Last year, two high-profile movies were filmed in the area, both of which are coincidentally in theaters right now. “Away We Go,” Sam Mendes’ romantic-comedy road movie, was partially filmed at the JW Mariott Starr Pass Resort and Spa and “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen,” was shot at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base and a ticket counter in the terminal at Tucson International Airport.
Not that Tucson itself had to figure into “Transformers,” the Boneyard stood in for both New Jersey and the Smithsonian’s back lot.
 George Clooney shot scenes for his debut directorial effort “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind” at the White Stallion Ranch near Marana in 2002. Courtesy of Tucson Film Office |
First, the Arizona Department of Commerce Film Office let its director go and reduced its staff down to a single person late last month. Second, as the Legislature and the governor work through the budget, the tax incentive program that attracts productions here in the first place faces an uncertain future.
“We rely on the state office as a source of our leads,” said Tucson Film Office Director Shelli Hall, adding that without proper staffing, producers may not want to wait for a returned message and move on to the next state.
The state film office acts as a marketing and permitting arm for the local industry and works with the different film offices and liaisons through the state. Though the staff has been reduced it will still provide the same services, said Ken Chapa, manager of the office and the sole remaining employee.
Still, the state is seeing films being made here. The B-movie “Piranha 3-D” recently finished filming in Lake Havasu City and brought that area $15 million, something that would hardly be possible without the incentive program, Chapra said.
“Before we had the incentive and we had the network of the local officer that we had now, the phone didn’t ring as much,” Chapa said.
Just having a movie here for a few days brings in a large amount of money. The two days of the “Transformers” shoot generated $1.125 million in economic development, $750,000 in direct spending. “Away We Go” shot for three days and brought in $1.3 million in direct spending and $1.95 million in economic benefit.
If Tucson has a Joker to its Batman in the Southwest film business, it certainly is Albuquerque, N.M. No more is the comparison more apt between the two than last year’s “Hamlet 2,” which took place here, but was filmed there. One of the characters even takes a pot shot at the Old Pueblo, calling it “where dreams go to die.”
“What we’re missing, and what New Mexico really has is an incentive program that really works,” Hall said.
It’s hard to ignore New Mexico’s efforts when movies like 2007’s “3:10 to Yuma,” which is set in Bisbee and the titular western Arizona city, are filmed a state away, especially since the 1957 original was filmed in here in Tucson.
Unlike Arizona’s tax incentive program, which gives money back to productions after a couple of years, New Mexico’s plan offers cash back on film expenses, something that requires a pool of money that Arizona doesn’t have.
“The reason that New Mexico is getting the business is because of their attractive film incentives, it can’t be understated,” said Albuquerque film liaison Ann Learner.
New Mexico has had steady growth in their film industry, but it really took off when the studios and sound stages were constructed there two years ago, which recently played host to “Terminator: Salvation,” and the TV shows “Breaking Bad” and “Crash.”
“I think what Tucson has going for it is people don’t realize is that it’s not as hot as Phoenix,” Learner said, adding that like Albuquerque, it benefits from its close proximity to Los Angeles.
While many agree that something is better than nothing, Arizona’s plan leaves much to be desired.
“From my work on it I don’t see any evidence that the way it is currently structured it is a strategic success it may be a limited economic success for a very small number for companies,” said Fred DuVal, who sits on the Commerce and Economic Development Commission, adding that some projects like a civic club that filmed their convention and a Phoenix news station that have successfully qualified for the tax break.
“There are certainly some good people doing good work, but there are some real dogs and some laughable applications that have succeeded,” DuVal said.
On June 30, the Arizona Production Association released a study on the state’s film industry which found that film activity last year generated $594 million, with an additional $557 million in related industries as well as the creation of more than 5,300 direct jobs.
Take away the tax incentives and you all but take away the attention film producers lay to what the state has to offer, said Randy Murry, head of Randy Murry Productions. His company received such a credit for shooting parts of a BBC docudrama series in Arizona.
“Quite frankly, they are going to walk away if there is not an incentive on the table. 45 other states have incentives and there’s a list that film producers look at say ‘OK, these people have tax incentives,’” he said.
Contact reporter Nicholas Smith at nsmith@azbiz.com or (520) 295-4238.
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