Dallas will be the next Hollywood? (Austin, Atlanta: neighborhoods, buying, school)

[Random1982]

Originally Posted by BeenThereDunThat

IThe only reason they came to Shreveport was because of two things: They had the freeway terminus that they could get closed for filming AND the 30% transferrable tax credits. The transferrable feature of the tax credits is a big, big deal for filmmakers as they can cash in on those at a discount when transferred to a party looking for a tax break. That's the thing that has made Louisiana a go-to destination for filmmaking. If they didn't have this tax incentive, it wouldn't get as much attention as it has from Hollywood & NYC studios.

it's beyond those two factors. "film friendliness" is very important. once a city or state gets branded as "not film friendly," then no one wants to be there. that's what has happened to dallas, as the film crews in dallas suck, the city makes things difficult, there's many corrupt "powers that be" in the film business (or lack thereof). in short, lots of problems hold dallas back in big ways. i've experienced this firsthand and could write a book on it. dallas is a joke when it comes to film production.

[Random1982]

Originally Posted by elan

They were filming a pilot episode in my Preston Hollow neighborhood last week. I have no idea what it was exactly, television production was the rumor I heard. They had the street roped off and a bunch of semi's were parked at the church parking lot. One of the trucks said Universal Studios, so who knows. It gave me something different to look at during my daily walkabouts.

if you didn't know what was happening in your neighborhood, that right there reflects a major failure of the location department of that production, who is supposed to fully inform the neighborhood. once again, it's indicative a very unprofessional "film community" in dallas. there should have been signs and notices clearly stating what was going on.

[Random1982]

Originally Posted by Method_Man

Maybe, it's just that you're an amateur.

Dallas has a record of film production both past and present that shatters your credibility.

false. and false. i've been in the film industry for almost 20 years, primarily out of NYC, working with the best in the business. dallas is a joke. if NYC and Hollywood rep the Major Leagues when it comes to film production, Dallas is T-Ball. Just try to pull off a production here. I take it you haven't. The City (and others) actually create obstacles for productions. They promise the world, and then don't deliver. They cost production extra money that the productions aren't planning on spending. Everyone has their hand out. There is a reason why Dallas is notorious for not being "film friendly" and I have nothing to do it. This is just a fact---the general perception among the top producers in the business---and that's a big part of the reason they're not interested in filming in Dallas. Plus the fact that Dallas is just ass backwards in a lot of other ways having nothing to do with the film biz.

[elan]

Originally Posted by Random1982

if you didn't know what was happening in your neighborhood, that right there reflects a major failure of the location department of that production, who is supposed to fully inform the neighborhood. once again, it's indicative a very unprofessional "film community" in dallas. there should have been signs and notices clearly stating what was going on.

You sound bitter, have you ever tried Yoga?

[Random1982]

Originally Posted by elan

You sound bitter, have you ever tried Yoga?

Not sure how/why that sounded bitter, but whatever. The thread is about the ridiculous notion of Dallas being "the next Hollywood." I'm simply detailing the many reasons why that thought is a complete joke, from the perspective of someone who has a lot of experience in the film business in Dallas, and beyond. I'm not the least bit stressed or bitter as I do this. The facts of the situation just aren't pretty. And Yoga won't help that, either. The job of the location manager or department is to act as the liaison between the production and communities we use for filmmaking. I found the folks who claim to be doing that job in Dallas, to be extremely unprofessional. And a neighborhood that is being used for production that was not informed of what is happening is merely indicative of that fact. That's just a tiny example of the problems in Dallas.

[RayStokes]

Originally Posted by Random1982

Not sure how/why that sounded bitter, but whatever. The thread is about the ridiculous notion of Dallas being "the next Hollywood." I'm simply detailing the many reasons why that thought is a complete joke, from the perspective of someone who has a lot of experience in the film business in Dallas, and beyond. I'm not the least bit stressed or bitter as I do this. The facts of the situation just aren't pretty. And Yoga won't help that, either. The job of the location manager or department is to act as the liaison between the production and communities we use for filmmaking. I found the folks who claim to be doing that job in Dallas, to be extremely unprofessional. And a neighborhood that is being used for production that was not informed of what is happening is merely indicative of that fact. That's just a tiny example of the problems in Dallas.

