Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Legislature / Film Film Professionals Protest Lack of Production Incentives, Work
Posted by Steven Hale on Tue, Feb 21, 2012 at 3:12 PM
The black-clad crowd of around 100 film workers and supporters hovered beneath the state’s equestrian Andrew Jackson memorial and lined Charlotte Avenue soliciting supportive honks from passers-by. Creative bunch that they are, their signs included more than a few clever references to Tennessee films that got away.
Underscoring one of the group’s main arguments — that in the absence of competitive incentives, state film workers and their families are being forced to leave Tennessee in search of more consistent work — some came to the rally with children in tow.
One such crew member / parent was Matt Lindahl, a set dresser who draped a sign around his neck and held his 6-month-old son Atticus. Lindahl and his wife, who also have a 3 year-old, are both in the business — he says they met on the set of The Help in Mississippi. But lacking consistent in-state work, he says, they’ve been contemplating a move to Georgia, where incentives have turned the state into a production magnet.
“I don’t want to leave,” Lindahl says. “But if we can’t work, I will be gone in a couple of months.”
As of this writing, the group was still awaiting expected visits from bill sponsor Rep. Steve McManus and Speaker of the House Beth Harwell.
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Comments (11)
Showing 1-11 of 11
Are studios really clamoring to film in Tennessee, only to be hampered by lack of incentive? This is a serious question.
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Films actually are interested in Tennessee. In the early 90's Nashville and the surrounding areas actually had a steady stream of mid-level movies being produced. At the time Tennessee was one of the first states to enact an incentive program in order to keep jobs in the U.S. after Canada started subsidizing television and film, but we allowed them to lapse.
Then in the past decade states like Louisiana, Georgia, North Carolina and Kentucky have passed more competitive incentive packages that have attracted films back into the area, leaving Tennessee the odd man out because we refuse to pass a package that is competitive to the states surrounding us.
Mac, as someone who actually remembers working here starting in 1990, I have to say the it is easy to eulogize the past. But then there is reality. I had to keep an agent in Atlanta and Chicago. And we all wondered how to get the work that was happening in GA and NC here in TN. Yes, occasionally we got something like the Green Mile. But it has never been high cotton here or a steady stream. I stand with all that TN will have her day. As a producer now, I am working to try to make work for fellow Tennesseans. I know that it gets people upset when I say this, but incentives are only one piece of the puzzle. I had the opportunity to speak with the governor himself. It was not my impression that the administration doesn't care. But they are aware that evaluation needs to be done to establish a more competitive package to get TN a better market share. Unfortunately for all, this session is half way over, and bills and appropriations don't happen over night.
jdilla- Yes, it is a roadblock. In 2007, a study was done that showed the number of projects that scouted TN and the revenue that would have come with them ($90 million), and how we lost them because of incentives. "Footloose" (Georgia) wanted to shoot here as did Spielberg's "Lincoln" (Virginia) and Dolly Parton's "Joyful Noise" (Georgia). Heck, we even lost Mariah Carey's movie "Tennessee" to Georgia. So, yes, they do come knocking, we just don't open the door.
Yoshie,
Everyone associated with this movement understands that this is not the be-all to end-all. If you had been able to make the meeting on Monday you would have been told that this is not a move to try to get big budget shows and films into the state, but to get $1-5million dollar movies to start to foster a regrowth of the industry. We're not here to demand that we be brought up to speed with New York or L.A., but at least to not be left out when the rest of the region is reaping the benefits.
And if you had talked to the governor, did he relay to you his expectation of this industry as an industry like Nissan? Because that's the biggest detriment to the movement. The entertainment industry is not like a manufacturing industry. We can't get companies to buy land and make a deal with a state for a long term residency. We're more like the tourism industry: we get rich people to come here for a short time, hire a bunch of locals, and spend a lot of money in our state. That is how we will win.
Again, if you had been to the meeting at the Belcourt Theatre, or caught the webcast, on Monday, you'd realize that our goal isn't to become competitive overnight. We're looking for some legislation that, if inacted in the next 1-2 years will make us competitive in the following 1-2 years. At best we can be up and running again as a state by 2017.
This is not some fly-by-night idea that's getting undeserved grassroots support. This has been well through out, it has been compared to similar markets that have found sucesss with this economic model (Florida) and can put a lot of good workers back into their respective careers as soon as the state deems fit.
-Mac
Well, Mac. Some of us were working on Monday.
And you might not jump to the assumption that I don't know what's going on just because I wasn't there because I do...or that I lied about talking to the governor (per your inference " if you had talked to the governor")
Thanks for informing me about how the movie industry works. After more than 2 decades of working in it, I'm glad that someone cleared that up.
Look, we're on the same team here.
I DID speak with the governor because I care. I HAVE been in this community since you were in diapers, and I CARE. I am busting my tail to try to create those 1-5 million dollar deals to make work for people like you because I care.
And, I might add, I will do anything that I can to keep the work here, with or without incentives because I love this city, this state, and this industry.
The porn industry is considering abandoning California over condom-requirement laws. Meanwhile, our state legislators have been tying themselves to anti-contraceptive groups.
Waaaaait a minute... I just got this IDEA...
Corporatist incentives are just dumb, and morally corrupt. Just another sign that we're running on a debt-fueled economy. Prepare for the fish to hit the fan.
