Iowa Film Office Future Still Uncertain

Another trip to the Iowa State House today. Just as we got to the rotunda level, the level for the entrances of both the Senate and House chambers, we were greeted by Senator Bill Dotzler, Jr., of Waterloo. And just as the senator joined Jay Villwock and me at a table near the senate chamber entrance, Wendol Jarvis also joined us. Thus, an impromptu meeting began.

Of course the topic of discussion was the Iowa Film Office. Rep. Jason Schultz and Senator Dotzler are the co-chairs of the Economic Development Budget Conference Committee, where the matter of deciding on funding for the Iowa Film Office has landed and where the life or death of that office will be decided. Schultz is determined to thwart funding of the IFO and Dotzler is determined to get at least some funding for it.

During our meeting, Wendol provided Senator Dotzler with a few examples of how much of a financial impact films can make on a community, examples based on his twenty years of experience as director of the IFO. The senator will use this information when trying to persuade opponents of the film office to change their minds.

A meeting of the above-mentioned conference committee was scheduled for one p.m. today in senate conference room twenty-two in the capitol building, where five members of each chamber were to face off in a discussion of budget matters, including funding of the film office. A few legislators waited for all committee members to appear but only four or five made it to the meeting and the discussion was postponed until next Monday.

Today Jay and I also spoke with Rep. Dan Kelley, who has carried our message to the House floor and tried to gain support for we in the Iowa film community. He, and his House colleagues Ruth Ann Gaines and Ako Abdul-Samad have been working together to widen support for us in the House chamber.

Wendol had a productive meeting with Director of Management and Budget, David Roederer, who urged that we all continue to contact legislators for their support.

We popped in to see the governor's office manager, Leo Hough, where we brought our latest news about our experiences today. Leo has kept the governor informed about what Jay and I have accomplished during our weekly visits to the Iowa State house.

The official ending date for this current Iowa legislative session has passed recently but the session is expected to continue one to two more weeks. During the remaining days of this session Jay and I will continue to make our Capitol visits and I will continue to keep you readers current with what's happening.

Stay tuned.

Gene L. Hamilton

photo shows Wendol Jarvis and Senator Bill Dotzler, Jr.

Troubling Times For Creative Iowans

Our experience at the Iowa Statehouse brings to my mind the following passage from A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens:
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only."

The best of times ended a few years ago when a handful of greedy scoundrels ruined it all for the rest of us who were just gaining momentum in the movie business. The worst of times began with those misdeeds and continues even now as Iowa legislators seem uninterested in supporting creativity in this state. The spring of hope emerged with each of the last three Iowa legislative sessions as Jay Villwock and I received supportive comments from senators and representatives but nothing seemed to take root when those sessions ended and now during the third session since the film office collapsed we learn that the Iowa House tea party-types are turning their collective backs on we actors and crew.

They voted for zero funding for the film office and now they will enter a conference committee with members of the senate to decide the fate of Governor Branstad's budget recommendation of a $400,000 allocation to fund the Iowa film office. We did have everything before us: movie crews, trucks, cameras and lights and the prospects of many movies slated to film here. Then we went the other way, thanks to deeds of evil.

Today Jay and I were joined by Dave Thrasher, who delivered documents containing useful talking points for a few of the Iowa House members, namely Ako Abdul Samad, Ruth Ann Gaines, and Dan Kelley. These rep's intended to use these points to support an amendment they planned to submit to the house but this plan unraveled as follows in this message from Rep. Kelley today: "Reps Abdul-Samad, Gaines and I left the meeting (with Senator Dotzler) this morning with a positive outlook. Sen. Dotzler is a strong supporter of a film office. finding the funding is an issue. Rep. Gaines and I withdrew our amendment. If we had allowed it to be voted on yesterday, this would have given too many Reps in both parties to go on record to opposition to full-funding of the office. This would have been detrimental to those in the conference committee who are supportive of the office. Conference committee on the bill is the most effective route to follow. Our amendment would have complicated the matter."


We did speak with an ally from the Iowa senate, Senator Jack Hatch, who hoped the governor would use his influence to gather more support for funding the IFO. He added that Senator Bill Dotzler, Jr. is one of the most important key players in all of this. We were also welcomed into the office of the director of the Department of Management, David Roederer. Mr. Roederer urged us to continue the fight and not to give up hope.

Gene L. Hamilton

Thanks, Doug Miller, For Alerting Us to This Article

My friend Doug Miller, owner of Great River Studios production company in the Quad Cities, brought the following to my attention today.

The following is from an article credited to the globegazette.com: "WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT FUNDING: The Iowa Senate has revised its fiscal 2013 budget for economic development programs that includes $20 million for state business incentives, $200,000 to keep the Iowa Film Office operating and $2.3 million to maintain or reopen Iowa Workforce Development field offices.
The amendment Senate Democrats seek to attach to House File 2337 would allocate $1.1 million for satellite offices in Decorah, Fort Madison, Iowa City and Webster City and another $1.2 million to reopen IWD offices in Ames, Atlantic, Denison and Newton.

Sen. Bill Dotzler, D-Waterloo, the bill’s floor manager, said another $150,000 would be allocated to the state library to license an online resource to improve job skills and vocational test-taking abilities of unemployed or under-skilled workers.

The proposal also calls for $4 million for a regent universities innovation fund and would move the Iowa Film Office to the state Department of Cultural Affairs with funding for two full-time positions.

Iowa Film Office: Still A Fight But Increasing Hope

Jay's and my visit to the Iowa Statehouse today began with our meeting Rep. Dan Kelley, a staunch film supporter. He said he's been alert as he awaits the return of the film office bill to the House floor. I know he's been speaking with his colleagues on our behalf and feel fortunate that he is on the side of creative Iowans.

And we met our friend, Senator Bill Dotzler, Jr., who said the "props" bill (appropriations bill containing the IFO funding issue) would be "deferred" so amendments could be added, which I believe means that legislators can add their own issues to the bill before it is approved. Politics. Complicated.

While waiting on the rotunda level, Rep. Jason Schultz unexpectedly came over to explain why he voted for zero funding for the film funding bill a few weeks ago. Although he is not in support he did say there would be further negotiations on this matter and that it is certainly not a dead situation for us. He was very kind and if I said anything bad about him previously I now take it all back. He's doing what he thinks is best for his constituents.

Rep. Ruth Ann Gaines met with us in the House of Representatives lounge. She is a former high school drama teacher and has been speaking out for us this session. She said that she and fellow representatives Dan Kelley and Ako Abdul-Samad are putting together an amendment to support fully funding the Iowa Film Office. This would be attached to the Economic Development bill. Governor Branstad recommended allocating $400,000 to run the IFO.

We met a legislator going in and we met two legislators outside as well. While outside, I approached Rep. Dave Jacoby and apologized for getting him mixed-up, in a earlier report, with Rep. Jason Schultz, both of whom are bald, even balder than myself!!! He laughed it off and accepted my apology. I know that from previous talks with him he is a supporter of amply supporting the IFO.

I recognized Rep. Bob Hager who was also outside and asked what his position was on the film issue. He was quite friendly but said his primary concern was to preserve the unemployment office in his Allamakee district which faced elimination. He implied that there wasn't enough to support both that office and the IFO.

The pace of everything is cumbersome at the Statehouse, so this film funding issue still has some time left on the clock before it will be all over. Continued letters are still needed, so please email legislators to ask that they stand in support of full funding for the film office.

Gene L. Hamilton