Pa. Film Tax Credit All Dried Up
City officials say funding cuts may keep new film projects out of the region
By KRISTEN WELKER
Philadelphia is the city that has brought us cinema classics like Rocky and more recent blockbusters like Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and The Happening.
But now, the curtain could be closing for Pennsylvania’s thriving film industry. Experts say it’s all because the budget for the Pennsylvania Film Tax Credit has dried up.
“We don’t have any more money on the state level to give out anywhere in the state,” says Sharon Pinkenson, Executive Director of the Greater Philadelphia Film Office.
Pinkenson says there’s absolutely no money left for new projects. “The tax credits for the current fiscal year and the one that’s coming up beginning in July have already been accounted for by projects have been here this whole last year.”
Enacted in 2007, the program offers a 25-percent transferrable tax credit to television and film productions in the commonwealth.
The budget for the credit was initially $75 million, but in the 2010 budget, lawmakers in Harrisburg slashed that figure to $42 million. A slight increase is scheduled for next year.
Pinkenson is working on a number of current projects, but without the tax credit they will likely go to other cities — meaning a loss of revenue and thousands of jobs.
“All of our locals who work on film and TV projects will be out of work,” she says. “They’ll be on the unemployment line collecting unemployment instead of paying taxes.”
In addition to creating thousands of jobs, experts say the tax credit has also generated a whopping $300 million dollars in film production.
One-time screenwriter, Kemper Herron says the tax credit is vitally important and he hopes lawmakers will find a way.
“I think they should fund it because the jobs are here and it’s a good thing for the city,” he said.
Others admit they don’t know much about the tax credit, but they would hate to lose the thrill of watching a movie being filmed in their backyard.
“Just to know that, you kinda live in a city that people outside the city think is worth being put on TV,” says Ashley Blakeney.
Representatives with Gov. Rendell’s office say it’s possible the film tax credit will receive more funding, but that it’s unlikely given the state faces a possible billion-dollar deficit.
Lawmakers are hammering out a budget between now and the end of June.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
It Works, So Why Not HERE?
Lakewood's second chance
Planned movie studio could establish Atlanta as film industry hub
By Thomas Wheatley
Joeff Davis
ONE MORE TAKE: Vacant and historic Lakewood Fairgrounds could become Hollywood backlot.
Over the past 30 years, Bob Shelley has heard more than his share of aborted plans to redevelop the historic Lakewood Fairgrounds into something grand.
Among them: a new home for Zoo Atlanta, a charter school and even a mini-city along the lines of Atlantic Station. Drive by the familiar buildings on a hilltop overlooking the adjacent amphitheater and expansive parking lot, however, and you'll see that none have come to fruition.
"When you hear that over and over and over, you say you'll believe it when you see it," says Shelley, who maintains a prop-filled special effects studio inside one of Lakewood's 94-year-old exhibit halls. A veteran of Georgia film productions, his office walls are adorned with autographed photos of movie stars.
But now Shelley is a believer in the latest proposal for 30 of the expansive property's 117 acres, including the familiar Spanish Mission Revival-style exhibit halls that have fallen into disrepair.
Last week, the city announced it had edged out other cities and negotiated a 50-year lease with EUE/Screen Gems, a New York company that operates state-of-the-art soundstages and production facilities, that would transform the dilapidated area into a multimillion-dollar backlot of Hollywood proportions.
City officials are giddy at the thought of 1,000 new jobs during one of the country's deepest recessions and filling the property, which it's struggled to do for years. Lakewood Heights residents and businesses are aglow at the thought of a round-the-clock, year-round industry that would bring work, investment and new residents to the area. And film industry insiders say it's the final piece in Georgia's puzzle that will bring millions in investment and add prestige to the city's growing reputation as a go-to spot to make movies.
According to the proposed agreement, the company initially would pay the city $250,000 a year to lease the property, gradually topping out at $600,000 annually in 2020. The historic buildings – one of which company officials say is production-ready – would remain. And don't fret, music fans, the amphitheater, which is operated by Live Nation, isn't part of the deal and won't be affected.
The most exciting part of the agreement for film industry workers is Screen Gems' planned $5 million state-of-the-art soundstage that could establish Atlanta as a movie-making hub. Should the City Council approve the deal as expected this week, crews could begin filming projects this summer.
