ALABAMA FILM INCENTIVES NOW A REALITY
Governor Riley signed HB-69, making the "Alabama Entertainment Industry Incentive Act of 2009" a reality.
The Alabama Film Office (and the Alabama Dept. of Revenue) will oversee the Film Incentive program. The Application Forms and copies of the Rules & Regulations are in place... and can be obtained on the Alabama Film Office website (www.alabamafilm.org) or by phone at 334 242-4195.
25% REBATE –Production Expenditure
All goods & services
($500,000 minimum spend)
Motion Picture Soundtrack
($50,000 - $300,000 spend)
35% REBATE – Alabama Labor
Alabama resident crew & talent
($500,000 minimum spend)
Motion Picture Soundtrack crew & talent
($50,000 - $300,000 spend)
4% SAVINGS: NO State Sales Tax
($150,000 minimum spend)
4% SAVINGS: NO Lodging Tax
($150,000 minimum spend)
MICHAEL TOMBERLIN
Birmingham News staff writer
It has taken three years and a lot of behind-the-scenes work, but Alabama now has a Film Incentive Rebate in place.
It's the culmination of a lot of work by many, including Mark Stricklin, executive director of the Birmingham-Jefferson Film Office. As a board member of the Association of Film Commissions International, Stricklin has access that can help Alabama lure projects. But he also has a front-row view of how critical state incentives have become to film production companies.
Stricklin said it would be great if an area or state could compete purely on its own merits and "not have to tie sausage around your neck to get the dogs to lick your face". Unfortunately, locations and infrastructure are just part of the package now. Economic rebates and tax credits play a major role in determining where a production will film.
Thanks to the legislation approval and Governor's signature, Stricklin believes Alabama has the ability to offer incentives that will make it competitive enough to lure film projects and market other factors the state has to offer.
Under the film incentive legislation, a group that spends at least $150,000 on production work during a 12-month period will be eligible for tax breaks on lodging, as well as state sales and use taxes.
But the big incentives will be a 25 percent rebate on goods and services purchased in the state during production and a 35 percent rebate on payroll taxes paid for Alabama workers hired for the production. Productions can qualify for rebates ranging into millions of dollars.
There are even incentives for companies wanting to produce motion picture soundtracks in the state.
***Stricklin talks about what all of this means for his agency and the state***
Are you excited to finally see film industry incentives become a reality?
After three years, a lot of battles, a lot of revisions, a lot meetings, a lot of miles back and forth from Birmingham to Montgomery, yes, it's pretty exciting stuff.
Is the end result what you were wanting?
Yes. This helps tremendously. The studios even came out and said they're not even looking at states in the U.S. that do not have film incentives.
Do we know we lost projects because we didn't have film industry incentives?
Most definitely. The state film office can cite specific examples of major films that didn't come to Alabama because we didn't have this legislation.
Did Alabama end up with the incentives it needs to truly entice film projects here?
The film commissions that get the most recognition are those are around 25 to 30 percent in rebates. Our incentives bill is 25 percent for goods and services, 35 percent for Alabama labor used. Plus, we have music industry soundtrack rebates added to it and we have a low enough threshold of $150,000, so our local film industry can benefit.
It's not just about getting Hollywood here, it's sustaining our own crew base and making sure they have the capabilities to raise their families. It's so frustrating that young students going to our film schools or colleges and universities and then feeling like they have to go to Louisiana or North Carolina or New York or L. to make a living.
Apart from incentives, what are Birmingham's or Alabama's main selling points to the industry?
True cooperation, professional know-how, talented crew & talent, and the eagerness to please. We're hungry for it. It's not old hat to us.
When I was here before running the state film office, we did productions like "Under Siege" and "Mississippi Burning" - especially in places like LaFayette and smaller areas - that was the biggest news since homemade ice cream.
And, it's not just the major metropolitan areas. There are great locations and great cooperation all throughout the state.
We've got a good diversity of looks in the state - from metropolitan to the water of the bay and rivers, the canyons, the beach, the mountains - so from that respect we're very competitive.
We've got some locations that obviously have worked and will continue to work that you can't find anywhere else. Those are the keys that we push. For example, the USS Alabama is the only battleship location that has a 180-degree view of open water. You have things here in Birmingham like Sloss Furnaces, Rickwood Field, Morris Avenue, the Civil Rights District, and Barber Motorsports Park to name a few. The Birmingham Museum is very cooperative and a great venue. Even government buildings here are very film friendly.
We also have the commitment from the City of Birmingham, Jefferson County, and the surrounding seven county region to provide all needed assistance in film projects. Those in-kind opportunities will provide tremendous value to overall production budgets.
How do you promote the city and state to film companies?
After doing this 20 years, I know many producers (both major filmmakers and independents), VPs of production, commercial execs and who to contact. I also know what they want to hear. They want to know what's new, what's exciting, what can we expect.
There are also many directories and software programs that help film commissions track productions in development. Between tracking it, networking it, going to LA, New York and some film festivals and forums, we get the word out.
How do our incentives compare to those offered by other states?
Very well. We're in the top 17 percent.
This isn't just aimed at blockbuster movies, right?
That's correct. It's not just about the huge feature films. Obviously they have the sex appeal and get the attention and all of that. But what sustains Birmingham and will continue to sustain Birmingham are music videos, documentaries, the commercial industry with ad agencies and public relations firms all over the Southeast.
They're the bread and butter. They're what are going to keep our crews and talent busy in the long run. They're the repeat customers and the client base.
Any predictions when we will see a project as a result of these incentives?
We have a number of projects already waiting and saying, `Hey, what's with your incentives bill? We would sure like to shoot and give Alabama an opportunity... because we now know you have the total package.'
We anticipate a big upswing of a least potential projects; where before the potential wasn't even there.
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