When you think of the Appalachian region, encompassing Tennessee, West Virginia and Kentucky, you probably visualize verdant rolling hills, the picturesque Appalachian and Smoky mountains, and the rich delta plain. But if the region's film commissioners have their way, these three states will be viewed as an affordable production mecca for indies, as well as commercials, music videos and feature films - and as a venue full of surprising locations.
This region is making a concerted effort to make it as easy as possible to do business there. Across the board, state-owned properties are fee-free, and the permitting processes are simple and inexpensive. Over the years, vendors and businesses have developed a program of discounted production services, such as lodging, equipment and vehicle rentals. Each commission also provides production services directories on their web sites, listing hundreds of businesses that can provide rental vehicles, casting services, legal services and many other support services.
Film Coordinator Jennifer Alison Andrews, of the Nashville Mayor's Office
of Film, touts Nashville's great versatility of locations. "We can replicate
Manhattan or a small town in the 1950s. Just minutes away from the Nashville
city limits there are great mountainous regions. Nashville has mild winters
and hot summers, so most filming takes place in late summer, early fall,
and spring."
The availability of manpower is another plus, according to Andrews.
"We have the capacity to crew up three productions deep, and Nashville
can provide the full range of production support and services. If you go
to www.filmnashville.com, and hit the 'production directory' icon, you
will find everything you need."
2003 proved to be another busy year for Nashville, according to Andrews.
"We had two independent films shoot in the fall, including No Regrets (writer/director/producer,
Curt Hahn, Transcendent) and Heicke and the Mermaid (Wendy Cooper-Porcelli,
writer/director, Tamara Trexler, producer, and Dave Hodgin, co-producer,
Moon Over Mansfield Productions, Inc.). Along with the two films, they
had several music videos and commercials shoot monthly.
No Regrets writer/director/producer Curt Hahn produces well over 500
TV commercials every year, making his firm one of the largest production
houses in Tennessee, and one of highest volume commercial producers in
the U.S. No Regrets was his first feature film, because he felt technology
had finally caught up to his ideas and he could produce a feature cost-effectively.
"Technology was key because we wanted to shoot multiple cameras in
the same scene. A four-minute scene with five cameras on 35 or even super
16 would be cost-prohibitive," Hahn explains, "but to shoot on digital
video is attainable. Normally you wouldn't take the time to shoot a lot
of different angles, but we did a total of 10 takes from different views.
Lighting takes longer, but once you get rolling, it's more like performing
a play for the actors. They can really get into the moment - it adds a
level of reality. Plus, using this technique made the shoot schedule 10
to 12 days shorter." Hahn says another reason it was economically feasible
to do the film was because they had their own studio, lighting, staff of
over 40, and a crew of 60 plus.
A little star power doesn't hurt either. "Technology was a big factor,
but we actually started because all seven key roles were filled by Hollywood
names," Hahn says. The film, which will be presented at the Cannes Film
Festival in May, features Janine Turner, Kate Jackson, and Jennifer Hetrick
(L.A. Law and Star Trek: The Next Generation) among others.
Heicke and the Mermaid producer Tamara Trexler is a Nashville resident,
intent on helping to make Nashville a viable production center with TV
and feature films. "There's such a talented, solid crew base here," she
says, "and we have the studios, equipment houses, and editing facilities;
in fact, all editing can be done here from start to finish. In Nashville,
permits are only $30 for an unlimited number of locations. And the new
tax structure pending will assist our Tennessee-based filmmakers, along
with out-of-state production companies. It's a real benefit, whether it's
for a feature film, pilot, commercial, or music video."
Trexler cites the wealth of unique locations as another big draw of
the area. "It's very unusual for places to have wooden bridges, but Tennessee
has several. One in Smith County was used in A Death in the Family, a television
movie directed by Gil Cates for PBS Masterpiece Theatre," says Motley.
"There are lots of 1940-period houses right outside Nashville," she adds,
"one of which was featured in Charlie's War, written by Christy Viviano,
directed and produced by David Abbott, starring Olympia Dukakis, Diane
Ladd, Bobbie Eakes, and Lynn Redgrave, with a cameo by Vernon Winfrey (Oprah's
dad)." The film, which was also co-produced by Trexler, was filmed in 1940-era
Watertown, Tennessee. "We didn't have to set dress much at all, and it's
less than 45 miles from Nashville."
Professional support services and their familiarity with new technology
are another key advantage for Nashville, according to Trexler. "The camera
rental company AC Inc. was fabulous - they helped us learn how to use the
high-definition camera to save us money," she explains. "They even sent
a staff member to consult with our cameraman Jeff Wolf (Blue Valley Songbird,
A Painted House, Hallmark Hall of Fame), who's very familiar with high
def, to give us the best look possible. Before we chose to do high def,
it was a huge debate," she continues. "Everything else I've done was on
film. We did a lot of tests and we were very happy. Alex Vlacos, our cinematographer
(who shot the Ashley Judd film Ruby in Paradise), said we had an estimated
savings of $500,000."
