A measure that would let Nebraska cities entice filmmakers with state economic development dollars won support Tuesday from an Omaha native who is a prominent director.
Alexander Payne, who directed "About Schmidt," ''Sideways," and "The Descendants," told the Legislature's Urban Affairs Committee that the measure would help Nebraska compete with other Plains states for the attention of movie, television and commercial producers.
"We Nebraskans now enjoy sensational cultural opportunities in opera, symphony, ballet, theater and art," Payne said. "Film remains the missing element. It's crucial to have something in place here — even something modest — or filmmaking both from outside and home-grown has no chance in Nebraska."
Several states, including Nebraska, already have state-based programs in place. The bill by Lincoln Sen. Colby Coash focuses instead on the 55 Nebraska cities that qualify for local option economic development money under a state program established in 1991.
Nebraska has hosted several film crews within the last decade, including crews that shot "Up in the Air," ''About Schmidt," ''Elizabethtown," and "Yes Man."
But movie producers said the state is losing to similar states with better incentives. John Beasley, an Omaha-based television actor and movie producer, said makers of the film "The Marlin Briscoe Story, the First Black Quarterback," may shoot in Kansas, even though Briscoe was born and played football in Omaha.
Coash said he introduced the bill in response to a film project in Valentine, which raised questions about whether cities can use the specially designated state money for movie productions. City officials approved $5,000 in August for one film, "Aviation Cocktail."
Valentine City Manager Shane Sieward said the decision was controversial among council members and residents, some of whom questioned the cost and benefits to local businesses. Council members ultimately agreed to pump the economic development money directly into a local hotel, catering company and van rental company that served the crew.
"We wanted to use it for that purpose, specifically for local businesses," Sieward said in an interview.
Mark Hoeger, president of the Nebraska Film Association, told the panel that filmmakers looking for a place to shoot first examine an area's characteristics, the availability of local crews and financial incentives.
"All the productions that have taken place in Nebraska have been because of that first factor," he said. "It's either been because of (famous Nebraska landmark) Chimney Rock, or a favorite son like Alexander Payne who says, 'I just want to shoot here.' We haven't been able to develop our infrastructure and our crews to the highest world-class levels, because we don't have the incentives."
Hoeger said the bill's local focus allows filmmakers to sidestep some of the challenges that rise from working with state and local governments. With local government approval, he said, filmmakers can confirm in advance that they'll have access to local police, high schools and other town amenities for their projects.
Coash said the bill seeks to put the film industry in "the position of being an economic driver for our state," with a focus on local governments.
"This is really a different approach," Coash said. "There's no fiscal note on this. This isn't state tax dollars. This is just an opportunity for local communities to compete for this."
Nebraska's two largest cities, Omaha and Lincoln, do not participate in the state economic development program.
Forty states offer film incentive programs, and some have faced scandal in recent years.
The former director of the Iowa Film Office was found guilty last year of helping to falsify documents related to that state's tax-credit program, following an October 2010 state audit that found nearly $26 million in tax credits that were allegedly misused.
Director Tom Wheeler and five others in the Iowa Department of Economic Development lost their jobs in the scandal, which included the purchase of luxury vehicles ineligible for the tax credits and a ladder reportedly rented for $1,350. Then-Gov. Chet Culver suspended the program in 2009 and requested an investigation by the state auditor and attorney general.
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The bill is LB863
