business side, what works best for the budget," said John Kilkenney, an executive V.P. at Twentieth Century Fox.
In Arizona, film producers get a 20 percent tax cut. The problem is other states offer tax incentives with 30 and 40 percent cuts. The director of the Tucson Film Office says another challenge is Arizona's restrictions.
"50 percent of the crew hired has to be Arizona residents and they are afraid. What if they can't find 50 percent crew and they only have 49. Then they will be disqualified," said Shelli Hall, the director of Tucson Film Office.
This is why University of Arizona graduates turned movie-makers along with the staff from the Tucson Film Office are urging state leaders to not only renew the incentive but change it. They want the new incentive to have more overall cuts and be less restrictive, hoping to turn Tucson back into the old Tucson it once was.
"It's crazy that we don't come here more because of the new proximity to Los Angeles," said Kilkenney.
"Things change like that. Anything can happen and we're working on it," said Hall.
The current tax incentive expires on December 31st, 2010. State legislators have to choose between cutting the tax incentive, renewing it as it or adopting a new incentive.
Posted: Nov 13, 2010 5:27 PM Updated: Nov 13, 2010 5:37 PM
Reporter: Ileana Diaz
TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - Hollywood executives want to bring the mult-million dollar film industry back to Tucson, but they are facing obstacles.
Once upon a time in old Tucson, there were lights, cameras and action. Now, rarely much of that goes on. Production companies are choosing other destinations like New Mexico, so KGUN9 asked film executives why.
"There are two reasons we look at a place. One for the locations for the creative vision of the director and from the business side, what works best for the budget," said John Kilkenney, an executive V.P. at Twentieth Century Fox.
In Arizona, film producers get a 20 percent tax cut. The problem is other states offer tax incentives with 30 and 40 percent cuts. The director of the Tucson Film Office says another challenge is Arizona's restrictions.
"50 percent of the crew hired has to be Arizona residents and they are afraid. What if they can't find 50 percent crew and they only have 49. Then they will be disqualified," said Shelli Hall, the director of Tucson Film Office.
This is why University of Arizona graduates turned movie-makers along with the staff from the Tucson Film Office are urging state leaders to not only renew the incentive but change it. They want the new incentive to have more overall cuts and be less restrictive, hoping to turn Tucson back into the old Tucson it once was.
"It's crazy that we don't come here more because of the new proximity to Los Angeles," said Kilkenney.
"Things change like that. Anything can happen and we're working on it," said Hall.
The current tax incentive expires on December 31st, 2010. State legislators have to choose between cutting the tax incentive, renewing it as it or adopting a new incentive.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Article by Dave Dewitte/SourceMedia Group News
by Dave Dewitte/SourceMedia Group News
(photo description)Jeff and Janelle Smith of Cedar Rapids show off the $30,000 truck they purchased for Janelle to provide craft services such as beverages and refreshments to the movie crews that came to Iowa during the peak of Iowa's film tax credit program, in a photo taken on Oct. 11, 2010. Jeff, an experienced grip, saw his income dwindle and most of Janelle's business went away when the program was suspended one year ago. They are considering whether to move to New Mexico, a state with a thriving movie industry built largely on tax incentives.
The rapid rise and fall of film-making in Iowa during the state’s short-lived film tax-credit program has given some Iowans a taste of a better life, one they might pursue elsewhere unless the program is revived.
Jeff and Janelle Smith of Cedar Rapids typify the movie people who watched the film exodus from Iowa after the state suspended the film tax credit in September 2009. They had hoped the state would take firm steps to correct lax oversight of the program and resurrect it. Instead, they found out the state is prosecuting more filmmakers who abused the program.
“I probably made somewhere in the neighborhood of $60,000 last year,” said Jeff Smith, 58, who handles electrical needs on movie sets as a grip. “Now, I’m unemployed.”
The couple had invested about $30,000 last year to buy a used craft-service truck and have it shipped from Oregon for Janelle Smith’s craft-service business. Craft services dispense refreshments and personal necessities to cast and crew members during shooting. The truck, with license plates that read “CRAFTY,” sits idle in the driveway.
“I just hope they figure something out,” said Janelle Smith, 57.
Even her husband’s work in lighting and sound at downtown Cedar Rapids entertainment venues dried up from theater closures caused by the June 2008 flood. The couple have considered moving to New Mexico, where film tax credits fuel a growing industry.
Chris Bevauns, the operator of Monster Design Studio in Cedar Rapids, is a Los Angeles native with extensive costume and set design experience in the film industry. She worked non-stop in Iowa on nine features once the film tax-credit program took effect.
Even though she knows the program was abused, Bevauns raises her voice when she talks about the politics involved in suspending the program, sacking its administrator and cutting the program loose without trying to fix it.
“People only take advantage of you if you let them take advantage of you,” Bevauns said. “There wasn’t the oversight. We should do it right next time.”
Bevauns said she’s gone from making about $60,000 a year in set work to about $20,000 this year, working “as a handyman.” She’s reluctant to move because her husband has a good screenprinting business, their son is in a good school and she finds Iowa a great place to live.
“I need it back. I need it back in a big way,” Bevauns said.
Hair and makeup artist Andrea Politte of Anamosa spent most of the past month in Michigan, working on the independent horror thriller “Playback” with Christian Slater, because there was no work closer to home. About six other Iowans were on the crew.
Politte’s film income this year has dropped roughly in half, but she counts herself lucky. She’s half of a two-income household and can fall back on her massage and healing arts work with entertainers.
Politte wants movie work, though.
“(Iowa) is my home, but that’s not saying I’ll be here for long,” she said.
Some film projects that already had applied for a share of the roughly $50 million in available film tax credits were notified this fall that the projects were approved.
Vaughn Halyard, CEO of Story Lounge in Cedar Rapids, said he was notified in late July that tax credits would be issued for the TV science education-entertainment project “The Science of Thrill” that Story Lounge produced with MPV Studios and Fuel, a local design house. He said the project underwent “some serious vetting” from the state before it was approved.
Story Lounge has enough credits to get through a half-season of the show, Halyard said, and is hoping to make a presentation to the state when the time is right to get more credits for another season.
Halyard said Iowa film tax-credit projects helped Story Lounge get some “good respect in the production world,” but it is looking at ways to continue producing as much as it can in Iowa, where it has found a strong base of medical experts.
Iowa Motion Picture Association President Kent Newman said he keeps hearing of Iowa actors and film professionals moving to New Orleans or other areas with healthy film industries. He estimates that 400 to 500 Iowans were working on movie projects during the tax-credit program in 2009. Of those, he estimates that perhaps 150 remain employed, mainly in commercial-video production businesses like his own Full Spectrum Productions.
The association plans an educational campaign on the economic impact of the film industry and film tax credits at Iowa chambers of commerce and colleges with film programs. It will seek introduction of a bill next year to resurrect a tax-credit program, said Newman, owner of Full Spectrum Productions in Des Moines.
Newman disputes statements by Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller that the state saved taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars by swiftly freezing the program and investigating film projects. He said the vast majority of film tax-credit applicants left Iowa almost immediately after the investigation began — because they didn’t want to jeopardize project timetables — and eliminated the liability to the state. Only a tiny percentage of the projects are now expected to move forward, Newman said.
Some Iowa companies have shifted focus to steer clear of the tax-credit fallout.
Grasshorse, an animation studio in Winthrop, worked on four films in 2009, Chief Operating Officer Stephen Jennings said. Then its work dried up. Jennings and CEO Kathy Buxton, his sister, decided to refocus on new media, such as mobile and social media applications.
The company has shrunk from 20 full-time staff last year to seven full-time staff and 10 freelancers. It also has downsized from a large leased office in Mount Pleasant to an old theater building they purchased in Winthrop.
“When the credits were frozen, we had an opportunity for a feature film coming in,” Buxton said. “We would have been at 100-plus (employees).”
Ironically, some Iowans still are reaping the benefits of Iowa’s flawed film tax-credit program, even though they’ve left the state.
In 2007, Melinda Burns was wondering about the wisdom of obtaining a film degree from the University of Iowa, knowing how difficult it can be to find work in movies. The film tax-credit program helped bring the baseball movie “Sugar” to Davenport for filming, though, and she was hired on.
“After that, my career really took off,” said Burns, 25, originally from Alburnett. She now works as an assistant production coordinator, scheduling meetings, setting appointments, processing union dues and ordering equipment in Los Angeles.
Burns said staying in Iowa was not in her plans, because she is “not a winter girl.” Even so, she said the film tax-credit program provided enough work in Iowa to give her the experience she needed.
“I have that tax incentive to thank for my career,” Burns said.
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(photo description)Jeff and Janelle Smith of Cedar Rapids show off the $30,000 truck they purchased for Janelle to provide craft services such as beverages and refreshments to the movie crews that came to Iowa during the peak of Iowa's film tax credit program, in a photo taken on Oct. 11, 2010. Jeff, an experienced grip, saw his income dwindle and most of Janelle's business went away when the program was suspended one year ago. They are considering whether to move to New Mexico, a state with a thriving movie industry built largely on tax incentives.
The rapid rise and fall of film-making in Iowa during the state’s short-lived film tax-credit program has given some Iowans a taste of a better life, one they might pursue elsewhere unless the program is revived.
Jeff and Janelle Smith of Cedar Rapids typify the movie people who watched the film exodus from Iowa after the state suspended the film tax credit in September 2009. They had hoped the state would take firm steps to correct lax oversight of the program and resurrect it. Instead, they found out the state is prosecuting more filmmakers who abused the program.
“I probably made somewhere in the neighborhood of $60,000 last year,” said Jeff Smith, 58, who handles electrical needs on movie sets as a grip. “Now, I’m unemployed.”
The couple had invested about $30,000 last year to buy a used craft-service truck and have it shipped from Oregon for Janelle Smith’s craft-service business. Craft services dispense refreshments and personal necessities to cast and crew members during shooting. The truck, with license plates that read “CRAFTY,” sits idle in the driveway.
“I just hope they figure something out,” said Janelle Smith, 57.
Even her husband’s work in lighting and sound at downtown Cedar Rapids entertainment venues dried up from theater closures caused by the June 2008 flood. The couple have considered moving to New Mexico, where film tax credits fuel a growing industry.
Chris Bevauns, the operator of Monster Design Studio in Cedar Rapids, is a Los Angeles native with extensive costume and set design experience in the film industry. She worked non-stop in Iowa on nine features once the film tax-credit program took effect.
Even though she knows the program was abused, Bevauns raises her voice when she talks about the politics involved in suspending the program, sacking its administrator and cutting the program loose without trying to fix it.
“People only take advantage of you if you let them take advantage of you,” Bevauns said. “There wasn’t the oversight. We should do it right next time.”