All this is good news for a property that's been searching for a purpose. The former home of the Southeast Fair was originally developed in 1870 as Atlanta's first waterworks before it served as a summer resort for Georgia's vacationers. Eager to put the Peach State on the map for something other than cotton, business and agricultural leaders later decided it'd be a suitable space to showcase the state's livestock. A roundtable of architects selected William J. Sayward's vision of ornate exhibit halls overlooking the lake. Sayward would later help design several other familiar buildings, including Agnes Scott College's Buttrick Hall and the Piedmont Park clubhouse, now known as Park Tavern.
In the 1940s and '50s, the fairgrounds saw its heyday as a Coney Island-style amusement park that, in the South, was considered second only to Dallas'. A dirt track that once circled the 15-acre lake hosted horse races and was where stock car legend Richard Petty won his first professional race. But by the late '70s, the rides had been dismantled, the races were over and Lakewood was closed up.
In 1984, movie producer Ed Spivia – who'd served as the state's film commissioner during the glory days, when Georgia was the site for such Burt Reynolds films as Smokey and the Bandit and Sharky's Machine – bought the lease on the fairgrounds with hopes of turning it into a movie studio and theme park. When those plans fell through, Spivia rebounded by subleasing the amphitheater property and launching the popular Lakewood Antiques Fair.
In 2005, near the height of the real estate frenzy, the City Council spent $4 million to buy out the remaining 29 years on Spivia's lease, even though it had no concrete offers for the property. When the bubble burst, it looked as if the city would be left holding the bag.
But with the Screen Gems offer, it seems that Spivia's original concept will finally be realized – and he, for one, is delighted.
"You can't find a better place than the Lakewood Fairgrounds," Spivia says.
According to Michael Akins of the local chapter of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, the potential move couldn’t come at a better time for Georgia’s film and TV industry and the estimated 25,000 residents it employs. With Tyler Perry’s $30 million studio in southwest Atlanta churning out as many as four movies a year; Henry County officials voting this week to help a private developer convert hangers at Tara Field into soundstages; and camera crews converging on downtown Atlanta for film shoots rather than for “Real Housewives” fluff, the city’s film industry appears firmly established.
What’s more, Screen Gems execs say they selected Atlanta not only for its proximity to the airport and urban setting, but because national entertainment companies have said they wanted a dedicated place in the city to shoot their projects.
“We’re in the top five markets in the country,” says Georgia Film, Music and Digital Entertainment Deputy Commissioner Bill Thompson. “And we’re certainly No. 1 in the Southeast.”
One of the reasons is the state’s generous tax breaks. After watching Canada and such states as New Mexico and Louisiana lure productions with incentives, several Peach State entertainment associations in 2005 persuaded the state to enact its own package to woo the industry. In order to compete with other states’ heightened incentives, a more enticing package was passed in 2008.
Last year, movie and television production investment in Georgia totaled $770 million — a tenfold increase in six years. Nearly $500 million of that increase occurred after the tax incentives went into effect. More than 50 feature films — including The Blind Side and Zombieland — and hundreds of television shows have been filmed in Georgia in the last two years, state officials say. Akins says IATSE’s membership has grown from approximately 320 in 2004 to more than 800 this year.
While Akins and Shelley say other states might offer more in tax incentives, they lack Georgia’s skilled work force and access to cameras, lighting and other equipment that film shoots require when they come to town. All that was missing, industry vets say, was a production facility of the scale that Screen Gems is planning.
“What makes Atlanta a filmmaking hub is that all the pieces are coming together at the same location,” Akins says. “The industry, the incentives, the crew base, equipment houses — the infrastructure. And that studio is the last piece that’s put into place.”
Planned movie studio could establish Atlanta as film industry hub
By Thomas Wheatley
Joeff Davis
ONE MORE TAKE: Vacant and historic Lakewood Fairgrounds could become Hollywood backlot.
Over the past 30 years, Bob Shelley has heard more than his share of aborted plans to redevelop the historic Lakewood Fairgrounds into something grand.
