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“Where ya headed?” the goofy, gapped-tooth driver asks the timid beauty sitting in his back seat.
“Aspen,” she says.
“Hmmm, California! Beautiful!”
The two buffoons in 1994's Dumb and Dumber certainly made fools of themselves on their antic-filled trip to the Rockies—but the joke these days seems to be on Colorado.
The Centennial State has seen its share of big movie stars and film crews over the years, from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid in 1969 to Jack Nicholson in 2002's About Schmidt, and has served as a setting for some of the country's premiere cinematic efforts, as far back as the late 19th century.
But currently Colorado isn't luring as many film productions as some say it should. The state's film commission attempts to sell filmmakers on Colorado's “everything but the ocean” potential; however, it's no longer those purple mountains' majesty and those golden plains that attract big studio productions. It's the incentives a state or country offers.
It takes money to make money in the movie industry. According to those in the Colorado film business and some lawmakers, the state isn't making the kind of blockbuster bucks that it should.
“In the film industry, incentives are the driver. It's no longer about location,” Colorado Film Commissioner Kevin Shand said. “I get calls here from filmmakers or production companies and the first thing they ask is, 'What kind of incentives do you have?' I tell them and then I get, 'Thanks, buh-bye.'”
Click.
Those films will likely be shot elsewhere, Shand says. In places with better incentives and higher rebates: In comparison to New Mexico, South Carolina, Canada, New Zealand and Australia, Colorado's incentive package is not so appealing. The state rebates up to 10 percent of the cost of producing a film or TV show if criteria are met. New Mexico, for example, rebates 25 percent of production costs, offers no-interest loans of up to $15 million and gives free use of state property.
“This has turned into a global business and filmmakers are looking for the best incentive. That doesn't put us near the top of the pile,” Shand said.
Years after the state stopped funding an official film office and the Colorado Film Commission became a non-profit organization, lawmakers are trying to put some life back into Colorado's movie market. In 2006, lawmakers approved the 10 percent rebate. And this session, Rep. Tom Massey has proposed a bill that would increase that refund to 15 percent of production costs—incentives that would soar from an annual total of $600,000 to $10 million.
“This is our shot to get back into the film production business,” Shand said.
Why attempt to bring movie and TV industries to Colorado? Those productions that qualify for incentives could contribute tens of millions of dollars of direct spending to the state each year, on everything from carpenters and painters to caterers, actors and hotels.
“The fact is it's a clean, green industry that comes in and doesn't put pressure on our infrastructure. They drop their money and leave.” Massey said. “It puts our existing services to work and puts our actors to work.”
For example, Eddie Murphy's recent movie NowhereLand had just two weeks of footage shot in Colorado, spending more than $3 million.
“That's just the beginning. You can see what it can do for Colorado,” Massey said. “What we are trying to do is bring in new dollars instead of recycling dollars within the state.”
According to Shand, Colorado does see quite a few commercials each year. But like NowhereLand, many films shoot just portions within the state—even if they are set in Colorado—and do a majority of filming in other places. Films like Resurrecting the Champ, about a Denver sports reporter, and Catch and Release, in which Jennifer Garner plays a grieving Boulderite, took place in Colorado but were primarily filmed in Canada or Hollywood soundstages.
To Massey and Shand, that's revenue and exposure lost.
“A production company comes in and films what we have to offer. We don't have to build new roads or schools. They come, film and leave,” Shand said. “And they leave one thing behind: money.”
Film production brings in much more money than the state spends on incentives, Shand said. But where the proposed refund money is going to come from is still up in the air. The rebate now comes from limited gaming tax revenues and other taxes, and Massey is looking for some tax revenue pool that will be able to fund $10 million in annual rebates.
“Like everything else, it's all about the money,” Massey said. “The tough thing is that it's a rebate fund instead of a seed fund.”
Before a production company can get the cash rebate, it must spend 75 percent of its below-the-line budget with Colorado businesses and hire 75 percent of their crew locally. Shand predicts that the proposed increase to the rebate would allow the state to generate almost $70 million each year in direct spending from film productions.
“Colorado is great for films. That's why we say, 'Everything but the oceans.' We have more 14ers than any other state. We have sand dunes, big cities, rural areas, plains. A whole diversity of looks,” Shand said. “You go to Denver to get one look, go to Fort Collins to get another and to the mountains for another. You can sell many different places within one state and that can cut down on production costs. ... There's just that one part of where we are not competitive: We’re not financially competitive.”
