Posted on Tue, Jan 17, 2012 : 9:46 a.m.
Less interest in Michigan with film-incentive limits, report shows
By AnnArbor.com Staff
The Detroit Free Press today reports on a sharp drop in applications to the Michigan state film incentive program as new limits on the amount of credits available took effect.
The original incentive program brought a boom in movie and TV filming to Michigan, much of which came to the Ann Arbor / Ypsilanti area. Most recently, the locally produced, nationally syndicated TV show "Ariel, Zoey and Eli, Too" received a credit from the remaining money available.
Comments
jcj
Wed, Jan 18, 2012 : 8:54 p.m.
"Less interest in Michigan with film-incentive limits, report shows" WOW! How long did it take to figure that out? Take away anybodies cash cow and they will look for another one elsewhere! Sparty You throw numbers around without backing them up. And there are many different opinions as to how much the State actually LOST!
Sparty
Wed, Jan 18, 2012 : 1:36 p.m.
ONE film was going to bring $90 million worth of business to Michigan in exchange for $24 million in incentives, meaning a net gain of $66 Million dollars. Because that $24 million was the entire annual arbitrary cap established by the nerd, the deal didn't get done. Michigan lost $66 million dollars that it would have gained under Granholm. Multiply this by approximately 85 other deals and you see the scope of the lost money Slickster is just giving away, let alone the interest that a film produced in Michigan creates.
Arborcomment
Tue, Jan 17, 2012 : 11:56 p.m.
Thank you Deb for exposing the "Pulp Fiction" of one of Granholm's "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" plans for a "Field of Dreams" recovery in Michigan. Now if only Ray would stop re-running "Transformers - Revenge of the Fallen" and get over the obsession with "Republicons"...
deb
Tue, Jan 17, 2012 : 7:26 p.m.
I worked on a few of these movies. Michigan taxpayers were paying for a lot of hotel rooms (not to mention whatever else accounting could get away with, or whatever "independent" studios could fit in) and a lot of out of state talent and workers to come here and shoot movies. The michigan workforce (save for a few departments) was mostly shut out of the high paying jobs. On one movie that I worked on they flew in basically everyone but the transportation drivers (not the tranportation head) some of the construction crew (not the stand by painter, he had to be flown in from cali and sit in a hotel room and wait) and the PA's. Sorry but after experiencing this from the inside, I think it was a good move. Movies are shot out of the backs of Semi-trucks, the trucks can and will roll to whoever has the best incentive at the time.
RayA2
Tue, Jan 17, 2012 : 5:03 p.m.
I suppose the fact that the movie industry, a relatively recession proof industry, is a good jobs portfolio addition for Michigan, and that bring that industry to Michigan requires investment, is too much logic for republicons addicted to Faux Noise's opinion only matters message. In that trickle down fairy tale world, throwing money at a handful of super rich people is a much better idea.
Brian Kuehn
Tue, Jan 17, 2012 : 6:31 p.m.
There has to be a better way to attract business to Michigan than paying direct subsidies. The "Movie Incentive" was essentially a tax funded bribe to film makers to make films and programs here. Once the bribe money dried up, our new film industry friends folded their tents and left.
David Briegel
Tue, Jan 17, 2012 : 5 p.m.
Richard Dale Snyder, Job Killer! Relentless negative action.
Greg
Tue, Jan 17, 2012 : 4:16 p.m.
The question is not if the money giveaways to the film industry created jobs, but whether there were more cost efficient ways of creating jobs. Those who love the film industry of course hated logic entering into the equation.
Forever27
Tue, Jan 17, 2012 : 5:02 p.m.
it seems to me that those whom HATE the film industry refused to let logic enter the debate. The question wasn't whether there were other ways to create jobs, that has ye to be explored by our great nerd governor (regardless of the rhetoric). all that happened was a cut, with no plan to recoup the lost jobs as a result.