Among them: a new home for Zoo Atlanta, a charter school and even a mini-city along the lines of Atlantic Station. Drive by the familiar buildings on a hilltop overlooking the adjacent amphitheater and expansive parking lot, however, and you'll see that none have come to fruition.
"When you hear that over and over and over, you say you'll believe it when you see it," says Shelley, who maintains a prop-filled special effects studio inside one of Lakewood's 94-year-old exhibit halls. A veteran of Georgia film productions, his office walls are adorned with autographed photos of movie stars.
But now Shelley is a believer in the latest proposal for 30 of the expansive property's 117 acres, including the familiar Spanish Mission Revival-style exhibit halls that have fallen into disrepair.
Last week, the city announced it had edged out other cities and negotiated a 50-year lease with EUE/Screen Gems, a New York company that operates state-of-the-art soundstages and production facilities, that would transform the dilapidated area into a multimillion-dollar backlot of Hollywood proportions.
City officials are giddy at the thought of 1,000 new jobs during one of the country's deepest recessions and filling the property, which it's struggled to do for years. Lakewood Heights residents and businesses are aglow at the thought of a round-the-clock, year-round industry that would bring work, investment and new residents to the area. And film industry insiders say it's the final piece in Georgia's puzzle that will bring millions in investment and add prestige to the city's growing reputation as a go-to spot to make movies.
According to the proposed agreement, the company initially would pay the city $250,000 a year to lease the property, gradually topping out at $600,000 annually in 2020. The historic buildings – one of which company officials say is production-ready – would remain. And don't fret, music fans, the amphitheater, which is operated by Live Nation, isn't part of the deal and won't be affected.
The most exciting part of the agreement for film industry workers is Screen Gems' planned $5 million state-of-the-art soundstage that could establish Atlanta as a movie-making hub. Should the City Council approve the deal as expected this week, crews could begin filming projects this summer.
All this is good news for a property that's been searching for a purpose. The former home of the Southeast Fair was originally developed in 1870 as Atlanta's first waterworks before it served as a summer resort for Georgia's vacationers. Eager to put the Peach State on the map for something other than cotton, business and agricultural leaders later decided it'd be a suitable space to showcase the state's livestock. A roundtable of architects selected William J. Sayward's vision of ornate exhibit halls overlooking the lake. Sayward would later help design several other familiar buildings, including Agnes Scott College's Buttrick Hall and the Piedmont Park clubhouse, now known as Park Tavern.
In the 1940s and '50s, the fairgrounds saw its heyday as a Coney Island-style amusement park that, in the South, was considered second only to Dallas'. A dirt track that once circled the 15-acre lake hosted horse races and was where stock car legend Richard Petty won his first professional race. But by the late '70s, the rides had been dismantled, the races were over and Lakewood was closed up.
In 1984, movie producer Ed Spivia – who'd served as the state's film commissioner during the glory days, when Georgia was the site for such Burt Reynolds films as Smokey and the Bandit and Sharky's Machine – bought the lease on the fairgrounds with hopes of turning it into a movie studio and theme park. When those plans fell through, Spivia rebounded by subleasing the amphitheater property and launching the popular Lakewood Antiques Fair.
In 2005, near the height of the real estate frenzy, the City Council spent $4 million to buy out the remaining 29 years on Spivia's lease, even though it had no concrete offers for the property. When the bubble burst, it looked as if the city would be left holding the bag.
But with the Screen Gems offer, it seems that Spivia's original concept will finally be realized – and he, for one, is delighted.
"You can't find a better place than the Lakewood Fairgrounds," Spivia says.
According to Michael Akins of the local chapter of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, the potential move couldn’t come at a better time for Georgia’s film and TV industry and the estimated 25,000 residents it employs. With Tyler Perry’s $30 million studio in southwest Atlanta churning out as many as four movies a year; Henry County officials voting this week to help a private developer convert hangers at Tara Field into soundstages; and camera crews converging on downtown Atlanta for film shoots rather than for “Real Housewives” fluff, the city’s film industry appears firmly established.
What’s more, Screen Gems execs say they selected Atlanta not only for its proximity to the airport and urban setting, but because national entertainment companies have said they wanted a dedicated place in the city to shoot their projects.
