At the beginning of this year, North Carolina’s film incentive switched from a competitive tax rebate to a very small grant fund – holding just $10 million. That’s a fraction of what the state paid out in tax credits the previous year.
Film industry advocates have long predicted the evaporation of production in the state if leaders didn’t quickly come up with an equally viable incentive.
WHQR’s Rachel Lewis Hilburn spoke with Wilmington Mayor Bill Saffo about a new public push that area leaders hope will translate into more money from the General Assembly for the film grant.
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RLH: You held a press conference at EUE / Screen Gems [today] with local business leaders -- including New Hanover County Commissioner Beth Dawson, Johnny Griffin of the Film Commission, Bill Vassar of EUE / Screen Gems… What’s the big announcement?
BS: We felt that we needed to speak as a unified voice because one of the things that we have heard in speaking with leadership in both House and Senate is that it seemed to them, at different points, that there was a disjointed voice that was being talked about in regards to film. We know that the MPAA – Motion Picture Association of America – had lobbyists involved that were kind of pushing the grant program. We had our local delegation, Representative [Susi] Hamilton (D-New Hanover County) as well as [Ted] Davis (R-New Hanover County) that were pushing the credit.
RLH: You say that inquiries from production companies have dropped off by 70%. The Film Commission has three leads so far, when this last time last year there were fifteen. What other ways are you seeing the effects of the incentive change?
BS: Film spent $170 million in our community in 2014, and the projections or the estimates for 2015 is between $40 and $50 million.
And we’re already beginning to see a lot of crew, individuals, citizens of our community that are relocating to South Carolina and Georgia to find employment. They’re part of our community, and to lose those people to other states when we have it already here in Wilmington with the infrastructure in place, with a history of over 30 years of film production in our community, it’s just a travesty.
RLH: What is the number that you’re going for? What would make this grant fund competitive?
BS: To really make it competitive to a point where you could really grow the program is about $80 million. Whether we get that or not – that’s another question. But that would keep us at a production level that was very similar to 2014.
RLH: Other than you coming together with this united voice, what’s different? Why do you think you might be able to get the grant fund more robustly funded?
BS: I think the difference this time as opposed to last time – I think the comments and the discussions that we’ve had with leadership in the different committees – the appropriations chairs, Speaker of the House, have been positive. The leadership in the Senate has been positive…
I think speaking with a unified voice, being focused, I think is going to help us increase the money in the grant program. I think whether we get the $80 million or not is another story because it’s a pretty tough budget year and what they’re dealing with up there…
RLH: Do you have a timeline on this? Are we coming to the end of a fiscal year in June and we’ll need to re-fund this grant one way or another?
BS: Yes, because the grant program, I believe, expires in June. So we know that it’s going to be critically important around May and June to hopefully get this passed and get the support. Because at the end of June, there is no more credit money. So, literally, we could have no money at all for our film productions.
RLH: Mayor Saffo, I really appreciate your time.
BS: Thank you, Rachel.
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The fight over film incentives in the state ended last year when the Legislature allowed the popular tax rebate to sunset in December.
Two months into 2015 with half of a $40 million grant fund spoken for, film leaders say they’ve seen a 70% drop in inquiries from production companies, and they’re watching crew members leave for neighboring states with more business.
But Wilmington Mayor Bill Saffo says local leaders are now speaking with one voice by accepting the current grant structure and working to build it into a viable alternative. And state leaders, he says, might be more receptive to a focus on TV.
"I think they feel that North Carolina is really conducive to TV production. We’ve kind of built this industry around TV production to where a series can run for nine years like One Tree Hill or Dawson’s Creek, and it supports a lot of workers in the community that stay here for long periods of time. And you can kind of measure it a lot easier than maybe you can with a film that drops in and goes out."
Saffo says he doesn’t know when the issue might appear on the calendar in Chambers, but he says it’s critical something is passed before the end of the fiscal year in June.
