NEW ORLEANS — The state of Louisiana is aggressively claiming a
growing chunk of the film and television business — arguably the biggest
chunk after Los Angeles and New York.
The state’s goal is not only to revamp itself into a new LA, but also to
challenge Hollywood by building a “new LA” right here from the ground
up. A side benefit is to stanch “runaway production” (Canada, Bulgaria,
Hungary, etc.) and keep much more in the States.
Speaking of states, Louisiana’s is not the only state government that’s
hit on the idea of enticing big-spending film productions to their state
with generous tax credits. But the folks in LA (Louisiana that is) are
quick to tell you why producers choosing to work in their state have
made the better choice.
New Orleans has seen a large uptick in film and TV work, starting in
2006 with films such as Tony Scott’s thriller Déjà Vu and blossoming
into a growing list of well-known features: The Reaping, The Guardian,
Premonition, Mr. Brooks, The Mist, The Great Debaters and Mad Money to
name a few. A college-buddy comedy, Mardi Gras, is shooting in New
Orleans and the Jack Black comedy, The Year One, complete with Biblical
desert scenes shot near Shreveport, is currently in the works. David
Fincher is at work on The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, starring Brad
Pitt, in New Orleans.
COME, STAY AND SAVE
One issue, as those who work on movies and television know, is
convincing production companies, directors, talent and crew to pack up
and leave the devil they know — Los Angeles — for parts unknown, e.g.
Louisiana. The state got the ball rolling with attractive tax credits —
rebates, essentially, on production spending done in the state. Then
Louisiana’s growing number and variety of production services and talent
kicked in. Add to that the state’s natural beauty; the geography’s
flexibility for location work; the weather’s (usual) cooperativeness;
the friendliness of the hard-working population and other intangibles;
and then factor in the great cooking you find everywhere you go.
Importantly, the cost of living here is just plain lower than in New
York and Los Angeles.
Post production and CGI companies are starting to lay down roots, but
key functions such as film processing, telecine and DI are still done
out-of-state.
Louisiana offers a 25 percent tax credit granted on in-state
expenditures exceeding $300,000 related to the production of a motion
picture. An additional 10 percent is granted based on the total number
of Louisiana residents hired on the production. There’s also a 40
percent tax credit granted on expenditures related to infrastructure
that supports and services the motion picture industry, but this credit
will end on the first day of next year (unless the state decides to keep
it going).
Jennifer Day is the director of New Orleans’ Office of Film and Video.
She says the eight movies being produced in New Orleans in the first
half of 2008 alone — with budgets totaling around $150 million — will
top the total of film work done there in all of last year. She stresses
that growth in production should be balanced by a sensitivity on the
part of filmmakers to “work harmoniously with tourism in New Orleans.”
Citing New Orleans enthusiast Tony Scott, she adds that directors come
to the city for its special ambiance, not as a generic “cheat” location
standing in for another city.
THE NEWEST IS BIGGEST
The Celtic Media Centre in Baton Rouge holds bragging rights as “the
first and only full-service studio/soundstage complex built from the
ground up” in the state. As it stands, Celtic (www.thecelticmediacentre.
com) has huge soundstages, but there are four more under construction,
the idea being to entice filmmakers to shoot on set as well as in
outdoor LA locations.
Heavy construction equipment was recently clearing the way for the next
soundstage – a 28,000-square-foot behemoth, scheduled for completion in
June. There are three more buildings planned for the Celtic complex —
one 50,000-square-foot structure that can be separated into two stages
and two more 25,000-square-foot soundstage structures. These will also
have floors for production and post production offices.
Kevin Murphy is director of studio operations for Raleigh Studios Baton
Rouge. Raleigh, the Hollywood-based soundstage and production services
company (www. raleighstudios.com), is in a management partnership with
Celtic. In this relationship, Murphy explains, one operation with two
names can be all the more effective in garnering interest from
prospective filmmakers on their home turf. That is, Raleigh can go after
the Hollywood business, while Celtic goes for the local trade.
To Murphy, it’s important that Hollywood producers understand that the
new Celtic stages are “purpose built to attract $30 million, $40 million
and up productions that used to go to Canada or London. We are doing
everything in our power to give them state-of-the-art services.”
Locally made small films and independents are welcome, too. Working from
the Celtic Media side of the fence, Hollywood audio post veteran Howell
Gibbens has been testing out Celtic’s new audio mixing theater and has
used the small film The End of the Spear (about missionaries in South
America) as a test case. Gibbens uses a Digidesign console in the large
theater, which can project film or digital, and he recently proved that
he can make a small film like Spear sound — and feel — like a big
picture.
