Keep film in Washington

Washington’s film industry is what many folks refer to as “small, but mighty.”   Over the past few years we’ve been attempting to grow the industry, in large part by establishing a strong state film incentive.  Most states have incentives to encourage filming activity, and Washington needs to build upon it’s current program in order to remain competitive.   Unfortunately our incentive plan is one of the smallest in the country, which limits the volume of projects that decide to film here.   I’ve been fortunate to work on several incentive projects, including “Captain Fantastic,” “Laggies,” “Lucky Them” and “Safety Not Guaranteed.”   We need more projects like those to film here in Washington.   A better incentive would also increase the possibility of one or more TV series shooting here, much like “Grimm,” “The Librarians” and “Portlandia” all shoot down in Portland.

The good news is that although our incentive is small, it’s far better designed and effective than most other states.     For every $1 we invest in film and TV jobs, it generates more than $10 in economic boosts for the community.    If we can phase in a more competitive plan that increase the amount of money available, the industry is poised to grow in leaps and bounds.

A new, bipartisan bill was recently introduced in the state legislature to increase the incentive from $3.5m to $10m over the next few years.   This bill needs all the support it can get!   I encourage you to visit the website KeepFilminWA.com, to read up on our program and how we can improve it.  Please sign the petition and write to the legislators in your district.    Thanks so much for your help.