“We’re in the top five markets in the country,” says Georgia Film, Music and Digital Entertainment Deputy Commissioner Bill Thompson. “And we’re certainly No. 1 in the Southeast.”
One of the reasons is the state’s generous tax breaks. After watching Canada and such states as New Mexico and Louisiana lure productions with incentives, several Peach State entertainment associations in 2005 persuaded the state to enact its own package to woo the industry. In order to compete with other states’ heightened incentives, a more enticing package was passed in 2008.
Last year, movie and television production investment in Georgia totaled $770 million — a tenfold increase in six years. Nearly $500 million of that increase occurred after the tax incentives went into effect. More than 50 feature films — including The Blind Side and Zombieland — and hundreds of television shows have been filmed in Georgia in the last two years, state officials say. Akins says IATSE’s membership has grown from approximately 320 in 2004 to more than 800 this year.
While Akins and Shelley say other states might offer more in tax incentives, they lack Georgia’s skilled work force and access to cameras, lighting and other equipment that film shoots require when they come to town. All that was missing, industry vets say, was a production facility of the scale that Screen Gems is planning.
“What makes Atlanta a filmmaking hub is that all the pieces are coming together at the same location,” Akins says. “The industry, the incentives, the crew base, equipment houses — the infrastructure. And that studio is the last piece that’s put into place.”
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Depiction of an Old Adage: You-Know-What Flows Down Hill
The Tom Wheeler situation comes to mind when viewing this photo...
Film Story
How Maryland Democrats destroyed their state’s thriving film industry
by Cynthia Yockey on May 17, 2010
in Totalitarian liberalism
Share
I was waiting for Dad at the dentist’s office this afternoon — there’s a root canal in his future — and I picked up the May 2010 issue of Baltimore magazine because a story about Maryland’s film industry caught my eye. Not too long ago, the Baltimore-Washington area was third in the country after Los Angeles and New York for film and TV production. However, thanks to Democratic Gov. Martin O’Malley and a Democratic-majority legislature full of believers in high taxes and big government — who also, disastrously, have no comprehension whatsoever of the concept of competition, or the remotest inkling that they were in one where the film business was concerned AND WINNING — Maryland’s film industry has been almost completely destroyed (boldfacing mine):
“You just feel like screaming,” says Pat Moran, Emmy Award-winning casting director for productions like The Wire and Liberty Heights, from her Canton office. “What they’ve done is taken a viable industry and they have managed to make it go away. I cannot tell you how many people [employed by the film industry] have moved out of town or taken work somewhere else.”
The targets of Moran’s ire are the state legislature and Governor Martin O’Malley, who control the funding level for the incentive program. For the coming fiscal year, the total incentive budget will remain steady at $1 million. In comparison, nearby Philadelphia, a city with similar architecture and neighborhoods to Baltimore, provides $42 million in funds, soon to increase to $60 million.
“If we had the support of the Governor,” Moran continues, “we’d have our incentive package. If I want to retire, it’s up to me to retire and close my shop. It’s not up to a government to run me out of business.”
Shaun Adamec, the Governor’s Press Secretary, calls the cuts “unfortunate” but “necessary.”
“The fact is, we’re working inside of a budget under the most challenging economic times since the Great Depression,” Adamec says, noting that O’Malley originally wanted to keep the tax incentives program funded at $2 million for the current fiscal year, before the legislature halved it. “Obviously it’s not as much as we’d want to put in that fund,” says Adamec, “[but] we need to make the tough choices in order to balance the budget.”
There are many in the film industry though, who see this philosophy as short-sighted, noting that the state is more than compensated for its initial investment.
“It’s like, if I gave you one dollar and you gave me back 20 cents, you’d still have made 80 cents. But the state doesn’t think of it as making 80 cents. They just think, ‘Hey, we gave you 20 cents!‘” director Barry Levinson told Baltimore this past November when he was in town for a Maryland Film Festival fundraiser at MICA. Indeed, an economic report filed by Sage Policy Group in January calculates that every million made available for film rebates pumps $5 million into the local economy.
But that’s only if filmmakers shoot here in the first place. Lately, given how meager Maryland’s incentives are compared to other states, they can’t, no matter how much they want to. For instance, John Waters, a man whose entire career is based on mining Baltimore’s peculiarities, may shoot his next film, Fruitcake — a children’s movie about two runaways in Remington — in Michigan.
