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October 17, 2007
Creating a film industry - outside of Hollywood
Creating a new industry or capturing an old one is the Holy Grail of local economic development. In today's economy, that usually means going after the next hot thing -- "ABC"-tech. But there is a high-profile existing industry that local leaders swoon over: the film industry. Everyone gets excited when the movies come to town to make a picture. My own recent example was spending half a day waiting to see a car blown up at DC's Eastern Market, which was made over to look like a market in Amsterdam.
The real trick, however, isn't luring the one-off movie-shoot. It is creating a sustaining film industry. One of few who have been able to do it recently is New Mexico. As a recent story in Spirit Magazine (High-desert Hollywood) relates:
But the latest Hollywood influx is not about pleasure. It’s about business. And much of it happened because of one man: Governor Bill Richardson.Richardson came into office in 2003, telling New Mexicans that the state needed to attract new businesses and making the film industry a priority growth target for the state. Then he convinced the state government to roll out an incentive package for filmmakers. Today, as many as 32 states offer similar perks, but few are as established or as generous as New Mexico’s. They include a 50 percent reimbursement of wages for on-the-job training of state residents, a tax rebate of 25 percent on all direct costs and labor (or no sales tax on most production costs), and a film investment loan program that offers no-interest loans for up to $15 million.
. . .
The state started small, chasing low-budget indie films before moving into bigger productions that had been shooting abroad and finally courting repeat films and longer series TV productions. At all times, one constant guided the state: “We approached it like a business,” says Eric Witt, director of media arts and industries for the governor. “It had to make money for New Mexico.
"Repeat films and longer series TV productions" That means a sustainable industry with a host of specialized jobs for locals and more economic activity that simply catering to the out-of-town cast and crew:
Until the industry matures, the local jobs lifted from Hollywood won’t last long. Recognizing this stark economic reality, all of the states and countries courting the industry hope to build a self-sustaining film culture, from homegrown filmmakers in high schools to professional digital animators. But New Mexico figured that out first.The state’s original incentive package offered $200,000 in “film boot camp grants” for college and high school campuses. New Mexico also partnered with Comcast and National Geographic in a Governor’s Cup competition for local film projects, including screenplays and documentaries. Meanwhile, both Disney and Sony Pictures Imageworks rolled out academic programs for high school students and undergraduates alike. Sony brought its Imageworks Professional Academic Excellence (IPAX) program to the University of New Mexico. The IPAX curriculum aims to nurture the next generation of digital artists. Thanks to the program, the University of New Mexico joins 10 other schools—including Carnegie Mellon, Stanford University, and the University of Southern California—that graduate IPAX-certified digerati.
The result is the creation of brick and mortar presence of the film industry in the state, with at least two new facilities being built - a 500,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art film studio and 100,000-square-foot digital studio.
Interestingly, Hollywood is facing the same problem. As I noted in an earlier posting, as one-off film shoots have become more mobile, Hollywood is also going after the long run TV production -- where the cast and crews can stay at home in the LA area.
Bottom line: local economic development strategies in the I-Cubed Economy still boils down to smokestack chasing and grow your own. As New Mexico's experience with the film industry shows, in order to attract a sustained presence it is necessary to grow your own, including developing the infrastructure. The same can be said for every other knowledge-based industry.
Posted by Ken Jarboe at October 17, 2007 9:15 AM
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