Published: July 31, 2009 11:10 pm      

Council says film incentive program is safe

TRAVERSE CITY -- Michigan's film incentives are safe, despite reports to the contrary, said the Michigan Film Office director.

"The government is four-square behind us," Janet Lockwood said at Friday's meeting of the Michigan Film Office Advisory Council. The meeting was held at the City Opera House as a panel session for the Traverse City Film Festival.

Producers who make films in Michigan can get up to a 42 percent tax credit as part of the incentive. Lockwood said the film office paid out $30 million in credits in 2008.

Film productions spent more than $65 million in communities where they worked during 2008, according to Michigan State University's Center for Economic Analysis.

Some state lawmakers question whether the state's investment in film production is paying dividends. They've suggested capping such incentives.

Friday's panel session served as a formal meeting of the advisory council. Eleven members were present, including Traverse City Film Festival founder Michael Moore, Hopwood Depree, co-founder of Saugatuck's Waterfront Film Festival, Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Sue Marx and Jim Burnstein, head of the University of Michigan screenwriting program.

Since the council met in May, 33 projects had been approved by the film commission and 20 denied, bringing the 2009 total to 75 applications, Lockwood said.

One project recently finished is "Stone," filmed at the prison in Jackson and starring Robert DeNiro and Edward Norton. "The Bass Master" is filming near Traverse City and Petoskey, she said, and rapper 50 Cent recently filmed in Grand Rapids.

"He's very gracious," Lockwood said of 50 Cent. "He did a lot of interviews and talked to children's groups."

Moore updated the council on this year's film festival. He said the festival brings in $10 million for the region over five or six days.

"And it has the ripple effect of exposing this area," Moore said. "The red carpet will be rolled out to anyone who wants to make movies here.

"Filmmakers who come here for the festival leave and tell everyone they know what an incredible place this is," Moore said.

Moore also said he's tempted to add the position of "Ambassador of Single-Screen Downtown Movie Theaters" to the council because of the economic benefits the reopened State Theater has had on Traverse City. The film festival owns the theater.

"It has not only lifted things economically, but has lifted the spirits," Moore said. "I think people who live here would say there's a sense now that this downtown will never die."