You're surprised that people think you sound bitter and react negatively to your posts when you've told a bunch of Dallasites that Dallas is an ugly city full of ugly people with no character?

Do you get out much?

[Random1982]

Originally Posted by RayStokes

You're surprised that people think you sound bitter and react negatively to your posts when you've told a bunch of Dallasites that Dallas is an ugly city full of ugly people with no character?

Do you get out much?

I never said any of that, and yeah, I get out a lot, actually. It's a shame so few can take constructive criticism of your city. That's another issue. Dallas really needs to get over itself. Just the fact that it thinks it can be "the next Hollywood" based on two tiny productions coming here, is absurd. One cannot even launch extremely valid criticism of Dallas and the lack of film production here, without being personally attacked. Lovely. And you wonder why many folks have negative impressions of the place? Thanks for proving the point! I'd rather be perceived as a bitter and cynical realist than someone not living in reality.

[RayStokes]

Originally Posted by Random1982

I never said any of that, and yeah, I get out a lot, actually. It's a shame so few can take constructive criticism of your city. That's another issue. Dallas really needs to get over itself. Just the fact that it thinks it can be "the next Hollywood" based on two tiny productions coming here, is absurd. One cannot even launch extremely valid criticism of Dallas and the lack of film production here, without being personally attacked. Lovely. And you wonder why many folks have negative impressions of the place? Thanks for proving the point! I'd rather be perceived as a bitter and cynical realist than someone not living in reality.

Please. You literally said exactly those things in posts 84 and 90. For your reference:

Originally Posted by Random1982

It's an ugly city filled with ugly people, and the "film community" is a total joke.

Originally Posted by Random1982

dallas has no real character---no real soul---unlike the cities where major productions actually want to film in.

And from post#93....

Originally Posted by Random1982

Plus the fact that Dallas is just ass backwards in a lot of other ways having nothing to do with the film biz.

I'm not even from Dallas, nor do I live there. I'm from Fort Worth. I found your actual criticisms of the film industry in Dallas interesting and insightful, which I don't claim to know much about. But making broad unsubstantiated generalizations and insults about an entire city of people is not constructive criticism and you shouldn't be surprised at the responses you received. Looking back at your quotes, who is honestly personally attacking who? Other than your not so subtle digs at Dallas, which do appear to be personal, the context of your posts that actually was related to film I found informative and interesting. But there is a line between constructive criticism and just being rude.

[Random1982]

Fair enough. Just to clarify, when i said "ugly people," I meant how people have behaved in film production, and toward film production, in Dallas, not their appearance necessarily. And it's all in the context of things I've witnessed in Dallas, as I was trying to make things happen there, working on film productions, and trying to improve film production in the city---too many people behaved in very ugly ways---and it has significantly impacted the number of productions that shoot in Dallas. Because of such negative experiences, I've personally steered productions away from Dallas, and Texas, in general. And when I said no character, I was talking about the city. There's plenty of real characters in Dallas. Just some of the problems I've witnessed firsthand with regard to film production in Dallas: blackmail, threats (both legal, and physical), extortion, people not being of their word, and racism....not very pretty stuff. With regard to character, the city in general just doesn't have much of it. And what I mean by that is, there's just not many interesting independent locations, relatively speaking (as compared to cities where there's a lot of filmmaking...) Again, this all goes back to why Dallas is nowhere close to "being the next Hollywood." And I know I'm not the only person who has dealt with these issues. I've worked with producers who have sworn Dallas off forever, because of these issues, and others. The film community---in NYC and LA---is very small, relatively speaking. When one top producer has a negative experience in a city, as has been the case numerous times in Dallas, for many producers, that news spreads throughout the industry, very quickly. And it makes people not want to film in Dallas.

[Random1982]

Originally Posted by Made_it_To_the_Metroplex

Dallas already HAS quite the image, that many are proud of, and rightly so. Dallas is a place that dreams big and has a great can-do attitude.

Not quite.