J. P. Peach, line producer for No Regrets (Transcendent) gives Nashville
high marks for the city's level of cooperation. "The Public Works Department
is great to work with," she says. "Just call Buddy Hall if you need to
block a road, or have police while you're shooting on a metro street. You
never feel like you're an intruder. They understand that production is
important to the city. In a lot of other places, it's all about what you
can't do. If you explain what you need, they'll do what they can to help
you. Nashville is a very creative, artistically open-minded city; the people
love being a part of the creative process. The key is, it's really easy
to work here."
David Bennett, executive director of the Tennessee Film, Entertainment
& Music Commission, is a 30-year plus veteran of the film and television
industry. He marvels at the impact of technological advances on production.
He calls Heicke & Mermaid a low-budget miracle-the miracle being that
it was low budget, but not low quality. "They shot on a Sony 24p HDTV,
which allowed them to put on a lens package similar to a film camera,"
Bennett explains, "which gave them a depth of field and clarity comparable
to film. People are finding cheaper ways to acquire images through technology.
You can do a 90-minute feature for $500,000 on film, where it used to be
$3 million. Quality still isn't quite 35 or 70 mm Panavision, and lighting
quality can still leave something to be desired, but it's all about the
story, how you convey the images."
According to Bennett, Tennessee "is in pretty healthy shape and we
want to encourage indie films to come here. We love the indie filmmaker
spirit that tries to do it on a shoestring and does beautiful work. Here,
a $1.7 million film gets the same services as a $70 million project."
As for incentives, Tennessee offers free use of both city- and state-owned locations, including parks, hospitals, and correctional facilities such as the old Tennessee State Prison, used in the films The Green Mile and The Last Castle. Both films took advantage of the state sales tax rebate for out-of-town production companies leaving more than $500,000 in the state. Bennett said Tennessee was one of first states to offer this incentive.
The permitting process is on-line at http://www.filmnashville.com (under Mayor's Office). A film permit is required if any filming will take place on city-owned property, including streets and sidewalks. A film permit costs $30, and that is for the entire length of the shoot and for all locations. If shooting in a metro-owned park, an additional permit fee of $75 is required.
The East Tennessee Film Commission was established in 2001, and commissioner David Bolton is just completing his first year at the helm. Yet his passion for creating heightened awareness of all the area has to offer, coupled with numerous incentives, are already starting to pay off. "Our first year's numbers were just under $783,000, and now at the end of 2003, we're almost $2.9 million," he says, "and we've seen over $7 million in economic impact in our first three years."
The bulk of those dollars was from television production; with HGTV
and DIY headquartered in Knoxville, this region has generated more than
1000 original cable program hours.
Production is on the way up for 2004 in the area of feature films,
as well. "We had a fairly good 2003 with one feature film here, Muse Productions'
The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things," says Bolton. "The interesting
challenge was that they weren't looking for the pretty scenes of East Tennessee
that people usually want - they wanted the trailer parks, truck stops,
and strip clubs!"
The Heart is Deceitful producer Chris Hanley was pleased with his experience working in East Tennessee. "The film commission worked very hard to help us with our locations, and supplied many digital photos, which made it possible for us not only to decide that Knoxville had the close proximity of locations to satisfy the locations environments of our show, but also made it possible for us to select places in advance, and then go scout them. David Bolton of the film office made a significant contribution of time to research our location needs and supply information on hotels and local crew. I can say that the local locations personnel, casting, and production office crew who are working with us on this production are quite good, and I have made 20 movies prior to this one, in four countries and six states."
Although Bolton was able to help find a seedy location to fill the bill for that film, he is eager to promote the wide array of picturesque locations in East Tennessee. He maintains that there are more than deserted towns from the 1800s and ideal curvy roads and car shot vistas in the Smoky Mountains, which people usually associate with Tennessee. He mentioned a number of spots that can easily double for locations that are more costly to shoot in: "We have New York City street scenes, rows of townhouses from a Boston neighborhood, and a narrow alley right out of New Orleans, complete with wrought-iron porches."
The diversity doesn't stop there. According to Bolton, the Ocoee River has great rapids that were used in the 1996 Olympics. The Oak Ridge nuclear plant was used for The Manhattan Project, and thanks to the prolific growth of a Japanese plant originally imported to control erosion, the outskirts of Knoxville offer sites of dense vegetation that were the jungle scenes in 1986's King Kong Lives.
In addition to location variety, Bolton believes a minimum of paperwork
and a number of incentives will play a big part in drawing more production
to his area. "No permits are required to film within the borders of Tennessee
except within state-, county-, and city-owned facilities including buildings,
parks, and recreation areas," Bolton explains, "and the commission has
a film permit that is very easy to fill out."