“The entire movie business has collapsed in Maryland,” says Waters. “I’m not saying I am [going to film in Michigan]. I had to finally, about eight months ago, say to the producers I would, if I had to. The thought of shooting in Michigan or some state that can look like Maryland is insane to me, but I’m a realist.”
The whole story is worth reading — click the link above — and pay special attention to the resourcefulness of Maryland’s Film Office’s DEEM program, which is an effort to take many of the professionals involved in film and TV production and re-direct their careers into creating video games and digital media. They’ll be fine unless they really start to thrive — under Gov. O’Malley, Maryland also has raised taxes on its millionaires, thus encouraging many of them to leave the state.
by Cynthia Yockey on May 17, 2010
in Totalitarian liberalism
Share
I was waiting for Dad at the dentist’s office this afternoon — there’s a root canal in his future — and I picked up the May 2010 issue of Baltimore magazine because a story about Maryland’s film industry caught my eye. Not too long ago, the Baltimore-Washington area was third in the country after Los Angeles and New York for film and TV production. However, thanks to Democratic Gov. Martin O’Malley and a Democratic-majority legislature full of believers in high taxes and big government — who also, disastrously, have no comprehension whatsoever of the concept of competition, or the remotest inkling that they were in one where the film business was concerned AND WINNING — Maryland’s film industry has been almost completely destroyed (boldfacing mine):
“You just feel like screaming,” says Pat Moran, Emmy Award-winning casting director for productions like The Wire and Liberty Heights, from her Canton office. “What they’ve done is taken a viable industry and they have managed to make it go away. I cannot tell you how many people [employed by the film industry] have moved out of town or taken work somewhere else.”
The targets of Moran’s ire are the state legislature and Governor Martin O’Malley, who control the funding level for the incentive program. For the coming fiscal year, the total incentive budget will remain steady at $1 million. In comparison, nearby Philadelphia, a city with similar architecture and neighborhoods to Baltimore, provides $42 million in funds, soon to increase to $60 million.
“If we had the support of the Governor,” Moran continues, “we’d have our incentive package. If I want to retire, it’s up to me to retire and close my shop. It’s not up to a government to run me out of business.”
Shaun Adamec, the Governor’s Press Secretary, calls the cuts “unfortunate” but “necessary.”
“The fact is, we’re working inside of a budget under the most challenging economic times since the Great Depression,” Adamec says, noting that O’Malley originally wanted to keep the tax incentives program funded at $2 million for the current fiscal year, before the legislature halved it. “Obviously it’s not as much as we’d want to put in that fund,” says Adamec, “[but] we need to make the tough choices in order to balance the budget.”
There are many in the film industry though, who see this philosophy as short-sighted, noting that the state is more than compensated for its initial investment.
“It’s like, if I gave you one dollar and you gave me back 20 cents, you’d still have made 80 cents. But the state doesn’t think of it as making 80 cents. They just think, ‘Hey, we gave you 20 cents!‘” director Barry Levinson told Baltimore this past November when he was in town for a Maryland Film Festival fundraiser at MICA. Indeed, an economic report filed by Sage Policy Group in January calculates that every million made available for film rebates pumps $5 million into the local economy.
But that’s only if filmmakers shoot here in the first place. Lately, given how meager Maryland’s incentives are compared to other states, they can’t, no matter how much they want to. For instance, John Waters, a man whose entire career is based on mining Baltimore’s peculiarities, may shoot his next film, Fruitcake — a children’s movie about two runaways in Remington — in Michigan.
“The entire movie business has collapsed in Maryland,” says Waters. “I’m not saying I am [going to film in Michigan]. I had to finally, about eight months ago, say to the producers I would, if I had to. The thought of shooting in Michigan or some state that can look like Maryland is insane to me, but I’m a realist.”
The whole story is worth reading — click the link above — and pay special attention to the resourcefulness of Maryland’s Film Office’s DEEM program, which is an effort to take many of the professionals involved in film and TV production and re-direct their careers into creating video games and digital media. They’ll be fine unless they really start to thrive — under Gov. O’Malley, Maryland also has raised taxes on its millionaires, thus encouraging many of them to leave the state.
