LANSING – Now that some of the smoke has cleared over the state’s film incentive program, moviemakers should be getting back in line to work in Michigan, Film Commissioner Carrie Jones told the House Appropriations General Government Subcommittee on Tuesday.
The state has only seen two applications for incentives since it began accepting applications on January 9, but Jones said that is a normal pace for producers. “Hollywood shuts down between Christmas and New Year and it takes awhile for them to come back,” she said. “There’s really not that much difference with the pace of our applications. We’ve had a lot of interest.”
As the initial tax incentive was repealed and changed to the current incentive program, some productions did back off their interest in Michigan, but Jones said that would be a temporary fall-off. And she said some of that slowdown was not from the change in the incentive, but from the Film Office holding off accepting new applications until the enabling legislation was in place despite having funds for the old tax credit program.
“They see it all as a hiccup in time,” she said. “We’ll have to do some work to get folks back, but we’re on the right track.”
Jones said much of the confusion had been over the change from a tax credit to a cash incentive, but she said producers were warming to the change.
“We’re getting great feedback from producers,” Jones said. “They get the money back much quicker. It’s also much easier.”
A particular advantage is that, once an incentive package is approved, the money can be put in escrow and guaranteed for the production as long as it meets its requirements.
Jim McBryde with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, which houses the Film Office, said one production company is urging film makers to only work with states that operate Michigan’s new way after it felt it was shorted on an incentive package it had been promised in another state.
Michigan’s reliability has also been an attraction in that regard, Jones said. “Michigan has a good record of paying our debts,” she said.
It also helps that the current program sunsets in 2017, so producers know it will be in place for a while and they have some time to work with the state, she said.
The new standards for receiving a grant have not deterred filmmakers, Jones said. Not only does the office look for films that will help to portray the state in a positive light, but it also looks for productions that are financially viable.
“We’re often told we have the most rigorous review and we wear that as a badge of honor. We want to make sure that Michigan people working on these projects and vendors supplying them will be paid,” Jones said. “Michigan had many less projects leave the state with people being unpaid and vendors being unpaid.”
The incentives the state offers are strong enough that production companies are willing to jump through the hoops to get them, she said.
Along with the change to the incentive, the state has also gotten more aggressive in marketing itself through the movies, Jones said.
Any film receiving incentives not only has to thank the state in its credits, but has to feature the Pure Michigan logo, she said.
And the office is working to develop movie-themed tours around the state. Jones said a walking tour of Detroit is ready to launch in the spring. “We’re already looking to create similar tours in other cities that have had concentrated filming,” she said.
To questions from committee members, McBryde said he did not expect the state to be able to entirely drop its film incentive program to keep the industry active. “Southern California has a very strong film base and they’re finding they still have to do incentives,” he said.
Michigan is one of 42 states that offer some level of incentive to filmmakers, Jones said.
She said the incentives bringing in the larger productions then makes room for smaller films that do not necessarily apply for assistance but make use of the people trained working in those larger films. That, she said, is part if the reason for requiring use of Michigan labor to qualify for the incentives.
“If they come here, we want them to train up Michigan people so the next time they come here, they can hire trained people,” she said.
Rep. Fred Durhal Jr. (D-Detroit) said he would push his colleagues to expand the $25 million appropriation for the film incentive. “Now that we have a surplus, we need to put it where we can get some immediate feedback and the film industry is one of those places,” he said.
The suggestion got little feedback from Republicans on the panel.
“The ability to show Michigan in positive light as a tourist destination will pay dividends,” said Rep. Anthony Forlini (R-Harrison Township). But he questioned the long-term sustainability of the incentive program.
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