10 REASONS ARIZONA NEEDS A NEW FILM INCENTIVE

1. JOBS

The average annual wage of occupations within the film industry in AZ is $53,000.¹
For every 100 persons employed by the film industry, another 208 jobs exist to support it.²
New Mexico’s Film Incentive program grew their resident crew base from 200 in 2007 to over 1600 in 2012.³ North Carolina documented 3300 jobs for resident crew in 2012.⁴

2. ECONOMIC IMPACT

A TV series will spend $25 million or more⁵ and an average feature will spend $10 million or more on in-state wages, goods and services.⁶
North Carolina documented $300 million and New Mexico documented over $224 million in direct in-state spending in 2012 as a result of their programs.⁷
In-state spending grows as more in-state workers and in-state suppliers are used, and investment is channeled to studio construction and other activities that are above and beyond expenditures eligible for credits.

3. ROI – TAX REVENUE GENERATOR

Nearly every state and local tax imposed is affected by film company activity- personal income taxes, sales taxes, excises on fuel, alcohol and tobacco products, hotel bed and rental car taxes, corporate income taxes, property taxes and more.⁸
A 2010 ESI Economic Impact Analysis of a 20% Arizona tax credit forecasted a $1.08 return to the state’s General Fund for every dollar invested…an 8% profit.⁹

4. FILM TOURISM

A successful film is the biggest billboard a state can have.
Old Tucson was once the 2nd most visited tourist attraction in Arizona, just after the Grand Canyon.
Films and TV shows shot in New Mexico resulted in tourism increasing by 4.3% in 2011.¹⁰

5. LEVELS THE PLAYING FIELD

Over 40 states - and dozens of countries - have film incentives which they continue to renew.
31 states offer “refundable” tax credits - like this bill - including New Mexico and Utah; 16 states offer “transferable” tax credits. Canadian provinces have offered a variety of tax credits for over 30 years.
The proposed Arizona tax credit program is more conservative than New Mexico’s and many other states, but it’s competitive in every other way.

6. SMARTEST INCENTIVES IN THE US

The Arizona tax credit favors returning TV series because of the 6 – 9 month production schedule which means more high-wage jobs and over $25 million in spending.
It offers a 20% rebate on qualified Arizona expenditures to studios and production companies who qualify.
It has a $15 million per project annual cap and $70 million annual cap on available tax credits—which translates to potentially $300 million in “qualified” Arizona expenditures and millions more in “unqualified,” indirect and induced spending.

7. FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE

This Arizona incentive is much like the jobs bill passed by the Legislature (HB 2815) and which was signed into law by Governor Brewer in May 2012.
Not one tax credit is issued by the state until after the production has wrapped.
An audit is conducted at the production company’s expense by an independent Arizona licensed CPA who is approved by the Arizona Commerce Authority.

8. EDUCATION AND NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES

Arizona film and TV production students would have access to jobs and connected industry professionals and would not have to leave the state.
Apprenticeship programs with production career tracks for high school students are encouraged.

9. INDUSTRY WANTS TO BE HERE

Arizona’s proximity to Los Angeles, the diversity of our locations, our predictable weather and our experienced crew base make Arizona highly desireable to the studios.
DJANGO UNCHAINED, THE LONE RANGER, 3:10 TO YUMA, TRUE GRIT and other films and TV series wanted to film here here but decided against it for lack of a viable incentive.¹¹

10. REVIVES ARIZONA'S LEGACY

Arizona was one of the top 3 film industry destinations. Now we are in the bottom 3.
A major motion picture has not been based in Arizona since Will Ferrell’s EVERYTHING MUST GO filmed in April of 2010.