Bevauns said she’s gone from making about $60,000 a year in set work to about $20,000 this year, working “as a handyman.” She’s reluctant to move because her husband has a good screenprinting business, their son is in a good school and she finds Iowa a great place to live.
“I need it back. I need it back in a big way,” Bevauns said.
Hair and makeup artist Andrea Politte of Anamosa spent most of the past month in Michigan, working on the independent horror thriller “Playback” with Christian Slater, because there was no work closer to home. About six other Iowans were on the crew.
Politte’s film income this year has dropped roughly in half, but she counts herself lucky. She’s half of a two-income household and can fall back on her massage and healing arts work with entertainers.
Politte wants movie work, though.
“(Iowa) is my home, but that’s not saying I’ll be here for long,” she said.
Some film projects that already had applied for a share of the roughly $50 million in available film tax credits were notified this fall that the projects were approved.
Vaughn Halyard, CEO of Story Lounge in Cedar Rapids, said he was notified in late July that tax credits would be issued for the TV science education-entertainment project “The Science of Thrill” that Story Lounge produced with MPV Studios and Fuel, a local design house. He said the project underwent “some serious vetting” from the state before it was approved.
Story Lounge has enough credits to get through a half-season of the show, Halyard said, and is hoping to make a presentation to the state when the time is right to get more credits for another season.
Halyard said Iowa film tax-credit projects helped Story Lounge get some “good respect in the production world,” but it is looking at ways to continue producing as much as it can in Iowa, where it has found a strong base of medical experts.
Iowa Motion Picture Association President Kent Newman said he keeps hearing of Iowa actors and film professionals moving to New Orleans or other areas with healthy film industries. He estimates that 400 to 500 Iowans were working on movie projects during the tax-credit program in 2009. Of those, he estimates that perhaps 150 remain employed, mainly in commercial-video production businesses like his own Full Spectrum Productions.
The association plans an educational campaign on the economic impact of the film industry and film tax credits at Iowa chambers of commerce and colleges with film programs. It will seek introduction of a bill next year to resurrect a tax-credit program, said Newman, owner of Full Spectrum Productions in Des Moines.
Newman disputes statements by Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller that the state saved taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars by swiftly freezing the program and investigating film projects. He said the vast majority of film tax-credit applicants left Iowa almost immediately after the investigation began — because they didn’t want to jeopardize project timetables — and eliminated the liability to the state. Only a tiny percentage of the projects are now expected to move forward, Newman said.
Some Iowa companies have shifted focus to steer clear of the tax-credit fallout.
Grasshorse, an animation studio in Winthrop, worked on four films in 2009, Chief Operating Officer Stephen Jennings said. Then its work dried up. Jennings and CEO Kathy Buxton, his sister, decided to refocus on new media, such as mobile and social media applications.
The company has shrunk from 20 full-time staff last year to seven full-time staff and 10 freelancers. It also has downsized from a large leased office in Mount Pleasant to an old theater building they purchased in Winthrop.
“When the credits were frozen, we had an opportunity for a feature film coming in,” Buxton said. “We would have been at 100-plus (employees).”
Ironically, some Iowans still are reaping the benefits of Iowa’s flawed film tax-credit program, even though they’ve left the state.
In 2007, Melinda Burns was wondering about the wisdom of obtaining a film degree from the University of Iowa, knowing how difficult it can be to find work in movies. The film tax-credit program helped bring the baseball movie “Sugar” to Davenport for filming, though, and she was hired on.
“After that, my career really took off,” said Burns, 25, originally from Alburnett. She now works as an assistant production coordinator, scheduling meetings, setting appointments, processing union dues and ordering equipment in Los Angeles.
Burns said staying in Iowa was not in her plans, because she is “not a winter girl.” Even so, she said the film tax-credit program provided enough work in Iowa to give her the experience she needed.
“I have that tax incentive to thank for my career,” Burns said.
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Friday, October 29, 2010
Lucky Louisiana: from their Film Office
Since 2002, Louisiana has appeared in the credits of more and more motion pictures, thanks to the state's unique tax incentive package directed at attracting film and television work. Currently, Louisiana ranks third in film and television production nationwide, behind only California and New York.
Louisiana's skilled crew base has grown by over 400 percent since the start of the tax incentive program, and infrastructure continues to develop to answer the demand from film and television producers. Louisiana now boasts world-class, state-of-the-art facilities throughout the state including stages and post-production houses.
Since 2006, Louisiana has produced more than 300 motion pictures in a variety of genres - major and independent feature films, television series, commercials and documentaries to name a few. Total program applications increased from 88 in 2008 to 105 in 2009. And local companies produced 65 percent of the films shot in Louisiana in 2009, up from 35 percent in 2008. And the film industry surge is showing no signs of stopping.
For evidence that Louisiana has become a serious player in the film industry, look no further than 2009's Oscar contender "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, which earned the highest number of nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor at the 2009 Academy Awards. In addition, Louisiana-made feature films, "I Love You Phillip Morris" and "Killing Room," premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival; and "Drool" premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival, winning Best Original Screenplay.
The tax credits, talented workforce and well-developed infrastructure help create great filmmaking experiences. But directors and producers keep coming back to Louisiana for the less-tangible assets, such as the variety of locations, unique joie de vivre and the overwhelming support of Louisiana's citizens.
Louisiana uses a holistic and innovative approach by offering tax credits, workforce training and other economic development programs among four different entertainment industry sectors: motion picture, sound recording, interactive and live performance.
Louisiana's skilled crew base has grown by over 400 percent since the start of the tax incentive program, and infrastructure continues to develop to answer the demand from film and television producers. Louisiana now boasts world-class, state-of-the-art facilities throughout the state including stages and post-production houses.
Since 2006, Louisiana has produced more than 300 motion pictures in a variety of genres - major and independent feature films, television series, commercials and documentaries to name a few. Total program applications increased from 88 in 2008 to 105 in 2009. And local companies produced 65 percent of the films shot in Louisiana in 2009, up from 35 percent in 2008. And the film industry surge is showing no signs of stopping.
For evidence that Louisiana has become a serious player in the film industry, look no further than 2009's Oscar contender "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, which earned the highest number of nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor at the 2009 Academy Awards. In addition, Louisiana-made feature films, "I Love You Phillip Morris" and "Killing Room," premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival; and "Drool" premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival, winning Best Original Screenplay.
The tax credits, talented workforce and well-developed infrastructure help create great filmmaking experiences. But directors and producers keep coming back to Louisiana for the less-tangible assets, such as the variety of locations, unique joie de vivre and the overwhelming support of Louisiana's citizens.
Louisiana uses a holistic and innovative approach by offering tax credits, workforce training and other economic development programs among four different entertainment industry sectors: motion picture, sound recording, interactive and live performance.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Auditor's Report - Interesting Facts
I killed a good hour or so thing morning looking through the State Auditor's report about the film incentive problems and found some interesting information in the section on "Background"
The first excerpt:
"Tom Wheeler was hired as the Film Office Manager (Administrative Assistant 4), effective January 5, 2004. The Department was unable to provide a written job description for the Film Office Manager."
So does this mean that his responsibilities weren't clearly defined and that they piled on these additional responsibilities later? There was no written job description given to him at the time he was hired and the responsibilities then were the same as for his predecessors: to promote Iowa to film producers, both outside and within the state, as a location to shoot movies. The usual thought was to increase tourism. It was after Tom was hired that the bill for film tax incentives was passed and it was decided that he should do it all.
As I've mentioned a number of times, Tom is not trained as a lawyer and he is not trained as an accountant. To have him perform duties outside of his area of expertise like this is negligent and those responsible for these decisions should be the ones put on trial. To prosecute Tom only serves to deflect blame from the true perpetrators of this incompetence.
Other excerpt:
"Although Mr. Wheeler was the only full time staff person assigned to the Office, he was able to enlist the services of an Administrative Assistant, who was shared by the whole Division, and the Division Secretary, who reported to Ms. Johnson and Mr. Rossate. According to Ms. Johnson and other Department staff, Mr. Wheeler was to request assistance from Ms. Johnson and Mr. Rossate when needed. According to Department staff we spoke with, Mr. Rossate and Ms. Johnson did not allocate time to the Office on their time sheets."
Tom's only help in handling this mountain of paperwork and making heads or tails out of the financial accounting and the legal aspects was an Administrative Assistant (fancy word for "Secretary"), who was shared by the whole division, and the Division Secretary. I doubt you would want either of them doing your legal work or your accounting, much less Tom, who was obviously not qualified for this work. His supervisors, Ms. Johnson and Mr. Rossate, from what I've heard were asked for assistance by Tom Wheeler. The fact that they did not allocate time to his concerns shows that they blew him off. I've heard also that he contacted Governor Culver's office with his concerns about inadequate staff and was ignored.
Obviously it shouldn't be Tom Wheeler who is to be put on trial.
The first excerpt:
"Tom Wheeler was hired as the Film Office Manager (Administrative Assistant 4), effective January 5, 2004. The Department was unable to provide a written job description for the Film Office Manager."
So does this mean that his responsibilities weren't clearly defined and that they piled on these additional responsibilities later? There was no written job description given to him at the time he was hired and the responsibilities then were the same as for his predecessors: to promote Iowa to film producers, both outside and within the state, as a location to shoot movies. The usual thought was to increase tourism. It was after Tom was hired that the bill for film tax incentives was passed and it was decided that he should do it all.
As I've mentioned a number of times, Tom is not trained as a lawyer and he is not trained as an accountant. To have him perform duties outside of his area of expertise like this is negligent and those responsible for these decisions should be the ones put on trial. To prosecute Tom only serves to deflect blame from the true perpetrators of this incompetence.
Other excerpt:
"Although Mr. Wheeler was the only full time staff person assigned to the Office, he was able to enlist the services of an Administrative Assistant, who was shared by the whole Division, and the Division Secretary, who reported to Ms. Johnson and Mr. Rossate. According to Ms. Johnson and other Department staff, Mr. Wheeler was to request assistance from Ms. Johnson and Mr. Rossate when needed. According to Department staff we spoke with, Mr. Rossate and Ms. Johnson did not allocate time to the Office on their time sheets."
Tom's only help in handling this mountain of paperwork and making heads or tails out of the financial accounting and the legal aspects was an Administrative Assistant (fancy word for "Secretary"), who was shared by the whole division, and the Division Secretary. I doubt you would want either of them doing your legal work or your accounting, much less Tom, who was obviously not qualified for this work. His supervisors, Ms. Johnson and Mr. Rossate, from what I've heard were asked for assistance by Tom Wheeler. The fact that they did not allocate time to his concerns shows that they blew him off. I've heard also that he contacted Governor Culver's office with his concerns about inadequate staff and was ignored.