“Aspen,” she says.
“Hmmm, California! Beautiful!”
The two buffoons in 1994's Dumb and Dumber certainly made fools of themselves on their antic-filled trip to the Rockies—but the joke these days seems to be on Colorado.
The Centennial State has seen its share of big movie stars and film crews over the years, from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid in 1969 to Jack Nicholson in 2002's About Schmidt, and has served as a setting for some of the country's premiere cinematic efforts, as far back as the late 19th century.
But currently Colorado isn't luring as many film productions as some say it should. The state's film commission attempts to sell filmmakers on Colorado's “everything but the ocean” potential; however, it's no longer those purple mountains' majesty and those golden plains that attract big studio productions. It's the incentives a state or country offers.
It takes money to make money in the movie industry. According to those in the Colorado film business and some lawmakers, the state isn't making the kind of blockbuster bucks that it should.
“In the film industry, incentives are the driver. It's no longer about location,” Colorado Film Commissioner Kevin Shand said. “I get calls here from filmmakers or production companies and the first thing they ask is, 'What kind of incentives do you have?' I tell them and then I get, 'Thanks, buh-bye.'”
Click.
Those films will likely be shot elsewhere, Shand says. In places with better incentives and higher rebates: In comparison to New Mexico, South Carolina, Canada, New Zealand and Australia, Colorado's incentive package is not so appealing. The state rebates up to 10 percent of the cost of producing a film or TV show if criteria are met. New Mexico, for example, rebates 25 percent of production costs, offers no-interest loans of up to $15 million and gives free use of state property.
“This has turned into a global business and filmmakers are looking for the best incentive. That doesn't put us near the top of the pile,” Shand said.
Years after the state stopped funding an official film office and the Colorado Film Commission became a non-profit organization, lawmakers are trying to put some life back into Colorado's movie market. In 2006, lawmakers approved the 10 percent rebate. And this session, Rep. Tom Massey has proposed a bill that would increase that refund to 15 percent of production costs—incentives that would soar from an annual total of $600,000 to $10 million.
“This is our shot to get back into the film production business,” Shand said.
Why attempt to bring movie and TV industries to Colorado? Those productions that qualify for incentives could contribute tens of millions of dollars of direct spending to the state each year, on everything from carpenters and painters to caterers, actors and hotels.
“The fact is it's a clean, green industry that comes in and doesn't put pressure on our infrastructure. They drop their money and leave.” Massey said. “It puts our existing services to work and puts our actors to work.”
For example, Eddie Murphy's recent movie NowhereLand had just two weeks of footage shot in Colorado, spending more than $3 million.
“That's just the beginning. You can see what it can do for Colorado,” Massey said. “What we are trying to do is bring in new dollars instead of recycling dollars within the state.”
According to Shand, Colorado does see quite a few commercials each year. But like NowhereLand, many films shoot just portions within the state—even if they are set in Colorado—and do a majority of filming in other places. Films like Resurrecting the Champ, about a Denver sports reporter, and Catch and Release, in which Jennifer Garner plays a grieving Boulderite, took place in Colorado but were primarily filmed in Canada or Hollywood soundstages.
To Massey and Shand, that's revenue and exposure lost.
“A production company comes in and films what we have to offer. We don't have to build new roads or schools. They come, film and leave,” Shand said. “And they leave one thing behind: money.”
Film production brings in much more money than the state spends on incentives, Shand said. But where the proposed refund money is going to come from is still up in the air. The rebate now comes from limited gaming tax revenues and other taxes, and Massey is looking for some tax revenue pool that will be able to fund $10 million in annual rebates.
“Like everything else, it's all about the money,” Massey said. “The tough thing is that it's a rebate fund instead of a seed fund.”
Before a production company can get the cash rebate, it must spend 75 percent of its below-the-line budget with Colorado businesses and hire 75 percent of their crew locally. Shand predicts that the proposed increase to the rebate would allow the state to generate almost $70 million each year in direct spending from film productions.
“Colorado is great for films. That's why we say, 'Everything but the oceans.' We have more 14ers than any other state. We have sand dunes, big cities, rural areas, plains. A whole diversity of looks,” Shand said. “You go to Denver to get one look, go to Fort Collins to get another and to the mountains for another. You can sell many different places within one state and that can cut down on production costs. ... There's just that one part of where we are not competitive: We’re not financially competitive.”
