December 2007 Archives
By Timothy McNulty, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Less than six months after being put in place, the state's new film tax credits are supporting $37 million in spending by movie-makers working on films in the Pittsburgh area, the Pennsylvania Film Office said yesterday.
The office has approved $9.3 million in tax credits for six movie productions around the city since the state approved the new tax incentive program in July. Under the program, movie productions that spend at least 60 percent of their budgets in the state can get up to 25 percent back in credits.
By Jack Markowitz
FOR THE TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Lights, camera, action -- subsidy!
Pennsylvania's retreat from private enterprise continues. Now the taxpayers are supporting moviemaking in the state. A $75 million annual bill.
By Adam Brandolph
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Every Pittsburgh neighborhood has a story to tell.
The couple pushing a stroller down the street might have met in Bloomfield.
Maybe they shared their first kiss in Shadyside, got married on the North Side and had their first child at a hospital in Oakland. Now they take their daughter to the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium in Highland Park and go shopping in the Strip District. Maybe they both work Downtown.
Everyone's story is different.
By The Tribune-Review
Not only is Pittsburgh America's "most livable" city, it was recognized yesterday as a top travel destination.
Associated Press, By Ramesh Santanam
PITTSBURGH - When actress Mary Stuart Masterson wanted to direct her first feature film, she chose a family drama that was set in western Pennsylvania. But when it came time to film it, producers chose upstate New York.
The main reason: Pennsylvania didn't have an enticing enough tax incentive program to lure production of the $3 million independent film. New York did, said Jesse Scolaro, who produced Masterson's film, "The Cake Eaters," through his company, The 7th Floor.
That was last year.
Today, producers are seeking out Pennsylvania to shoot movies, thanks to $75 million in annual tax incentives approved by state lawmakers in July.
By Rob Owen, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Filmed around Western Pennsylvania last fall, the direct-to-DVD release "R.L. Stine's The Haunting Hour: Don't Think About It," was designed to be the first in a series of "Haunting Hour" videos potentially filmed here. The movie also aired on Cartoon Network in September.
Pittsburgh-based Steeltown Entertainment Project, which will ultimately invest more than $900,000 in the first film's more than $3 million budget, is hoping two more movies in the series will film here. The films are produced by independent production company The Hatchery and distributed by Universal Studios Home Entertainment.
L.A. Splash
By Susan di Rende
The annual American Film Market in Santa Monica is a magnet for independent filmmakers even if they have no finished film to sell. The heat created by the $800M+ worth of deals that get sealed over the 10-day event spills over and energizes every interaction. For many, coming to this year's market is the best way to lay the groundwork of relationships that will pay off in next year's.
This is the strategy used by first-time conference attendees Scott Wohlstein and Deven Dittrich, independent filmmakers from Pittsburgh, PA. "If you are a serious filmmaker, AFM is THE place to be in terms of getting connected to what is going on in the film world, to get a sense and pace of the industry, and to make and maintain relationships" comments Scott Wohlstein, Managing Partner, Visceral Films. Development Manager Deven Dittrich agrees, "We work in a region that is far removed from Hollywood. Within the time frame of the marketplace at AFM, we can plug ourselves into the community, albeit briefly. It makes a huge difference."