Obviously it shouldn't be Tom Wheeler who is to be put on trial.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Iowa State Auditor Tries to Pass the Buck
In the Des Moines Register article linked to below ("Auditor says most Iowa film credits issued improperly"), once again total blame is being assigned to Tom Wheeler who is neither a lawyer or an accountant. The auditing of these film budgets before the awarding of tax credits should have been done by the very state auditor who is now saying that Tom Wheeler didn't do it right. Wheeler should have never been given legal or accounting responsibilities to begin with. His forte was selling Iowa as a place to shoot films and should have been confined to that. Culver and the legislature really dropped the ball on this.
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20101026/NEWS/101026026/Auditor-says-most-Iowa-film-credits-issued-improperly
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20101026/NEWS/101026026/Auditor-says-most-Iowa-film-credits-issued-improperly
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Iowa Governor's Race: Today's Debate
Mostly a yawwwwwn, but the issue of the Iowa Film Office fiasco was brought up and candidate Terry Branstad said he was in FAVOR of maintaining a film office, and candidate Chester Culver said we "wouldn't be taken for suckers" again.
Thus, for we in the Iowa Acting World, our ONLY choice is Terry Branstad.
Vote. I did via absentee ballot.
After the election, a very vitally important meeting will take place with Iowa Senator Bill Dotzler, Jr., and a few members of the Iowa Film Community (I know I didn't need to capitalize those words...).
Stay tuned.
gino
Friday, October 15, 2010
New charges likely in film scandal
Once again The Des Moines Register is trumpeting that the charges in the film scandal are going to "mushroom". It's been like this all year but only two trials are set to go on: the trial of the producers of "The Scientist" for fraud and for Tom Wheeler, the former Film Office head, - their convenient political scapegoat - for "nonfelonious misconduct in office". Nobody else is going to trial - not Culver, not the people overseeing Tom Wheeler, not the productions who bought the luxury vehicles for their directors.
The new announcement from the Iowa Attorney General's Office is naturally timed to coincide with the elections, since both the Attorney General and the Governor are up for re-election. The Des Moines Register brings up little in the way of new information other than some of the films that will be receiving reduced or no film tax credits. I'm sure the politicians will be milking this one as long as they can - at our expense.
Here is a link to the Des Moines Register Article:
New charges likely in film scandal
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20101015/NEWS10/10150385/New-charges-likely-in-film-scandal
The new announcement from the Iowa Attorney General's Office is naturally timed to coincide with the elections, since both the Attorney General and the Governor are up for re-election. The Des Moines Register brings up little in the way of new information other than some of the films that will be receiving reduced or no film tax credits. I'm sure the politicians will be milking this one as long as they can - at our expense.
Here is a link to the Des Moines Register Article:
New charges likely in film scandal
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20101015/NEWS10/10150385/New-charges-likely-in-film-scandal
Monday, October 4, 2010
From Business First of Columbus, by Jeff Bell
Central Ohio has been shut out of film and television productions big enough to qualify for a new state tax incentive, but the region’s luck seems to be changing.
A reality series to be shot at Riverside Methodist Hospital for the Lifetime television network is expected to exceed the $300,000 budget mark needed to qualify for the state’s film tax credit, said Jeremy Henthorn, director of the Ohio Film Office. In addition, talks are under way with production companies to bring several projects to Central Ohio in 2011, he said.
“As with (film) tax credits in any other state, it will be snowballing.” Henthorn said. “Once it starts, it gets bigger and bigger. We expect Columbus to see a lot of activity over the next few years.”
Henthorn said that with an estimated budget of $400,000, the One Born Every Minute reality series to be filmed at Riverside can apply for tax credits signed into law in July 2009. The reality show, produced by Los Angeles-based Reveille LLC, will focus on the daily drama at Riverside’s labor and delivery unit. It is expected to begin airing in February.
Bright lights, big payoff
The film tax incentive provides a refundable credit against Ohio’s corporation franchise or income taxes for motion pictures produced in the state. It is designed to help Ohio compete as a location for the production of movies, documentaries, TV shows, videos, commercials, digital media and other entertainment content. State officials have said such productions boost employment and generate revenue for communities.
Data compiled by the Ohio Department of Development show nine projects – none in Central Ohio – qualified for an estimated $9.2 million in tax credits from Oct. 16, 2009, through Sept. 24. The legislature earmarked $10 million for the tax credits in fiscal 2010 and $20 million for fiscal 2011, which began July 1.
The nine projects were expected to generate $41.7 million in spending in the state and $9.5 million in local wages for more than 3,600 workers, according to state estimates. Six of the productions were filmed in the Cleveland area in addition to one each in Cincinnati, Akron and Martins Ferry in eastern Ohio. The most notable were Unstoppable, a drama about a runaway train starring Denzel Washington, and 25 Hill, a film about the Soap Box Derby featuring L.A. Law actor Corbin Bernsen.
The Cleveland area did well because its film commission had a roster of projects lined up when the tax credit program was launched, Henthorn said. Cleveland’s lakefront location and the look of its downtown business district and neighborhoods also appeal to producers.
“It can resemble New York but at a cheaper price,” Henthorn said. “Sometimes geography can appeal to filmmakers.”
As for Columbus, Henthorn said the city’s iconic government buildings such as the Statehouse and Ohio Supreme Court building could draw filmmakers. The city has a strong core of film production crews, he said, including ones that worked on 25 Hill in Akron, and a local film commission whose director, Gail Mezey, is viewed as an advocate for the Central Ohio film industry.
About a dozen small, independent movies are shot in Central Ohio each year, Mezey said, but the Greater Columbus Film Commission lacks the financial resources to court the California studios that make major motion pictures. The commission counts on donations from its members and area film production houses and movie equipment rental businesses, she said. It receives no funding from government, the Greater Columbus Arts Council or economic development groups such as the Columbus Chamber.
The commission hopes to pursue support from government and business groups – like that enjoyed by the Greater Cleveland Film Commission – now that the economy appears to be improving, Mezey said. Film commissions across Ohio are trying to show legislators that the film tax credit brings projects, jobs and revenue to the state, she said.
“I don’t think (filmmakers) would even consider Ohio for a lot of motion pictures before,” Mezey said. “Even if (the story) was Ohio-based, they would still go to Louisiana, Michigan, Illinois and Connecticut (for tax breaks.) But our incentives are still not as competitive as I’d like them to be.”
A reality series to be shot at Riverside Methodist Hospital for the Lifetime television network is expected to exceed the $300,000 budget mark needed to qualify for the state’s film tax credit, said Jeremy Henthorn, director of the Ohio Film Office. In addition, talks are under way with production companies to bring several projects to Central Ohio in 2011, he said.
“As with (film) tax credits in any other state, it will be snowballing.” Henthorn said. “Once it starts, it gets bigger and bigger. We expect Columbus to see a lot of activity over the next few years.”
Henthorn said that with an estimated budget of $400,000, the One Born Every Minute reality series to be filmed at Riverside can apply for tax credits signed into law in July 2009. The reality show, produced by Los Angeles-based Reveille LLC, will focus on the daily drama at Riverside’s labor and delivery unit. It is expected to begin airing in February.
Bright lights, big payoff
The film tax incentive provides a refundable credit against Ohio’s corporation franchise or income taxes for motion pictures produced in the state. It is designed to help Ohio compete as a location for the production of movies, documentaries, TV shows, videos, commercials, digital media and other entertainment content. State officials have said such productions boost employment and generate revenue for communities.
Data compiled by the Ohio Department of Development show nine projects – none in Central Ohio – qualified for an estimated $9.2 million in tax credits from Oct. 16, 2009, through Sept. 24. The legislature earmarked $10 million for the tax credits in fiscal 2010 and $20 million for fiscal 2011, which began July 1.
The nine projects were expected to generate $41.7 million in spending in the state and $9.5 million in local wages for more than 3,600 workers, according to state estimates. Six of the productions were filmed in the Cleveland area in addition to one each in Cincinnati, Akron and Martins Ferry in eastern Ohio. The most notable were Unstoppable, a drama about a runaway train starring Denzel Washington, and 25 Hill, a film about the Soap Box Derby featuring L.A. Law actor Corbin Bernsen.
The Cleveland area did well because its film commission had a roster of projects lined up when the tax credit program was launched, Henthorn said. Cleveland’s lakefront location and the look of its downtown business district and neighborhoods also appeal to producers.
“It can resemble New York but at a cheaper price,” Henthorn said. “Sometimes geography can appeal to filmmakers.”
As for Columbus, Henthorn said the city’s iconic government buildings such as the Statehouse and Ohio Supreme Court building could draw filmmakers. The city has a strong core of film production crews, he said, including ones that worked on 25 Hill in Akron, and a local film commission whose director, Gail Mezey, is viewed as an advocate for the Central Ohio film industry.
About a dozen small, independent movies are shot in Central Ohio each year, Mezey said, but the Greater Columbus Film Commission lacks the financial resources to court the California studios that make major motion pictures. The commission counts on donations from its members and area film production houses and movie equipment rental businesses, she said. It receives no funding from government, the Greater Columbus Arts Council or economic development groups such as the Columbus Chamber.
The commission hopes to pursue support from government and business groups – like that enjoyed by the Greater Cleveland Film Commission – now that the economy appears to be improving, Mezey said. Film commissions across Ohio are trying to show legislators that the film tax credit brings projects, jobs and revenue to the state, she said.
“I don’t think (filmmakers) would even consider Ohio for a lot of motion pictures before,” Mezey said. “Even if (the story) was Ohio-based, they would still go to Louisiana, Michigan, Illinois and Connecticut (for tax breaks.) But our incentives are still not as competitive as I’d like them to be.”
Louisiana Film Program Works!!!
From Jobs Jobs Jobs.Com
Louisiana Film Tax Credits Create Needed Economic Punch
October 3rd, 2010 | Author: admin
Louisiana Film Tax Credits Create Needed Economic Punch
Louisiana has always has a unique mix of unique culture, great food and wonderful history. But in recent years the state has thrown financial incentives into the “gumbo” as well. These film tax credits have provided the “spice” that has propelled Louisiana to one of the top filming spots in the world.
According to state officials, 2008 film production in Louisiana has already outperformed 2007 figures both in terms of total dollars and number of projects. The news couldn’t come at a better time for Louisiana – a state that has worked hard to find ways to replace the losses in tourism that has hurt the state in the post-Hurricane Katrina era.