Incentives for filmmakers include a refund of sales and use taxes
for out-of-state motion picture production companies (contact the Tennessee
Film, Entertainment and Music Commission, 877.818.3456), hotel tax exemptions,
no income taxes, child labor law exemptions, ground transportation waivers,
and fee-free locations for state-owned property.
An additional incentive program has just been submitted to the Tennessee legislature, as a bill that will create the Tennessee Motion Picture Incentive Act. This bill would exempt from the payment of specified taxes any company that produces a film, TV movie, commercial, or music video in the state, as long as 51% of the skilled work force needed to produce the movie consists of permanent residents of Tennessee. This bill would apply to all income taxes, business taxes, excise and franchise taxes, and sales and use taxes.
According to West Virginia Film Office director Pamela Haynes, production
in West Virginia is up since July 2003 because of several factors: the
hiring of a new director after a year-long absence of a film office representative,
the increase of marketing/advertising dollars for services provided by
the film office, and a larger crew base that provides support to visiting
motion picture and television production companies.
Dreamworks shot on location in West Virginia in July for its recent
release, Win a Date with Tad Hamilton! (producer Douglas Wick, Gladiator).
They shot six days in Fayetteville for establishing shots - a small-town
backdrop set in a West Virginia town. "They used New River Gorge Bridge,
which is a major thoroughfare, and at 876 feet tall, the second longest
single arch bridge in the world," says Haynes. "The National Park Service
usually requires a hefty fee to shoot from it - $10,000 for one lane. But
we were able to get it complimentary, because they did the shots from the
air, via helicopter. Since no traffic control was needed, they didn't need
to ask for disruption of service."
Haynes says all locations owned by the State of West Virginia are fee-free, with some locations requiring completion of permits for production activity. "In circumstances, for instance, when special requests are made for the exclusive use (closing down, blocking) of certain locations, fees might be imposed for services necessary, for wages of those individuals necessary to assist and for other associated costs. The film office assists with such negotiations. Location fees and permits vary among county, city, and other municipality public property jurisdictions. The liaison services provided by the film office can help identify permit requirements and help negotiate possible waivers or reductions of any fees."
Warner Brothers and Turner Pictures shot for 43 days in the Eastern
Panhandle for Ron Maxwell's Gods and Generals. "The city of Harpers Ferry
and the National Park Service bent over backwards to accommodate the huge
production," says Haynes, "This segment of the production appears prominently
in the "making of" section of the Gods and Generals DVD."
Additional productions have included The Oprah Winfrey Show,
the Food Network, The Learning Channel, and Suzuki/Japan (a national commercial
spot). Many more productions have shot in the state, ranging from indie
features and shorts to regional commercials and reality shows.
West Virginia's history and terrain provide a ripe environment for countless types of stories. "The region is rich in Civil War towns, forests, mountains, covered bridges, rural towns, medium to large metropolitan areas, beautiful rivers, and lakes," explains Haynes. "The terrain offers diversity from one extreme to the next, flat land along several mountain ridges and rolling hills to steep and rugged mountains and forests. Most of West Virginia can easily double for Vermont, North Carolina, Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, and portions of Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, and Missouri, and even upstate New York. West Virginia's borders contain a few castles, numerous covered bridges, and an abundance of views atop mountains overlooking all of the above."
The state is best known for its thoroughbred industry, of course; at the heart of central Kentucky is Lexington, with the largest concentration of horse farms in the world. Yet, Kentucky offers so much more than horses. Period neighborhoods, antebellum mansions, two universities, and one of the largest basketball venues in the nation are only a few of the city's assets.
Modern office towers contrast with neighborhoods of Victorian homes. The Roebling Suspension Bridge, a prototype for the Brooklyn Bridge, connects Kentucky to Cincinnati just across the Ohio River. Cathedrals and churches include the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption, modeled after the Gothic architecture of the Cathedral of Note Dame in Paris.
Louisville's Bowman Field, a small private airport with 1940s architecture, is still in operation. And the state's largest metropolitan area is home to the Northern Kentucky-Greater Cincinnati International Airport, with direct flights between Kentucky and Los Angeles.
Mammoth Cave, the world's largest cave system, has more than 300 miles of passageways, and has been internationally famous for almost two centuries. Kentucky has more miles of running water than any other state except Alaska, swampland areas that have doubled as Vietnam, and in the south central area of the state is Cumberland Falls, known as the "Niagara of the South." The 125-foot wide falls drops 68 feet into the gorge below and is the largest waterfall east of the Rockies except for Niagara itself.
Aside from its generous portion of picturesque locations, Kentucky's
sales tax rebate program is generous to feature-length films and nationally
syndicated TV shows and pilots. Taxable expenditures include accommodations,
meals, production equipment rentals and purchases, set construction and
rigging materials, production office equipment rentals and purchases, utilities,
and prop and wardrobe rentals and purchases. With the completion of a few
simple forms, qualifying productions receive the 6% tax rebate, with no
interim statements or expenditure minimums required.