Friday, May 14, 2010
If It Works Elesewhere It Will Work in IOWA!
Screen Gems head says new studio in GA won't hurt NC
Submitted by Hailey Winslow
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) -- Screen Gem Studios is expanding, but not here. Instead, it's setting up shop in Atlanta. The new studio lot is going to be called Georgia Film and Television Center, but some people worry about what the new Screen Gems will mean for productions coming to Wilmington.
Screen Gems Vice President Bill Vassar does not seem to think Hollywood East will lose business when his studio opens a new facility in Georgia, which will be much smaller than the one here. North Carolina raised the film tax incentive to 25 percent to bring more projects to the Tar Heel State, and Vassar says it's working. In fact, he says there's not a major studio in California not looking at the Port City for some sort of production. They like coming here for the beaches and the studios.
But some people are still worried about Wilmington's film future, because Georgia has a higher tax incentive, at 30 percent.
"The incentive packages are different, and it's based on locations," Vassar said. "And it's not just incentives. We have the beach. Atlanta doesn't have the beach. Atlanta has an urban setting. Wilmington doesn't have an urban setting. You can't do a LA-based cop show in Wilmington. You can do it in Atlanta. So again this is about building the relationships with the studios in LA."
And if "One Tree Hill" isn't picked up for another season, we're going to need those relationships. Vassar says we could know as soon as tomorrow if "One Tree Hill" is going to continue for an eighth season.
The Screen Gems expansion will not be certain until Atlanta City Council votes on it next week and the mayor signs it, but things are looking good for the studio.
Vassar says there are two "mammoth" productions looking at Wilmington. In the next couple months, we'll know if we're going to get them.
Submitted by Hailey Winslow
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) -- Screen Gem Studios is expanding, but not here. Instead, it's setting up shop in Atlanta. The new studio lot is going to be called Georgia Film and Television Center, but some people worry about what the new Screen Gems will mean for productions coming to Wilmington.
Screen Gems Vice President Bill Vassar does not seem to think Hollywood East will lose business when his studio opens a new facility in Georgia, which will be much smaller than the one here. North Carolina raised the film tax incentive to 25 percent to bring more projects to the Tar Heel State, and Vassar says it's working. In fact, he says there's not a major studio in California not looking at the Port City for some sort of production. They like coming here for the beaches and the studios.
But some people are still worried about Wilmington's film future, because Georgia has a higher tax incentive, at 30 percent.
"The incentive packages are different, and it's based on locations," Vassar said. "And it's not just incentives. We have the beach. Atlanta doesn't have the beach. Atlanta has an urban setting. Wilmington doesn't have an urban setting. You can't do a LA-based cop show in Wilmington. You can do it in Atlanta. So again this is about building the relationships with the studios in LA."
And if "One Tree Hill" isn't picked up for another season, we're going to need those relationships. Vassar says we could know as soon as tomorrow if "One Tree Hill" is going to continue for an eighth season.
The Screen Gems expansion will not be certain until Atlanta City Council votes on it next week and the mayor signs it, but things are looking good for the studio.
Vassar says there are two "mammoth" productions looking at Wilmington. In the next couple months, we'll know if we're going to get them.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Movie Nets 14 Million For Utah Economy
Movie Nets 14 Million for Utah Economy
The making of a film about the hiker who had to cut off his arm to get free from a rock snag in Utah's redrock desert helped create 150 jobs and contributed $14 million to the state's economy, the Utah Film Commission said Wednesday.
It took 50 days for director Danny Boyle, Academy Award winner for Slumdog Millionaire, to produce "127 Hours." Filming took place in Moab, Green River, Sandy, Antelope Island, Tibble Fork Reservoir, Emigration Canyon and Blue John Canyon, where hiker Aron Ralston was actually trapped in 2003. Most studio work was done in a converted warehouse in Salt Lake City.
Despite strong competition from other states, Utah Film Commission director Marshall Moore said a state incentive package helped convince producers from The Fox Spotlight to film in Utah. Moore's agency provided filmmakers with a post-performance tax credit worth $2.8 million, based on a 20 percent rebate for every dollar the production company spent in Utah.