Some key facts about Louisiana’s film industry:
More than billion in productions have been filmed in Louisiana since 2002
The total direct impact to Louisiana’s economy is .48 billion
The percentage of film budgets spent in Louisiana has risen from 33% in 2005 to 87% for 2007
Film-related jobs in Louisiana have grown at a rate of 23% per year
Over 50 projects were completed in 2007 statewide
An estimated 65 projects will be completed in 2008
Source: Louisiana Film Office
Success of Key Tax Incentives
The film industry sat up and took notice in 2002 when the Louisiana State Legislature enacted an aggressive film tax incentive program. Louisiana’s film investor tax credit program offers out of state production companies a tax credit equal to 25% of their spending in Louisiana during film production. The labor tax credit offers an additional 10% tax credit based on the amount of Louisiana labor employed during the production.
So what has been the impact of these film tax incentives? Without question the lure of tax credits has helped grow the entire film industry in the state. From private investments to sound stage and studios – the impact is being seen all over the state. Many local colleges and universities have already added specialized training programs to satisfy the growing workforce demands
Music and Television Productions
In addition to studio film productions Louisiana’s tax credits have drawn in music and television shows such as:
Disney’s “Imagination Movers”
“Fox’s “K-ville” shot its first year’s pilot program at some of New Orleans more popular tourist settings last fall.
The Subway “Odd Couple” commercial staring New Orleans Saints star Reggie.
Warbirds, a Sci-Fi channel original movie was shot in the Baton Rouge area and recently made its worldwide television premier.
Key Infrastructure Developments
Not to be overlooked in the success of this young industry is the 40% infrastructure tax credit which has encouraged the development of much needed production support facilities. These new facilities allow film production studios to conduct more of their work in the state thus maximizing their “Louisiana spend.”
Turn Key Production Partners
FBT Film and Entertainment (www.fbtfilm.com) is the only provider of Louisiana film incentive programs affiliated with a bank. Through our relationship with First Bank and Trust we are able to offer producers a full range of support services including:
Underwriting films, studio projects and evaluating gap financing
Private equity placements
Budget analysis to optimize potential tax credits
Banking relationships and deposit services
Obtaining state certifications for credits
Maximizing the value/sale of tax credits
FBT Film is your “one stop shop” for all of your Louisiana production incentive services. Contact us today for more information about Louisiana’s growing film industry or its tax incentive programs.
Louisiana Film Tax Credits Create Needed Economic Punch
October 3rd, 2010 | Author: admin
Louisiana Film Tax Credits Create Needed Economic Punch
Louisiana has always has a unique mix of unique culture, great food and wonderful history. But in recent years the state has thrown financial incentives into the “gumbo” as well. These film tax credits have provided the “spice” that has propelled Louisiana to one of the top filming spots in the world.
According to state officials, 2008 film production in Louisiana has already outperformed 2007 figures both in terms of total dollars and number of projects. The news couldn’t come at a better time for Louisiana – a state that has worked hard to find ways to replace the losses in tourism that has hurt the state in the post-Hurricane Katrina era.
Some key facts about Louisiana’s film industry:
More than billion in productions have been filmed in Louisiana since 2002
The total direct impact to Louisiana’s economy is .48 billion
The percentage of film budgets spent in Louisiana has risen from 33% in 2005 to 87% for 2007
Film-related jobs in Louisiana have grown at a rate of 23% per year
Over 50 projects were completed in 2007 statewide
An estimated 65 projects will be completed in 2008
Source: Louisiana Film Office
Success of Key Tax Incentives
The film industry sat up and took notice in 2002 when the Louisiana State Legislature enacted an aggressive film tax incentive program. Louisiana’s film investor tax credit program offers out of state production companies a tax credit equal to 25% of their spending in Louisiana during film production. The labor tax credit offers an additional 10% tax credit based on the amount of Louisiana labor employed during the production.
So what has been the impact of these film tax incentives? Without question the lure of tax credits has helped grow the entire film industry in the state. From private investments to sound stage and studios – the impact is being seen all over the state. Many local colleges and universities have already added specialized training programs to satisfy the growing workforce demands
Music and Television Productions
In addition to studio film productions Louisiana’s tax credits have drawn in music and television shows such as:
Disney’s “Imagination Movers”
“Fox’s “K-ville” shot its first year’s pilot program at some of New Orleans more popular tourist settings last fall.
The Subway “Odd Couple” commercial staring New Orleans Saints star Reggie.
Warbirds, a Sci-Fi channel original movie was shot in the Baton Rouge area and recently made its worldwide television premier.
Key Infrastructure Developments
Not to be overlooked in the success of this young industry is the 40% infrastructure tax credit which has encouraged the development of much needed production support facilities. These new facilities allow film production studios to conduct more of their work in the state thus maximizing their “Louisiana spend.”
Turn Key Production Partners
FBT Film and Entertainment (www.fbtfilm.com) is the only provider of Louisiana film incentive programs affiliated with a bank. Through our relationship with First Bank and Trust we are able to offer producers a full range of support services including:
Underwriting films, studio projects and evaluating gap financing
Private equity placements
Budget analysis to optimize potential tax credits
Banking relationships and deposit services
Obtaining state certifications for credits
Maximizing the value/sale of tax credits
FBT Film is your “one stop shop” for all of your Louisiana production incentive services. Contact us today for more information about Louisiana’s growing film industry or its tax incentive programs.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Emptiness In Iowa
The latest update from the Iowa Department of Economic Development, an updated list of movie productions, is now available at their web site. I think the list is just the same stuff they published previously, with nothing encouraging or major. Check it out for yourself.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Wall Street Journal Article by Amy Chozick
Motown Becomes Movietown
Hollywood has a new favorite location. The Motor City is luring films and TV shows with tax breaks and red-carpet treatment. Was that Demi and Ashton at the Tigers game?
By AMY CHOZICK
Detroit
Across the street from a landscape of vacant houses and overgrown front yards, homicide detectives gather to investigate a murder. They analyze clues and debate how best to interrogate the key witnesses. Then, the director yells "Cut!" and everyone heads to a catered lunch of shrimp scampi and beef tenderloin.
The set of the gritty cop show "Detroit 1-8-7" is one of more than 100 film and television productions that have flocked to Michigan in the last two years, the result of generous tax rebates. Producers have spent nearly $350 million in the state so far, a figure expected to reach $650 million by year's end, up from $2 million in 2007, according to the Michigan Film Office. About 80% of these shoots take place in and around this iconic but much-maligned city, sprinkling a little stardust, optimism and controversy along the way.
Workers who used to build cars are learning to build sets. The entertainment sector is "a lifeboat as the auto industry adapts and restructures," says Wayne County Executive Robert A. Ficano.
Signs of activity are everywhere. Hip-looking film-school grads on bicycles run errands in an empty warehouse that once served as a Chrysler distribution center and is now a cavernous 166,000-square-foot production studio for "Detroit 1-8-7." Sets for the show, premiering on ABC Sept. 21, include a city morgue and a homicide unit with cluttered police desks and corkboards covered with mug shots.
The dilapidated Michigan Central Station, once a transportation hub, with marbled floors and Corinthian columns, has served as a symbol of urban ruination for years. It's now a key location for productions including "Transformers 3" and HBO's "Hung." On Tuesday "Hostel: Part III" and "Vamps," a horror-comedy with Sigourney Weaver, both shot in the city's neo-Gothic Masonic Temple. When "Harold and Kumar 3" finished a scene this summer that required turning a downtown street into New York City at Christmas, set designers left the fake subway entrance intact, knowing another production would soon need it.
Want to blow up a building, or burn it down? Detroit is happy to help. Wayne County officials, sitting on countless empty homes and factories, ask only that producers pay for demolition and clean-up. "Stone," a thriller opening Oct. 8 and starring Robert De Niro, Edward Norton and Milla Jovovich, burned two houses to the ground. Location scouts found them on the county's online "land bank," which lists thousands of abandoned properties.
Regional filmmaking has been on the increase for decades, as southern California became more expensive to work in and overexposed on screen. New Mexico, Louisiana, Georgia, New York, Canada and others have wooed the lucrative entertainment business with tax-incentive packages. The revenue and jobs are welcome, and sometimes buttressed by a little brand-building, perhaps attracting tourists or investment.
More
"What's Wrong With Virginia" Director Dustin Lance Black on Michigan's Tax Breaks
For Michigan, which by most measures offers the country's steepest rebates, the stakes are higher. It's a shot at redemption, a chance to shrug off wearisome images of high crime, racial turmoil, urban decay—even a bad football team. From Motown Records to Elmore Leonard, the city is rich in cultural legacy. No one expects a return to the glory days when Detroit was a symbol of entrepreneurialism and the automobile business helped make the U.S. the world's greatest economic power. But proponents say any jump-start can lift depressed spirits as well as spur lasting economic improvement.
"Without being too romantic and starry-eyed, this is a dream weaver industry and if storytellers can't bring hope to a region, no one can," says Scott Putman, executive producer/unit production manager on "Hostel: Part III."
The film incentive program offers up to a 42% tax rebate on any in-state expenses from rental cars, housing and food, or the cost of building a soundstage. Louisiana, by contrast, offers up to 35% in its highly popular program. After filming is completed, producers file a tax return, which is audited, and a check is sent out. Producers like to say that every dollar they spend in the state turns into $1.42.
Movies have their wrap parties and move on, but Detroit is hoping that some of its legions of laid-off auto workers will become skilled crew members who can get steady work. Television shows provide regular employment. Permanent infrastructure can take root: This summer, Los Angeles-based Raleigh Studios broke ground on a $75.8 million studio built on a 22-acre site in nearby Pontiac. It once served as offices for back-office employees at a nearby assembly plant which manufactured GM full-size pickup trucks.
In July, 15.2% of people in the Detroit metropolitan area were unemployed, more than five percentage points higher than the national average, according to the Michigan Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth.
Since the tax rebates went into effect in 2008, institutes aimed at retraining laid off auto workers have sprung up. The state's No Worker Left Behind initiative and Trade Adjustment Assistance, a federal program that assists people whose jobs have moved overseas, subsidize tuition for displaced workers to take classes in set carpentry, prosthetic makeup and electrical. So far, the entertainment industry has produced 7,000 production jobs, though many of those are part-time and without benefits.
Initially, producers flew in crew from L.A., but the state offers only a 30% incentive on costs related to out-of-state workers.
"Quite frankly, it has taken them a while to trust us," says Jack Grushko chief operating officer of the Center for Film Studies, which works with the United Auto Workers and other unions to retrain displaced workers.
Murray Mullins, 43, lost his job building axles two years ago and lived off unemployment insurance. Last year he signed up for a class at the Center for Film Studies and landed a set-designer internship on the Pierce Brosnan movie "Salvation Boulevard." "It ain't manufacturing, but the skill sets go together," he says.
