Not much action! on Colorado film scene

Joanne Kelley, Rocky Mountain News

Published June 27, 2007 at midnight

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All's quiet on the set as the cameras begin rolling in the basement bar at Braun's near the Pepsi Center.

Marty Lindsey, who's directing and starring in his own screenplay, launches into his role as a slightly neurotic 35- year-old in the midst of an early midlife crisis after moving his family from New York City to Arvada to find work.

During a break between shooting scenes of Suburban on Monday, Lindsey showed none of the same confusion about his real-life decision to leave Los Angeles and come home to Colorado in hopes of bolstering the state's reputation as a good place to produce films.

"You can make movies anywhere," said Lindsey, a graduate of Arvada's Pomona High School. "I truly believe we'll round the corner if there're good stories coming out of Denver."

Colorado has been struggling to attract films in an era when production companies can collect hefty financial rewards for agreeing to shoot the bulk of their movies in more generous states or countries.

"Colorado has to find a way to match up to that," said Bill Lindstrom, chief executive officer of the Association of Film Commissioners International.

The practice of offering cash or tax breaks to filmmakers began in Canada and then spread to other foreign locales. The money helps explain why movies that appear to have been shot in Colorado were actually filmed elsewhere.

New Mexico has invested heavily in its film incentives over the past five years, a move that has paid off in both jobs and investments in infrastructure.

"Like both of our states, the land has always attracted people, and it always will," said Lisa Strout, director of the New Mexico State Film Office. "But certainly our aggressive incentive package has changed the film business here dramatically."

Sony Pictures Imageworks broke ground this week on a new digital production facility on the campus of the privately funded Albuquerque Studios. Since 2001, the number of New Mexicans working on film crews has risen to about 1,500 from 100, Strout said.

The numbers of films being produced in New Mexico also has skyrocketed.

"I remember when we'd be really excited when a script came in," Strout said. "Now, there are times when we'll get eight to 10 a day. We've had 50 in the past three months.

A recently established program in Colorado gives the local film commission at least some money to entice filmmakers. The legislature first approved a $500,000 pot of money, adding an extra $100,000 to that this year.

Proponents of such incentives point to the economic benefits, including the average of $100,000-plus a day that big productions spend while filming here. And the movies themselves often provide a marketing boost for tourism.

Colorado's program works this way: Producers can get a cash rebate of 10 percent, or up to $500,000, of the amount of money they spend here as long as they hire 75 percent of their crew locally. Out-of-state companies must spend at least $1 million to be eligible, while in-state producers can qualify by spending $100,000.

But the amount of money available is barely enough for a big-name Hollywood movie to take notice. Texas, for instance, just approved $22 million in film incentives this month in an attempt to stem its loss of film projects in recent years.

"We're not even in the ballgame," said Kevin Shand, executive director of the Colorado Film Commission. "Ultimately, we're going to need significantly more money."

Shand's office quickly ran out of what little incentive money it did have. And it's unclear how and when it will convince lawmakers to steer more cash its way.

"Apparently, this industry relies on incentives," said Rep. Alice Borodkin, D-Denver. "I really believe we need to do it, but we don't have that kind of money."

Despite the dearth of blockbuster movies coming to town, film's such as Suburban can do a lot to help bolster the state's nascent industry, Shand says.

The Suburban cast, which includes Denver-based actor and singer Elizabeth Rose, and the crew, including producer Lorii Rabinowitz and associate producer Mitch Dickman, all hail from Colorado.

More locally based productions help to build a larger base of experienced film crews. And that can prove a big asset once bigger films roll into town.

When Louisiana began offering big financial incentives, for instance, some productions reportedly discovered that the state lacked enough experienced hands to help staff their movie sets.

"We love having these kinds of productions in town," Shand said of Suburban. "The homegrown business is the best part. If we can grow a very strong local production community, they can provide a base to grow on."

Lindsey did not get any incentives for his film, whose budget size barely would qualify even if the state's film commission had any money left. But Lindsey said making a movie here costs far less than it would in California, where he worked in the industry for about eight years.

"This isn't just a, 'Let's give it a try and roll the dice,'" said Lindsey, who hopes the movie can premiere at the Denver Film Festival this fall. "It's about building a film production company here. Hopefully, this will steamroll into another movie."

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