"Projects such as these benefit the state in so many different ways, with job creation for Utahns being one of the most important," Gov. Gary Herbert said in a statement.
Mike Gorrell
The making of a film about the hiker who had to cut off his arm to get free from a rock snag in Utah's redrock desert helped create 150 jobs and contributed $14 million to the state's economy, the Utah Film Commission said Wednesday.
It took 50 days for director Danny Boyle, Academy Award winner for Slumdog Millionaire, to produce "127 Hours." Filming took place in Moab, Green River, Sandy, Antelope Island, Tibble Fork Reservoir, Emigration Canyon and Blue John Canyon, where hiker Aron Ralston was actually trapped in 2003. Most studio work was done in a converted warehouse in Salt Lake City.
Despite strong competition from other states, Utah Film Commission director Marshall Moore said a state incentive package helped convince producers from The Fox Spotlight to film in Utah. Moore's agency provided filmmakers with a post-performance tax credit worth $2.8 million, based on a 20 percent rebate for every dollar the production company spent in Utah.
"Projects such as these benefit the state in so many different ways, with job creation for Utahns being one of the most important," Gov. Gary Herbert said in a statement.
Mike Gorrell
300 Rally For Michigan Film Program: none did for Iowa
Wednesday, May 12, 2010 By Nick A Cusmao
Recently you’ve been hearing about movies being shot locally. Over 120 films have been filmed in Michigan. Big movies like Transformers in Detroit and Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino in Grosse Pointe were filmed here. Most of the movies shot here and upcoming films came due to Michigan tax incentives. Breaks given out by Michigan so people will shoot films here. It brings jobs to Michigan and a positive atmosphere.
Michigan is cutting jobs everywhere. Tax breaks are being reconsidered in every industry. Next up, talk of ending the movie productions. Film makers and its supporters have begun a rally to stop a legislative effort to cut the current Michigan film tax incentive. On October 26 there was a public rally held to save the Michigan film tax incentive.
According to press release from Big Screen Michigan over 300 people in the industry attended this event. In attendance, Senator Gilda Jacobs was there to show support. “If its not broken, don’t fix it”, she told the press. There were many others voicing the opinion to save the film tax incentives, including Senator Hansen Clarke, Mitch Albom, Harvey Grace from Grace and Wild Studios and other industry entrepreneurs. They went out to tell about the jobs and revenue it would bring to Michigan’s shaky economy. The film incentives brought over 19,000 jobs to New York.
With a cut of the tax incentive being cut would be terrible. It would give Michigan the last thing they need job losses. To help save the film incentives you can go to BigScreenMichigan.com and contact them to show support. If your looking for a job opportunity in the film industry visit MichiganFilmOffice.com. The tax incentives are a great thing and need to be saved. Please log on and show your support.
Recently you’ve been hearing about movies being shot locally. Over 120 films have been filmed in Michigan. Big movies like Transformers in Detroit and Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino in Grosse Pointe were filmed here. Most of the movies shot here and upcoming films came due to Michigan tax incentives. Breaks given out by Michigan so people will shoot films here. It brings jobs to Michigan and a positive atmosphere.
Michigan is cutting jobs everywhere. Tax breaks are being reconsidered in every industry. Next up, talk of ending the movie productions. Film makers and its supporters have begun a rally to stop a legislative effort to cut the current Michigan film tax incentive. On October 26 there was a public rally held to save the Michigan film tax incentive.
According to press release from Big Screen Michigan over 300 people in the industry attended this event. In attendance, Senator Gilda Jacobs was there to show support. “If its not broken, don’t fix it”, she told the press. There were many others voicing the opinion to save the film tax incentives, including Senator Hansen Clarke, Mitch Albom, Harvey Grace from Grace and Wild Studios and other industry entrepreneurs. They went out to tell about the jobs and revenue it would bring to Michigan’s shaky economy. The film incentives brought over 19,000 jobs to New York.
With a cut of the tax incentive being cut would be terrible. It would give Michigan the last thing they need job losses. To help save the film incentives you can go to BigScreenMichigan.com and contact them to show support. If your looking for a job opportunity in the film industry visit MichiganFilmOffice.com. The tax incentives are a great thing and need to be saved. Please log on and show your support.
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