Casting offices that once focused on finding models for car shows now locate extras who get paid about $100 a day to fill out a street or stadium. Tiffany Jones, 34, did corporate training videos and auto-show hospitality for Ford Motor Co. before the work dried up. She recently played a cop on "Detroit 1-8-7." "It's not something I ever thought about doing living in Detroit," she says.
Aspiring actor and failed restaurateur Gary Brunner was broke, waiting tables at the Coach Insignia steakhouse on top of the GM Renaissance Center when director Michael Bay came in for a dinner. Ten days later, Mr. Bay offered him a small role in "Transformers 3," says Mr. Brunner, who is 40 years old with slicked-back hair and a gruff baritone voice. The experience makes him feel "like a washed-up prizefighter with another shot at the title."
The rebate has sparked criticism among lawmakers who argue the tax subsidy does not help the state bridge a $500 million budget deficit for fiscal 2011. Upcoming elections could threaten to reduce or even eliminate the incentive. Others argue that the nomadic film industry is not the best way to build stable, long-term growth.
Advocates counter that this argument misses the larger economic impact on small businesses like Just Delicious, whose scones were popular with Clint Eastwood and the crew on the set of "Gran Torino." Or Small Plates, a chic restaurant in downtown Detroit that sees its business spike by 30% each time a production shoots downtown.
"Detroit 1-8-7" is the city's first prime-time network drama, and therefore a possibility to run for many years and provide long-term employment. The show plans to spend $27 million locally on the first 12 episodes, including the cost of building the set, and about $50 million if the series is picked up for a full 22-episode season, producers say. "Everyone feels like there's more at stake than just making a good show," creator Jason Richman says, standing in front of a giant backdrop of the downtown skyline.
The show and others depict the Detroit area as it is, from the Lake St. Clair shoreline in Grosse Pointe to the fabled cruising strip of Woodward Avenue and the old Polish enclave of Hamtramck (now increasingly Middle Eastern and South Asian), blue-collar neighborhoods and burned-out ones.
Director Tony Goldwyn says his movie "Conviction," with Hilary Swank as a woman in an 18-year battle to get her brother out of prison, could not have been made elsewhere on a $12.5 million budget. But it was the area's aesthetic that sealed the deal. "Our key location is a broken-down poor farm in a bucolic area," Mr. Goldwyn says. The area has "that nice blue-collar feel." Nevertheless the film, which opens Oct. 15, is set in New England.
For the coming movie "The Double," starring Richard Gere, Los Angeles-based location manager Ernest Belding turned a street in Detroit's Harmonie Park into a block in Paris. His team paid storeowners to vacate their businesses, replaced storefronts and street signs with French signs and scoured the state for Peugeots and Citroëns. The movie also made the city a stand-in for Soviet Russia, Switzerland and Washington, D.C.
Of course, Detroit must endure the usual litany of stereotypes. The opening credits of "Detroit 1-8-7" flash images of the GM building, working-class neighborhoods and graffiti. "Detroit, Michigan, birthplace of Motown and once the heart of the automobile industry—now it has one of the highest murder rates in the country," a voice-over intones.
"Everything's falling apart, and it all starts right here in Detroit, the headwaters of a river of failure," says high-school coach turned male prostitute Ray Drecker in the opening minutes of HBO's dark comedy "Hung."
"The city tells a story that's emblematic of the American story," says "Detroit 1-8-7" star Michael Imperioli on a break from playing homicide detective Louis Fitch. "You could just take a camera and drive through the city and you'd have something."
Detroit has mixed feelings about its cinematic allure. The city council protested "Detroit 1-8-7" saying it cast the city in a negative light. Local politicians asked ABC to change the name since "187" is police code (and urban slang) for murder. It didn't help when cops being followed around by a crew from a reality show accidentally shot and killed a 7-year-old girl during a raid, raising questions about whether the camera's presence fed the incident. The city banned camera crews from shadowing police.
Its sky-high vacancy rates are a sensitive issue, too, despite the aggressive demolition program here. "We don't want to send the message that if you need to blow up a house, come to Detroit. That's not the kind of imagery the city needs," says Sommer Woods, the mayor's film, culture and special-events liaison.
A glamorous premiere party for "Detroit 1-8-7" last week at the MGM Grand Detroit hotel and casino let city councilmen hobnob with L.A. celebrities. For a coming episode producers hired a local youth group to play one on TV. The teenagers cleared a vacant lot in a scene's background. The show employs about 200 local cast and crew each day and as many as 146 extras.
"They could've easily portrayed Detroit however they wanted and shot it in Toronto," says Mikey Eckstein, whom producers hired to help relocate actors—a job that includes everything from finding a math tutor and trumpet instructor for Mr. Imperioli's children to finding an apartment that can accommodate large dogs. "I paid off my mortgage before they even started shooting."
Unlike jaded denizens of Los Angeles and New York, Detroiters are enjoying celebrity sightings. Last month, Ashton Kutcher and wife Demi Moore, in town to shoot her new movie "LOL," attended a Tigers game. Around the same time, Ms. Moore and actor Gerard Butler, who was in town shooting "Machine Gun Preacher," were spotted at a local bowling alley. Hugh Jackman stopped by the polar bear exhibit at the Detroit Zoo. "That all helps reshape our image and show people we're turning the corner," says Carrie Jones, director of the Michigan Film Office.
Driving through the city's historic Corktown district near Rosa Parks Boulevard, Mike Mosallam, an actor and director who moved back to Detroit to head film initiatives for Wayne County, proudly points out the train station and Slows Bar BQ, a popular spot with the film and TV set.
Even with the burgeoning new sector, the landscape of dilapidated buildings and shuttered storefronts looks bleak. "We're done being sad," he says. "We're trying to build a new industry."
He can only hope the cameras will keep on rolling. "Hollywood follows the money," says Mr. Belding, the location manager. "If Ohio had a 50% rebate, we'd all head 100 miles south and find Paris there."
Hollywood has a new favorite location. The Motor City is luring films and TV shows with tax breaks and red-carpet treatment. Was that Demi and Ashton at the Tigers game?
By AMY CHOZICK
Detroit
Across the street from a landscape of vacant houses and overgrown front yards, homicide detectives gather to investigate a murder. They analyze clues and debate how best to interrogate the key witnesses. Then, the director yells "Cut!" and everyone heads to a catered lunch of shrimp scampi and beef tenderloin.
The set of the gritty cop show "Detroit 1-8-7" is one of more than 100 film and television productions that have flocked to Michigan in the last two years, the result of generous tax rebates. Producers have spent nearly $350 million in the state so far, a figure expected to reach $650 million by year's end, up from $2 million in 2007, according to the Michigan Film Office. About 80% of these shoots take place in and around this iconic but much-maligned city, sprinkling a little stardust, optimism and controversy along the way.
Workers who used to build cars are learning to build sets. The entertainment sector is "a lifeboat as the auto industry adapts and restructures," says Wayne County Executive Robert A. Ficano.
Signs of activity are everywhere. Hip-looking film-school grads on bicycles run errands in an empty warehouse that once served as a Chrysler distribution center and is now a cavernous 166,000-square-foot production studio for "Detroit 1-8-7." Sets for the show, premiering on ABC Sept. 21, include a city morgue and a homicide unit with cluttered police desks and corkboards covered with mug shots.
The dilapidated Michigan Central Station, once a transportation hub, with marbled floors and Corinthian columns, has served as a symbol of urban ruination for years. It's now a key location for productions including "Transformers 3" and HBO's "Hung." On Tuesday "Hostel: Part III" and "Vamps," a horror-comedy with Sigourney Weaver, both shot in the city's neo-Gothic Masonic Temple. When "Harold and Kumar 3" finished a scene this summer that required turning a downtown street into New York City at Christmas, set designers left the fake subway entrance intact, knowing another production would soon need it.
Want to blow up a building, or burn it down? Detroit is happy to help. Wayne County officials, sitting on countless empty homes and factories, ask only that producers pay for demolition and clean-up. "Stone," a thriller opening Oct. 8 and starring Robert De Niro, Edward Norton and Milla Jovovich, burned two houses to the ground. Location scouts found them on the county's online "land bank," which lists thousands of abandoned properties.
Regional filmmaking has been on the increase for decades, as southern California became more expensive to work in and overexposed on screen. New Mexico, Louisiana, Georgia, New York, Canada and others have wooed the lucrative entertainment business with tax-incentive packages. The revenue and jobs are welcome, and sometimes buttressed by a little brand-building, perhaps attracting tourists or investment.
More
"What's Wrong With Virginia" Director Dustin Lance Black on Michigan's Tax Breaks
For Michigan, which by most measures offers the country's steepest rebates, the stakes are higher. It's a shot at redemption, a chance to shrug off wearisome images of high crime, racial turmoil, urban decay—even a bad football team. From Motown Records to Elmore Leonard, the city is rich in cultural legacy. No one expects a return to the glory days when Detroit was a symbol of entrepreneurialism and the automobile business helped make the U.S. the world's greatest economic power. But proponents say any jump-start can lift depressed spirits as well as spur lasting economic improvement.
"Without being too romantic and starry-eyed, this is a dream weaver industry and if storytellers can't bring hope to a region, no one can," says Scott Putman, executive producer/unit production manager on "Hostel: Part III."
The film incentive program offers up to a 42% tax rebate on any in-state expenses from rental cars, housing and food, or the cost of building a soundstage. Louisiana, by contrast, offers up to 35% in its highly popular program. After filming is completed, producers file a tax return, which is audited, and a check is sent out. Producers like to say that every dollar they spend in the state turns into $1.42.
Movies have their wrap parties and move on, but Detroit is hoping that some of its legions of laid-off auto workers will become skilled crew members who can get steady work. Television shows provide regular employment. Permanent infrastructure can take root: This summer, Los Angeles-based Raleigh Studios broke ground on a $75.8 million studio built on a 22-acre site in nearby Pontiac. It once served as offices for back-office employees at a nearby assembly plant which manufactured GM full-size pickup trucks.
In July, 15.2% of people in the Detroit metropolitan area were unemployed, more than five percentage points higher than the national average, according to the Michigan Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth.
Since the tax rebates went into effect in 2008, institutes aimed at retraining laid off auto workers have sprung up. The state's No Worker Left Behind initiative and Trade Adjustment Assistance, a federal program that assists people whose jobs have moved overseas, subsidize tuition for displaced workers to take classes in set carpentry, prosthetic makeup and electrical. So far, the entertainment industry has produced 7,000 production jobs, though many of those are part-time and without benefits.
Initially, producers flew in crew from L.A., but the state offers only a 30% incentive on costs related to out-of-state workers.
"Quite frankly, it has taken them a while to trust us," says Jack Grushko chief operating officer of the Center for Film Studies, which works with the United Auto Workers and other unions to retrain displaced workers.