“Economic and Fiscal Impact Analysis of Proposed Motion Picture Tax Credit (SB1409),” Study prepared by ESI Corporation and commissioned by Bruce Bodner Company for potential studio in Avondale, AZ. April 2010. p. 1.
IBID
New Mexico Film Office; www.nmfilm.com
North Carolina Film Office; www.ncfilm.com
Walt Disney Studios; Location budget prepared for potential TV series to be filmed in Phoenix in 2012.
“Evaluating the effectiveness of state film tax credit programs,” Study prepared by Ernst Young commissioned by the Motion Picture Association of America. 2012. p. 12
Op. cit. New Mexico Film Office, North Carolina Film Office
Op. cit. Ernst Young for the Motion Picture Association of America. 2012. p. 5.
Op. cit. ESI Corp for Bruce Bodner Company. 2010. p. 2.
“Economic and Fiscal Impacts of the New Mexico Film Production Tax Credit,” Study prepared by Ernst Young commissioned by the New Mexico State Film Office and State Investment Council; January 2009. p. 9

Compiled by the Tucson Film Office, a division of the Metropolitan Tucson, Convention & Visitors Bureau

And the story begins...

Phoenix, AZ, February 13, 2013 – A little slice of Hollywood is coming to Scottsdale, AZ and unlike previously proposed studios to be built in the Valley of the Sun, this one isn’t waiting for lawmakers.

Working with the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, Gaia Global Holding LLC is finalizing plans to create an entertainment mecca in Scottsdale, AZ. “We’re not waiting for incentives, we’re moving forward,” says +Jen Miller-Bender, CEO of Gaia Global Holding Corp.

This project is being bootstrapped by Miller-Bender and is fully funded through her extensive business and entertainment contacts. A true Arizona project, this $100 million investment will provide more than 100 permanent staff not to mention help create more than 1,000 new industry related positions.

“This state-of-the-art production facility will incorporate green design, renewable energy technology, and an earth and community-friendly approach to film making,” says Mrs. Miller-Bender. To be built in the entertainment corridor on the SRPMIC just minutes away from Talking Stick Resort, Golf Course, and Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, the campus will not only be a destination for business in the area but throughout Arizona. “Arizona has a wealth of beauty and variety of locales that make our state the unique place to reproduce just about any location in the world,” continues Miller-Bender, “and our studio will provide an anchor to film and television production in the state.”

But it doesn’t stop there. GGHC is working with British Columbia’s Arcana Studios to bring their catalog of hundreds of existing properties and create to create a state of the art animation and visual effects studio as part of the development in Scottsdale. Arcana Studios already has successful films and television programs produced in Canada and they look forward to coming to the southwest.

The close proximity to Sky Harbor Airport, Scottsdale Airpark, and freeway access help bring the studio even closer to Hollywood. Hollywood in the Desert is just an hour by plane and six hours by car away from the California studio system. It plans on becoming a destination for not only Hollywood, but the world.

The motion picture production industry has deep roots in Arizona dating back to statehood. Thousands of Arizona residents have been employed as crews, technicians, actors, and numerous Arizona vendors have profited from the industry. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been poured into the Arizona economy via film and TV production and from tourism that has resulted from Arizona’s portrayal in countless films and numerous TV series.

State Senator Al Melvin introduced SB 1242 earlier this month. Known as the Multimedia Production Tax Incentives bill, he argues that the bill could create hundreds of high-wage jobs connected to movie, advertising and TV production. That would, in turn, stimulate other areas of the state’s economy, including the tourism, construction and the hospitality sectors. Arizona lawmakers just passed this bill today. The next stage is to the finance committee, then the House.

If the bill passes, it will allocate $70 million in tax credits to benefit production companies filming in Arizona, provided they meet certain qualifications. To receive the credit, the studio must submit specific details of the production (such as relevant members of the cast, crew, and a script or synopsis of the film) and must spend at least $250,000 here in Arizona to be eligible to get cash back. Additional items are proposed, including an additional 5% return when using qualified production facilities within the state of Arizona instead of going back to Los Angeles for studio space.

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Debbie Elicksen, Transmedia

debbie.elicksen@gmail.com

@HollywoodGaia

Hollywood in the Desert

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Arizona Needs An Economy Boost From Film