Georgia's movie boom question (Atlanta, Savannah: rentals, how much, hotel)

[dwayne00]

As all of us know that Georgia is booming in the movie industry and it's great and I love it. My question though is how much does it improves the economy? I was told that most of the movie companies that come bring all of their employees with them and just employs extras but it does bring money in for the time being to the local companies. My main concern is do they employ people meaning do they provide people with permanent jobs and not just for a small time? What do you think?

[tikigod311]

I would imagine that it would add jobs overtime. If actual studios are being built, which I believe they are, then its good for the long term.

But it is a good question. I love seeing Georgia on the Big and Small screen. Maybe it just benefits citizens here as a source of entertainment!

[Newsboy]

Originally Posted by dwayne00

As all of us know that Georgia is booming in the movie industry and it's great and I love it. My question though is how much does it improves the economy? I was told that most of the movie companies that come bring all of their employees with them and just employs extras but it does bring money in for the time being to the local companies. My main concern is do they employ people meaning do they provide people with permanent jobs and not just for a small time? What do you think?

ABSOLUTELY! The raw numbers on what the industry means to Georgia do not lie:

-- Georgia ranks 3rd among all states for film and TV production in the country
-- Economic impact of entertainment industry projects handled by the Georgia Film, Music & Digital Entertainment Office in FY 2011: approximately $2.4 billion
-- 336 productions shot in the state in FY 2011
-- A record number of television series are shooting in the state, including The Walking Dead, Teen Wolf, Single Ladies, Auction Kings, Necessary Roughness, Vampire Diaries, and Drop Dead Diva
-- Over 25,000 Georgia residents are employed in the entertainment industries, including 11,000 full-time equivalent positions
-- Since 2008, more than 30 industry-specific supplier companies have expanded or relocated to Georgia, including EUE/ Screen Gems Studios Atlanta, Raleigh Studios at Riverwood, Atlanta Film Studios in Hiram, Paskal Lighting, and Panavision, the world leader in camera equipment
-- Atlanta is home to entertainment companies like Tyler Perry Studios, Turner Studios and Rainforest Films
-- Average number of local employees on a medium budget feature film: Approximately 150-175 people. Larger budget production: Approximately 200-250 people
--Average feature film budget: $41.7 million
-- Average amount of feature film budget spent in-state: 60-70 percent; Higher for locally produced projects
-- More than 14 in-state colleges and universities offer degrees or study in film and television production

Georgia Film & TV Facts - Georgia.org

So the answer to your question is, YES! This industry has an enormous impact on our economy, both financially and image-wise. The state and city could simply could never afford the kind of free publicity that these productions bring to Georgia and Atlanta. Good example: I was watching "Single Ladies" on VH1 the other night (for only the second or third time). The sweeping aerial panoramic views of the city between scene changes are reason enough to watch IMO. But on this particular episode, two characters were having a conversation in a bar. It went like this:

SHE: So you're from London? What are you doing in Atlanta?
HE: (with British accent) I'm here to do some contract work for the CDC.
SHE: I hope it's not all work and no play (wink).
HE: Oh, I definitely plan to see the city whilst I'm here: The Martin Luther King Memorial. Centennial Park. The Aquarium. The Botanical Garden.
SHE: Oooh, the Botanical Garden is lovely this time of year!
HE: Maybe you can show me?

CUE SWEEPING PANORAMIC VIEW OF BUCKHEAD AT NIGHT

[dwayne00]

It does seem like it's just a source of entertainment now but I would like to see it provide permanent jobs.

[readyset]

You want to know why NYC, LA and even San Fran are so well known? This is the main reason by far.

[Adric]

Hi there,

I do quite a bit of work in this industry so I'll explain briefly.

Films bring in their key crew from other places and the rest of the work is essentially contract work. So if a film is going to be shot here for two months for example, then that is two months of people being employed and spending money until the next one comes into town. Most film crews are brought in through labor unions and even though GA is a right to work state, most everyone in the film industry is in a union of some sort. I hate that part because the quarterly union dues are expensive! Depending on what position you are in on the production, you can make REALLY good money though while the film is being shot (set pay can be $35-40/hr or more for higher up positions). Once production is over though, your source of income is gone until another film comes along (whenever that may be).

[cwkimbro]

Originally Posted by dwayne00

As all of us know that Georgia is booming in the movie industry and it's great and I love it. My question though is how much does it improves the economy? I was told that most of the movie companies that come bring all of their employees with them and just employs extras but it does bring money in for the time being to the local companies. My main concern is do they employ people meaning do they provide people with permanent jobs and not just for a small time? What do you think?

It is a complex situation....

but the core of this is why so many states compete so aggressively for industries.

The answer is definitively yes. It provides jobs. It is a contractor, and small company driven industry. However, the lack of permanence doesn't translate to little money added to employees or the economy.

The real question is ... is it worth the costs of attracting it.

Given that its a new industry to the area, by making incentives primarily just cutting taxes, we don't really take a loss.

The things to watch out for:
1- If we had a huge existing industry base... we might take a loss from removing current tax income for the state
2- If they take alot of competitive properties other tax paying companies use, it can be problematic. But, if they use alot of brownfield or greenfield sites it can be a big bonus to offer incentives to attract the industry.

In this situation we aren't losing much to attract it, but the main thing to watch out for in the future is this particular industry tends to drift around to any place offering large tax breaks... at least outside of LA or NYC.

[atlantagreg30127]

Originally Posted by Adric

Once production is over though, your source of income is gone until another film comes along (whenever that may be).

Very true. The company I work for has been approached for materials that were used in the making of sets for a couple of movies being filmed here. Likewise, local catering companies were used for the crew during production, local trailer rentals, cleaning services, etc. But once the movie is finished, they go back to their day-to-day level of business until the next one comes around, and it doesn't really do much to create "new" services or jobs due to the staggered nature of it. But hey, it's still money coming into the area, and not all areas can say they're getting even that.

[JPD]

Hell, even if every single person working on a film were brought it from elsewhere, it'd still be good for our economy. Those people have to sleep and eat somewhere. And if you're here for two months on a shoot, you'll certainly wind up buying some things and taking in some entertainment.

[Newsboy]

I met a couple of guys here in Savannah a couple months back who were down for the weekend from Atlanta, where they had been working on a movie shoot for several weeks. Both of them worked in set design and construction and were native Californians. One lived in Santa Monica, the other was from San Francisco. Both had been staying at a hotel in Midtown while working on the film and had so many job offers, they were considering moving to Georgia permanently.

This is just one of many examples I've heard directly from the source: people who actually work in the industry.