Murray Mullins, 43, lost his job building axles two years ago and lived off unemployment insurance. Last year he signed up for a class at the Center for Film Studies and landed a set-designer internship on the Pierce Brosnan movie "Salvation Boulevard." "It ain't manufacturing, but the skill sets go together," he says.
Casting offices that once focused on finding models for car shows now locate extras who get paid about $100 a day to fill out a street or stadium. Tiffany Jones, 34, did corporate training videos and auto-show hospitality for Ford Motor Co. before the work dried up. She recently played a cop on "Detroit 1-8-7." "It's not something I ever thought about doing living in Detroit," she says.
Aspiring actor and failed restaurateur Gary Brunner was broke, waiting tables at the Coach Insignia steakhouse on top of the GM Renaissance Center when director Michael Bay came in for a dinner. Ten days later, Mr. Bay offered him a small role in "Transformers 3," says Mr. Brunner, who is 40 years old with slicked-back hair and a gruff baritone voice. The experience makes him feel "like a washed-up prizefighter with another shot at the title."
The rebate has sparked criticism among lawmakers who argue the tax subsidy does not help the state bridge a $500 million budget deficit for fiscal 2011. Upcoming elections could threaten to reduce or even eliminate the incentive. Others argue that the nomadic film industry is not the best way to build stable, long-term growth.
Advocates counter that this argument misses the larger economic impact on small businesses like Just Delicious, whose scones were popular with Clint Eastwood and the crew on the set of "Gran Torino." Or Small Plates, a chic restaurant in downtown Detroit that sees its business spike by 30% each time a production shoots downtown.
"Detroit 1-8-7" is the city's first prime-time network drama, and therefore a possibility to run for many years and provide long-term employment. The show plans to spend $27 million locally on the first 12 episodes, including the cost of building the set, and about $50 million if the series is picked up for a full 22-episode season, producers say. "Everyone feels like there's more at stake than just making a good show," creator Jason Richman says, standing in front of a giant backdrop of the downtown skyline.
The show and others depict the Detroit area as it is, from the Lake St. Clair shoreline in Grosse Pointe to the fabled cruising strip of Woodward Avenue and the old Polish enclave of Hamtramck (now increasingly Middle Eastern and South Asian), blue-collar neighborhoods and burned-out ones.
Director Tony Goldwyn says his movie "Conviction," with Hilary Swank as a woman in an 18-year battle to get her brother out of prison, could not have been made elsewhere on a $12.5 million budget. But it was the area's aesthetic that sealed the deal. "Our key location is a broken-down poor farm in a bucolic area," Mr. Goldwyn says. The area has "that nice blue-collar feel." Nevertheless the film, which opens Oct. 15, is set in New England.
For the coming movie "The Double," starring Richard Gere, Los Angeles-based location manager Ernest Belding turned a street in Detroit's Harmonie Park into a block in Paris. His team paid storeowners to vacate their businesses, replaced storefronts and street signs with French signs and scoured the state for Peugeots and Citroëns. The movie also made the city a stand-in for Soviet Russia, Switzerland and Washington, D.C.
Of course, Detroit must endure the usual litany of stereotypes. The opening credits of "Detroit 1-8-7" flash images of the GM building, working-class neighborhoods and graffiti. "Detroit, Michigan, birthplace of Motown and once the heart of the automobile industry—now it has one of the highest murder rates in the country," a voice-over intones.
"Everything's falling apart, and it all starts right here in Detroit, the headwaters of a river of failure," says high-school coach turned male prostitute Ray Drecker in the opening minutes of HBO's dark comedy "Hung."
"The city tells a story that's emblematic of the American story," says "Detroit 1-8-7" star Michael Imperioli on a break from playing homicide detective Louis Fitch. "You could just take a camera and drive through the city and you'd have something."
Detroit has mixed feelings about its cinematic allure. The city council protested "Detroit 1-8-7" saying it cast the city in a negative light. Local politicians asked ABC to change the name since "187" is police code (and urban slang) for murder. It didn't help when cops being followed around by a crew from a reality show accidentally shot and killed a 7-year-old girl during a raid, raising questions about whether the camera's presence fed the incident. The city banned camera crews from shadowing police.
Its sky-high vacancy rates are a sensitive issue, too, despite the aggressive demolition program here. "We don't want to send the message that if you need to blow up a house, come to Detroit. That's not the kind of imagery the city needs," says Sommer Woods, the mayor's film, culture and special-events liaison.
A glamorous premiere party for "Detroit 1-8-7" last week at the MGM Grand Detroit hotel and casino let city councilmen hobnob with L.A. celebrities. For a coming episode producers hired a local youth group to play one on TV. The teenagers cleared a vacant lot in a scene's background. The show employs about 200 local cast and crew each day and as many as 146 extras.
"They could've easily portrayed Detroit however they wanted and shot it in Toronto," says Mikey Eckstein, whom producers hired to help relocate actors—a job that includes everything from finding a math tutor and trumpet instructor for Mr. Imperioli's children to finding an apartment that can accommodate large dogs. "I paid off my mortgage before they even started shooting."
Unlike jaded denizens of Los Angeles and New York, Detroiters are enjoying celebrity sightings. Last month, Ashton Kutcher and wife Demi Moore, in town to shoot her new movie "LOL," attended a Tigers game. Around the same time, Ms. Moore and actor Gerard Butler, who was in town shooting "Machine Gun Preacher," were spotted at a local bowling alley. Hugh Jackman stopped by the polar bear exhibit at the Detroit Zoo. "That all helps reshape our image and show people we're turning the corner," says Carrie Jones, director of the Michigan Film Office.
Driving through the city's historic Corktown district near Rosa Parks Boulevard, Mike Mosallam, an actor and director who moved back to Detroit to head film initiatives for Wayne County, proudly points out the train station and Slows Bar BQ, a popular spot with the film and TV set.
Even with the burgeoning new sector, the landscape of dilapidated buildings and shuttered storefronts looks bleak. "We're done being sad," he says. "We're trying to build a new industry."
He can only hope the cameras will keep on rolling. "Hollywood follows the money," says Mr. Belding, the location manager. "If Ohio had a 50% rebate, we'd all head 100 miles south and find Paris there."
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
From WKYC.Com
CLEVELAND -- The Film Tax Credit for Ohio is helping make the state an ideal backdrop for many film makers. Meanwhile at Cuyahoga Community College, more students are hoping to get into the industry.
Bobby Dorrace is studying film making at Tri-C Metro, hoping to become an editor for feature films one day.
"I've been given the opportunity to work with professionals on professional film sets. I've even been given the opportunity to work a paying job," Dorrace said of the doors that have opened for him in the past two years.
Creative Arts has become so popular a department at Tri-C, the community college built a new, $27 million dollar metro facility that will house classroom space for students in film, theatre, music and other arts programs.
Students and faculty gave tours of the new building Monday evening, where the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Library and Archives will also be stored.
Edwin Michael Figueroa, an adjunct professor, commutes between New York City, Los Angeles and Cleveland on a weekly basis. He teaches cinematography at Tri-C, and says the technology and equipment used is top of the line.
"It's been excellent. I've had a lot of fun and we've got plenty of gear here to make things happen," Figueroa said.
It's the stuff used to create Hollywood blockbusters, but is also used on small budget films.
The executive director for the Greater Cleveland Film Commission says smaller budget films are boosting the local economy right now.
"Smaller budget movies hire locally, and use our infrastructure right here," said Ivan Schwarz.
Schwarz says the Ohio Film Tax Credit has helped. Qualifying production companies can receive up to $5 million in tax incentives for the local making of films, documentaries, commercials and other media.
Schwarz says since the incentive began in November 2009, five feature films have been made in Northeast Ohio, nine have qualified for the tax credit, and another six to seven are considering it.
"Before the incentive, we would get bits and pieces of films. We'd have five days of 'Spiderman' or three days of 'The Soloist.' Now we have whole projects shooting here," Schwarz said.
He points to a film that wrapped up two weeks ago: 'Freerunner' hired 80 percent of its production crew from Northeast Ohio.
Schwarz says for the five movies made since last year, about 1,000 people total have been hired.
Film students like Bobby Dorrace hope they won't even need to look past Ohio to find work.
"I think the students here, by the time they graduate, they're going to be in a good situation to succeed," Dorrace said.
Bobby Dorrace is studying film making at Tri-C Metro, hoping to become an editor for feature films one day.
"I've been given the opportunity to work with professionals on professional film sets. I've even been given the opportunity to work a paying job," Dorrace said of the doors that have opened for him in the past two years.
Creative Arts has become so popular a department at Tri-C, the community college built a new, $27 million dollar metro facility that will house classroom space for students in film, theatre, music and other arts programs.
Students and faculty gave tours of the new building Monday evening, where the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Library and Archives will also be stored.
Edwin Michael Figueroa, an adjunct professor, commutes between New York City, Los Angeles and Cleveland on a weekly basis. He teaches cinematography at Tri-C, and says the technology and equipment used is top of the line.
"It's been excellent. I've had a lot of fun and we've got plenty of gear here to make things happen," Figueroa said.
It's the stuff used to create Hollywood blockbusters, but is also used on small budget films.
The executive director for the Greater Cleveland Film Commission says smaller budget films are boosting the local economy right now.
"Smaller budget movies hire locally, and use our infrastructure right here," said Ivan Schwarz.
Schwarz says the Ohio Film Tax Credit has helped. Qualifying production companies can receive up to $5 million in tax incentives for the local making of films, documentaries, commercials and other media.
Schwarz says since the incentive began in November 2009, five feature films have been made in Northeast Ohio, nine have qualified for the tax credit, and another six to seven are considering it.
"Before the incentive, we would get bits and pieces of films. We'd have five days of 'Spiderman' or three days of 'The Soloist.' Now we have whole projects shooting here," Schwarz said.
He points to a film that wrapped up two weeks ago: 'Freerunner' hired 80 percent of its production crew from Northeast Ohio.
Schwarz says for the five movies made since last year, about 1,000 people total have been hired.
Film students like Bobby Dorrace hope they won't even need to look past Ohio to find work.
"I think the students here, by the time they graduate, they're going to be in a good situation to succeed," Dorrace said.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Culver Versus Branstad: the Big Debate Tonight
Former Iowa Governor Terry Branstad was dwarfed by the giant big lug, present governor of Iowa Chet Culver, who accused his opponent of not telling the truth, and of being dishonest and misleading in nearly every answer to questions posed by a panel of Iowa reporters in tonight's debate. When former governor Branstad asked current governor Culver what his three biggest mistakes were as governor, Culver answered by saying Branstad was not honest and needs to be honest and that unlike Branstad, he took responsibility for his mistakes, without answering Branstad's original question.
