The Location Trade Show was in town last weekend. Peter and I went on Thursday since we had been invited to the cocktail party put on by the Canadians that evening.
We had a great time at the show. It was at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. Film commissions from around the world had booths – it was like a trip around the world in four hours. I went to Kenya, Italy, Australia, Germany, UK, Australia, Canada and just about every state in the union. And we got swag – a bag full of swag. And the people? Down-to-Earth. Approachable. Interesting. And, unlike the other side of Hollywood, they want to help. The experience made me want to write a script to shoot in every state and every country. What a great way to travel.
We especially enjoyed visiting and meeting the people behind the voices at Nevada, Montana and Alberta, since they had already read the script. We’ve been working with them over the past couple of months and they’ve been sending us potential location photos. They’ve all been great to us, even though we’re not funded. And their help at this stage is essential (especially since we’re not funded) because we will be using the visuals and the incentives they provide as part of our business plan.
We have no idea where we’re going to shoot. There are so many variables. Money, unions, incentives are just a few of the considerations. So far, it looks like Montana is the most eager to have us – or at least in the best political position to offer the most incentives. Alberta is probably second. One of the main stops in the story is in Nevada but the state doesn’t have near as many incentives as Montana and Alberta. Incentives vary state-by-state because they are passed through the state’s legislature in an attempt to attract the movie business. For example, the Wyoming film commission is trying hard to pass a bigger incentive package so they can compete with other states. They lost Brokeback Mountain to Alberta because of production costs. Still, a lot of people think the movie was shot in Wyoming. That’s good for the movie and good for Alberta. Not as good for Wyoming since the money wasn’t spent there.
Nevada doesn’t need to offer as many incentives. They have Vegas. And Hollywood will shoot there either way. So, even though I’d like to be authentic and shoot in Nevada, we can always shoot in Montana and/or Alberta for Nevada. Time will tell.
