GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Many students study filmmaking here in the state of Michigan, but they often go elsewhere for work. That’s because Michigan is one of a few states that doesn’t have a film incentive. New legislation introduced is hoping to change that.
Dave Benoit enjoys the freedom of creative directing. It’s a passion that almost took him to Atlanta.
“I had friends, I had video opportunities already lined up for me, I had sets that I was going to be on. I had so much going for me at that time. I had nothing here,” said Benoit.
Then the pandemic happened, forcing him to change his plans and stay here in Grand Rapids. The plot twist brought him to Grand Stand Pictures. He says it was difficult getting used to the idea of staying home. However, at Grand Stand Pictures, he was able to assist producers and learn a lot about the movie industry as a whole. Now, he’s dedicated to helping others get into the film industry and one day hopes to create his own feature film.
“Whether you want to learn how to do lighting, you want to learn how to do editing, you want to learn how to screenwrite, or you want to learn how to podcast, we teach multiple things here in the fields of filming media,” said Victor Williams, president and CEO of Grand Stand Pictures.
He remembers when the film incentive began in 2008, and people like 50 Cent were working on movies here.
“He shot multiple films in the city, he was so in love with Grand Rapids,” said Williams.
One of those films is called Caught in the Crossfire. Williams says our strength here in Michigan is that we can film any scene and weather scenario, from the ocean to the desert. However, when the film incentive was stripped away in 2012, 50 Cent’s projects and many others went away, and so did jobs as well as talent.
“We're not on an even playing field and that means that any time that a production is looking for a location, they skip over Michigan as a potential place to film their project,” said Bill Latka.
He’s on the board of the Michigan Film Industry Association, and says more than 40 states and cities have incentive programs. Latka is hoping to bring them back to Michigan with the Multimedia Jobs Act legislation.
“Any spend that happens in a state, they can apply for a percentage of that to be returned to them as a refundable tax credit,” said Latka. “So, it's a way to really let producers know that Michigan is open for business in a new, exciting creative area.”
The Multimedia Jobs Act would provide a 30% tax credit for hiring Michigan residents and 20% for nonresidents; a $50,000 minimum qualified spend for commercials, commercial photography, and short films; a $300,000 minimum spend for feature films and TV shows among other things.
“If they want to get in this business, they can't do it here, so they leave,” said Latka. “We have the ability to turn that around and give these young people a chance to stay here in Michigan and work in the jobs that they'd love to do.”
The bills are currently in the Senate and House committees awaiting a hearing. Once there is a hearing, they'll go to the House and Senate floor for a vote. For more information on the Multimedia Jobs Act legislation, click here.