Governor Culver said he wants Iowa to be the best place to work, and that he is obligated to fight for hard-working Iowans. He said he would keep young Iowans here with exciting jobs.
Branstad said that by ignoring the Iowa Film Office, Culver has left the state of Iowa with a potential liability of $200-300 million as the result of film producers suing Iowa because the state broke its word by not honoring contracts made with movie makers. Culver said the film disaster has not hurt Iowa's credibility.
During the debate I noted that Governor Culver interrupted former governor Branstad with chuckles or comments while it was not yet his turn to speak.
My opinion is that Governor Culver was coached to throw phrases into his answers that alluded to Mr. Branstad being dishonest and misleading. I thought Mr. Culver was eager to belittle Branstad and that he appeared somewhat ill at ease. Branstad kept his cool throughout most of the event and came off with more of an air of professionalism than did Mr. Culver, in my humble opinion.
Although Branstad said he wants to get rid of the Iowa Department of Economic Development and put in its place a private sector entity, I feel he is the best choice for Iowans in the movie industry.
Monday, September 13, 2010
By Jonathan Turner, The Dispatch/Rock Island Argus
By Jonathan Turner, jturner@qconline.com
It appears both candidates for Iowa governor oppose reinstating tax incentives for film and television production in the state.
In March, Iowa lawmakers voted to suspend the film tax-credit program until July 2013.
Gov. Chet Culver first suspended the program in September 2009.The Democrat -- facing a tough re-election campaign against former GOP Gov. Terry Branstad -- suggested in a press conference this week that jobs created by film and TV productions weren't the kind of "permanent" jobs Iowa needs.
"Unfortunately, with respect to the film program, people exploited it. They took advantage of it. I've had enough of that," Gov. Culver said. "And we need to target our state resources in a way that helps create long-term jobs."
A bipartisan Tax Credit Review Panel, appointed by the governor after revelations last fall of misconduct in the program, recommended the state eliminate eight tax credits completely, including the film credit.
Mr. Branstad told the Des Moines Register last month that it was "pretty obvious that the film tax credit was not one that really meets the test," he said of worthwhile tax incentives. "We want to create permanent jobs, and we want jobs that will help us build a stronger and more successful economy in Iowa."
"It's unfortunate, because all the momentum you've built over the three years has just evaporated," Kelly Rundle, a Moline-based documentary filmmaker, said Wednesday of the Iowa suspension.
"There is a real misconception about what is a permanent job," he said of film and TV work. "I'm sure (the politicians) don't feel that way about construction jobs or a plumber that goes from one house to another."
He said whoever wins the Iowa election in November will have to consider restarting the tax credits "in a modified form, partially because surrounding states do offer it, to help attract jobs."
"We're still hopeful; we're trying to work for getting the program reinstated," Tammy Shutters, Iowa Motion Picture Association program director, said Wednesday.
Without the incentives, "You're off the radar screen, and they won't even consider you," said Doug Miller, founding president of IMPA, one of the architects of the tax credit and head of Motion Pictures Midwest in Davenport.
Illinois offers film tax credits equal to 30 percent of production spending and 30 percent of salaries for Illinois residents, but most film and TV production is in the Chicago area.
"We have a project in the works, a narrative feature we intended to shoot in Iowa, but we would now have to look at the possibility of shooting it in Illinois, where they do have a film incentive program that's active," Mr. Rundle said.
"We wouldn't have to consider it if we had more resources, but we already are scraping for every penny," he said. "It's something we do plan to shoot in the Quad-Cities area."
--
Jonathan Turner
Arts/entertainment reporter
The Dispatch/Rock Island Argus
It appears both candidates for Iowa governor oppose reinstating tax incentives for film and television production in the state.
In March, Iowa lawmakers voted to suspend the film tax-credit program until July 2013.
Gov. Chet Culver first suspended the program in September 2009.The Democrat -- facing a tough re-election campaign against former GOP Gov. Terry Branstad -- suggested in a press conference this week that jobs created by film and TV productions weren't the kind of "permanent" jobs Iowa needs.
"Unfortunately, with respect to the film program, people exploited it. They took advantage of it. I've had enough of that," Gov. Culver said. "And we need to target our state resources in a way that helps create long-term jobs."
A bipartisan Tax Credit Review Panel, appointed by the governor after revelations last fall of misconduct in the program, recommended the state eliminate eight tax credits completely, including the film credit.
Mr. Branstad told the Des Moines Register last month that it was "pretty obvious that the film tax credit was not one that really meets the test," he said of worthwhile tax incentives. "We want to create permanent jobs, and we want jobs that will help us build a stronger and more successful economy in Iowa."
"It's unfortunate, because all the momentum you've built over the three years has just evaporated," Kelly Rundle, a Moline-based documentary filmmaker, said Wednesday of the Iowa suspension.
"There is a real misconception about what is a permanent job," he said of film and TV work. "I'm sure (the politicians) don't feel that way about construction jobs or a plumber that goes from one house to another."
He said whoever wins the Iowa election in November will have to consider restarting the tax credits "in a modified form, partially because surrounding states do offer it, to help attract jobs."
"We're still hopeful; we're trying to work for getting the program reinstated," Tammy Shutters, Iowa Motion Picture Association program director, said Wednesday.
Without the incentives, "You're off the radar screen, and they won't even consider you," said Doug Miller, founding president of IMPA, one of the architects of the tax credit and head of Motion Pictures Midwest in Davenport.
Illinois offers film tax credits equal to 30 percent of production spending and 30 percent of salaries for Illinois residents, but most film and TV production is in the Chicago area.
"We have a project in the works, a narrative feature we intended to shoot in Iowa, but we would now have to look at the possibility of shooting it in Illinois, where they do have a film incentive program that's active," Mr. Rundle said.
"We wouldn't have to consider it if we had more resources, but we already are scraping for every penny," he said. "It's something we do plan to shoot in the Quad-Cities area."
--
Jonathan Turner
Arts/entertainment reporter
The Dispatch/Rock Island Argus
Positive News?
In the Des Moines Register article linked below, candidate for governor, Terry Branstad and others are open to revising the Iowa film credits. Chet Culver. the incumbent, of course is still committed to ending them.
"Branstad, others open to revise film credits"
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20100913/NEWS10/9130317/1007/news05/Branstad-others-open-to-revised-film-credits
One idea mentioned in the article which is troubling if you think about it is to limit the credits to films with "Iowa-type stories" such as "The Bridges of Madison County". This, although it would make sense to legislators who still consider the Film Office to be part of tourism, would not make a lot of sense in regard to the practical realities of attracting film and television productions. In case the legislature hasn't checked, most stories are not set in Iowa and to limit it to this state would limit the films shot here. It would also chase away films that could be shot here because of locations that are similar to other areas of the country. It would set Iowa back even further than it was before the film credits when the only productions that would even consider shooting here were those that needed either a small town location or a farm. Considering the fact that the movie "Aaseamah's Journey" built an Iraqi village set on Iowa land, this idea of limiting film awarded credits to those Iowa-centric stories lacks imagination.
Hopefully the film credits will return, will be written well, and run correctly without any limited ideas hampering their effectiveness like this "Iowa stories only" idea.
"Branstad, others open to revise film credits"
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20100913/NEWS10/9130317/1007/news05/Branstad-others-open-to-revised-film-credits
One idea mentioned in the article which is troubling if you think about it is to limit the credits to films with "Iowa-type stories" such as "The Bridges of Madison County". This, although it would make sense to legislators who still consider the Film Office to be part of tourism, would not make a lot of sense in regard to the practical realities of attracting film and television productions. In case the legislature hasn't checked, most stories are not set in Iowa and to limit it to this state would limit the films shot here. It would also chase away films that could be shot here because of locations that are similar to other areas of the country. It would set Iowa back even further than it was before the film credits when the only productions that would even consider shooting here were those that needed either a small town location or a farm. Considering the fact that the movie "Aaseamah's Journey" built an Iraqi village set on Iowa land, this idea of limiting film awarded credits to those Iowa-centric stories lacks imagination.
Hopefully the film credits will return, will be written well, and run correctly without any limited ideas hampering their effectiveness like this "Iowa stories only" idea.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Article by Julie Washington of The Plain Dealer in Ohio
Ohio’s motion-picture tax credit: 1 year later
Julie Washington, The Plain Dealer
The tally in the first year of Ohio’s film tax credit is nine movies and at least one new resident.
Wickliffe native Monique Hahn, a movie makeup artist, has moved back home, leaving Los Angeles this year after learning eight to 10 movies were expected to take advantage of Ohio’s credit. The program aims to help the state’s economy by encouraging film productions to spend money here.
While she’s worked on only two films, she’s happy to be here.
“Cross your fingers it will be more,” Hahn said. “I’ll see how winter is. If work keeps coming in, I’ll be able to make [a career] happen.”
In the motion-picture tax credit’s inaugural year, the state attracted nine films that are expected to spend a combined $33 million in Ohio, according to the Ohio Department of Development.
In the two years prior to the credit, only three films of comparable size were filmed in Ohio, according to the Ohio Film Office, including DreamWorks’ “The Soloist” in 2009.
The slate of films includes an eclectic mix: “Unstoppable,” an action-thriller with Denzel Washington, Chris Pine and a toxic runaway train; “25 Hill,” the Corbin Bernsen Soap Box Derby movie filmed in Akron; and the action-thriller “Freerunner” starring former Elyria resident Sean Faris (”Never Back Down”).
“It’s because we’re aggressive. We work really hard to bring those films here,” said Greater Cleveland Film Commission executive director Ivan Schwarz.
These films are expected to pay $9.46 million in wages to more than 3,700 Ohio workers, and pay $24.3 million to state vendors and locations, according to Department of Development estimates. The state film office falls under that department’s auspices.
Ohio was one of the most recent states to offer incentives for film projects. Similar programs have been instrumental in creating regional film hubs in New Mexico and Louisiana.
In Ohio, film companies receive a tax credit of 25 percent of the amount they spend in the state, up to a maximum of $5 million.
The Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit legislation earmarks $10 million in credits for the 2010 fiscal year and $20 million for 2011. About $820,000 in unused funds from the first year will be rolled over into fiscal year 2011, which began July 1, said Jeremy Henthorn, director of the Ohio Film Office in Columbus.
But the state is not doling out money to just anyone with a camera and a Mac. Film productions must submit a budget to the state and undergo an audit after production has wrapped, Henthorn said. Eligible projects must have budgets over $300,000.
The state turned down four films seeking credits because financing was not in order, Henthorn said, though they could be reconsidered.
“Freerunner” filmed in Cleveland because the credit helped it secure financing, said co-producer and former Bay Village resident Warren Ostergard.
The movie treated the city as its own backlot this summer, staging a chase scene in Tower City, flipping a van on East Sixth Street, and choreographing fight scenes at the Carter Road Bridge in the Flats.
“We’re happy we came here, and we think there’s a ton of potential for Cleveland,” Ostergard said. “We hope this helps kick it off.”
Filmmakers took a leap of faith in hiring a local payroll company and caterer — even though neither company had any film experience — because the tax-incentive program rewards them for spending locally.
“It really has stimulated spending with Ohio-based companies,” said Stephen R. Campanella, who runs a production company and was hired as the state incentive coordinator for “Freerunner.” He oversaw the paperwork necessary to ensure the film met its tax-credit criteria.
Ohio couldn’t supply all of their needs. Equipment trucks were brought in from North Carolina. Raw film, called dailies, went back to Burbank, Calif., for processing; digital copies were returned for the director to review.
“We really had to scramble,” Ostergard said.
Scrambling is what Schwarz does constantly. As head of the Cleveland Film Commission, he promotes Ohio and Cleveland to Hollywood filmmakers.
Schwarz roamed “Freerunner” scenes, checking his iPhone, a quiet presence in case a problem arose. Concerning the state’s lack of a film infrastructure, he replied simply: “Give us time. Rome wasn’t built in a day.”
The next day he flew to Los Angeles and packed 30 meetings into five days. HBO, BET, Sony, the Russo brothers, James Cameron’s people — he’ll talk to all of them about filming here.
“The feedback has been positive, and we’re getting more interest,” he said. “I have something to point to now.”
Julie Washington, The Plain Dealer
The tally in the first year of Ohio’s film tax credit is nine movies and at least one new resident.
Wickliffe native Monique Hahn, a movie makeup artist, has moved back home, leaving Los Angeles this year after learning eight to 10 movies were expected to take advantage of Ohio’s credit. The program aims to help the state’s economy by encouraging film productions to spend money here.
While she’s worked on only two films, she’s happy to be here.
“Cross your fingers it will be more,” Hahn said. “I’ll see how winter is. If work keeps coming in, I’ll be able to make [a career] happen.”
In the motion-picture tax credit’s inaugural year, the state attracted nine films that are expected to spend a combined $33 million in Ohio, according to the Ohio Department of Development.
In the two years prior to the credit, only three films of comparable size were filmed in Ohio, according to the Ohio Film Office, including DreamWorks’ “The Soloist” in 2009.
The slate of films includes an eclectic mix: “Unstoppable,” an action-thriller with Denzel Washington, Chris Pine and a toxic runaway train; “25 Hill,” the Corbin Bernsen Soap Box Derby movie filmed in Akron; and the action-thriller “Freerunner” starring former Elyria resident Sean Faris (”Never Back Down”).
“It’s because we’re aggressive. We work really hard to bring those films here,” said Greater Cleveland Film Commission executive director Ivan Schwarz.
These films are expected to pay $9.46 million in wages to more than 3,700 Ohio workers, and pay $24.3 million to state vendors and locations, according to Department of Development estimates. The state film office falls under that department’s auspices.
Ohio was one of the most recent states to offer incentives for film projects. Similar programs have been instrumental in creating regional film hubs in New Mexico and Louisiana.
In Ohio, film companies receive a tax credit of 25 percent of the amount they spend in the state, up to a maximum of $5 million.
The Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit legislation earmarks $10 million in credits for the 2010 fiscal year and $20 million for 2011. About $820,000 in unused funds from the first year will be rolled over into fiscal year 2011, which began July 1, said Jeremy Henthorn, director of the Ohio Film Office in Columbus.
But the state is not doling out money to just anyone with a camera and a Mac. Film productions must submit a budget to the state and undergo an audit after production has wrapped, Henthorn said. Eligible projects must have budgets over $300,000.
The state turned down four films seeking credits because financing was not in order, Henthorn said, though they could be reconsidered.
“Freerunner” filmed in Cleveland because the credit helped it secure financing, said co-producer and former Bay Village resident Warren Ostergard.
The movie treated the city as its own backlot this summer, staging a chase scene in Tower City, flipping a van on East Sixth Street, and choreographing fight scenes at the Carter Road Bridge in the Flats.
“We’re happy we came here, and we think there’s a ton of potential for Cleveland,” Ostergard said. “We hope this helps kick it off.”
Filmmakers took a leap of faith in hiring a local payroll company and caterer — even though neither company had any film experience — because the tax-incentive program rewards them for spending locally.
“It really has stimulated spending with Ohio-based companies,” said Stephen R. Campanella, who runs a production company and was hired as the state incentive coordinator for “Freerunner.” He oversaw the paperwork necessary to ensure the film met its tax-credit criteria.
Ohio couldn’t supply all of their needs. Equipment trucks were brought in from North Carolina. Raw film, called dailies, went back to Burbank, Calif., for processing; digital copies were returned for the director to review.
“We really had to scramble,” Ostergard said.
Scrambling is what Schwarz does constantly. As head of the Cleveland Film Commission, he promotes Ohio and Cleveland to Hollywood filmmakers.
Schwarz roamed “Freerunner” scenes, checking his iPhone, a quiet presence in case a problem arose. Concerning the state’s lack of a film infrastructure, he replied simply: “Give us time. Rome wasn’t built in a day.”
The next day he flew to Los Angeles and packed 30 meetings into five days. HBO, BET, Sony, the Russo brothers, James Cameron’s people — he’ll talk to all of them about filming here.
“The feedback has been positive, and we’re getting more interest,” he said. “I have something to point to now.”
Friday, September 10, 2010
Ds Moines TV-8 Article
Should Iowa Film Tax Program Get Second Chance?
DES MOINES, Iowa -- The push is under way to bring back the state's tax incentive program for films, but Gov. Chet Culver said he has no interest in giving the troubled program a second chance.
Five people were fired including the state's top two economic development officials after claims that millions in tax credits were misused.
The state Department of Economic Development resumed issuing tax credits for movie projects. Two were approved just last month, but right now there's little to indicate that one-way street from Hollywood to Iowa is about to reopen anytime soon.
"We're not going to be taken for suckers, people unforgivably exploited that program," said Culver.
Despite the past problems, many Iowans in the film industry still expect the program to return.
"If Iowa has a competitive film promotion program, a tax incentive program, we will get business. The past doesn't matter because it's all about the bottom line," said Kent Newman, of the Iowa Motion Picture Association.
Newman said no movie productions happen in any state without some sort of financial incentives. He said the state is headed in the right direction by carefully auditing the entire project before issuing tax credit, but it's only the first step.
"I think the state is ill prepared to respond to this as far as we know one person in revenue financing doing the audits, so taking a lot longer than we'd like to see," said Newman.
A spokeswoman from the IDED said that currently 45 movie projects are under contract and can move forward, while another 30 applications are approved, but haven't reached the contract stage.
"We don't think we're going to see much action at all from any of the projects that either had a contract or an agreement," said Newman.
Newman said the big reason the production companies initially signed on was for the 50 percent tax credit, which is now closer to 35 percent.
John Busbee worked on nine movies shot in Iowa in the past two years, including "The Crazies," shot in southwestern Iowa. He said he saw first hand the money pouring into surrounding communities.
"The production company spends $250,000 a day -- not bad," said Busbee.
The Iowa Motion Picture Association said it would work with either Chet Culver or Terry Branstad following the November election, along with the legislature, to submit a revised film tax credit bill in January to see if they can get it passed during the next legislative session.
DES MOINES, Iowa -- The push is under way to bring back the state's tax incentive program for films, but Gov. Chet Culver said he has no interest in giving the troubled program a second chance.
Five people were fired including the state's top two economic development officials after claims that millions in tax credits were misused.
The state Department of Economic Development resumed issuing tax credits for movie projects. Two were approved just last month, but right now there's little to indicate that one-way street from Hollywood to Iowa is about to reopen anytime soon.
"We're not going to be taken for suckers, people unforgivably exploited that program," said Culver.
Despite the past problems, many Iowans in the film industry still expect the program to return.
"If Iowa has a competitive film promotion program, a tax incentive program, we will get business. The past doesn't matter because it's all about the bottom line," said Kent Newman, of the Iowa Motion Picture Association.
Newman said no movie productions happen in any state without some sort of financial incentives. He said the state is headed in the right direction by carefully auditing the entire project before issuing tax credit, but it's only the first step.
"I think the state is ill prepared to respond to this as far as we know one person in revenue financing doing the audits, so taking a lot longer than we'd like to see," said Newman.
A spokeswoman from the IDED said that currently 45 movie projects are under contract and can move forward, while another 30 applications are approved, but haven't reached the contract stage.
"We don't think we're going to see much action at all from any of the projects that either had a contract or an agreement," said Newman.
Newman said the big reason the production companies initially signed on was for the 50 percent tax credit, which is now closer to 35 percent.
John Busbee worked on nine movies shot in Iowa in the past two years, including "The Crazies," shot in southwestern Iowa. He said he saw first hand the money pouring into surrounding communities.
"The production company spends $250,000 a day -- not bad," said Busbee.
The Iowa Motion Picture Association said it would work with either Chet Culver or Terry Branstad following the November election, along with the legislature, to submit a revised film tax credit bill in January to see if they can get it passed during the next legislative session.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Culver's Second Chance
The incumbent Governor of Iowa, Chet Culver, is currently running a television ad asking for another chance. This Letter to the Editor which I'm submitting to the Des Moines Register is my response to that:
As he is approaching this late stage of his re-election campaign, incumbent Governor Chet Culver is saying "honest mistakes" were made and now asks for another chance.
Not long ago he declared that film producers were "not going to make suckers out of Iowans" and stated his intent not to revive the film tax credits. If you ask the many people who benefited when film productions were here - restaurants, hotels, hardware stores, lumber yards, grocery stores, and many other businesses as well as the Iowans who were employed as cast and crew - it is doubtful that they would consider themselves to be suckers. Asking the same question to many who voted for Culver will yield a different answer.
Let's extend the same second chance as he is giving the Iowa film industry.
As he is approaching this late stage of his re-election campaign, incumbent Governor Chet Culver is saying "honest mistakes" were made and now asks for another chance.
Not long ago he declared that film producers were "not going to make suckers out of Iowans" and stated his intent not to revive the film tax credits. If you ask the many people who benefited when film productions were here - restaurants, hotels, hardware stores, lumber yards, grocery stores, and many other businesses as well as the Iowans who were employed as cast and crew - it is doubtful that they would consider themselves to be suckers. Asking the same question to many who voted for Culver will yield a different answer.
Let's extend the same second chance as he is giving the Iowa film industry.
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