Georgetown prepares to become a Film Friendly community

Georgetown prepares to become a Film Friendly community

By Beth Wade Friday, 13 November 2009

Texas Film Commission helps cities set the stage

GEORGETOWN — In 2008 media production in Texas accounted for more than $409 million in spending, according to economic impact figures from the Texas Film Commission. Of that, approximately $194 million was spent on productions in the Austin region. Along with spending, the film industry in the Austin region also includes 502 permanent businesses and 2,958 permanent full-time jobs.

“The reason we want filming is simply to diversify our local economy. It is not for the fun of it, or the status of it,” Georgetown Main Street Manager Shelly Hargrove said. “I think the pros are much greater than the cons because it seems like it is such a clean industry. Most of the films I have heard of lately almost leave the place cleaner than when they first started there.”

“Film friendly” program

Two years ago, Hargrove and Southwestern University Communications Director Ellen Davis attended a Film Friendly Texas workshop in Taylor. The Texas Film Commission program began as a way to educate cities in Texas about working with the film industry. Now, the program has approximately 20 cities in Texas with the “film friendly” designation, and more are in the pipeline.

“The reason that communities want to attract on-location filming is economic primarily,” said Carol Pirie, Texas Film Commission deputy director and Film Friendly Texas program manager. “When they come to town they spend money. They are not there very long, and they spend money far out of proportion and typically with local businesses.”

The program’s goal is to teach cities how to handle on-location filming and market the cities' resources in an effective manner, Pirie said.

“[The program] is structured so that cities have taken the time to educate themselves about the filming process and make sure that they are ready for filming in a welcoming way to film makers, but not holding the door so far open that the rights of the residents and business owners get forgotten in all the excitement of film,” she said. “Because that has happened in the past.”

Economic impact

Hargrove said she hopes the “film friendly” designation will lead to more productions, including movies, videos and commercials, being filmed in Georgetown.

When a film project is shot in town, production crews could spend money in local business for food, lodging and supplies, Pirie said. That money spent stays in town in the form of sales tax revenue, but the benefit is that once those crews move on, she said, they are no longer using city services, and the residents benefit from the extra revenue.

“When the ‘Tree of Life’ filmed in Smithville, they spent just under $800,000 in this town of less than 5,000 people,” Pirie said. “The chamber of commerce director told me that their sales tax income went up 17 percent in that period. There was no other explanation for it other than that movie was in town. That was very good news for that little town.”

Becoming “film friendly”

The task of becoming a “film friendly” city was led by the Main Street Advisory Board and the Events Committee two years ago, but as the members changed, the issue fell to the wayside. Earlier this year Hargrove felt it was time to revisit it.

“Georgetown has a history of films. In the ’80s there was a boom of films being shot here. I think the issue at the time was that a lot of them were low budget or lower budget, like made-for-TV movies,” Hargrove said. “I think a lot of downtown merchants got burned because they would block off the Square and not let them know. There were some hurdles along the way. So some people said they didn’t want any films, but we are starting to see a different generation of filming with a lot more commercials and even some music videos and stuff like that.”

To be classified as a “film friendly” city, a representative must attend a workshop, a set of customized guidelines must be adopted and approved by the film commission, and photographs of the area must be provided.

“The Main Street Advisory Board is really excited about [the designation], because we think it can bring new traffic here that will patronize some local business especially around the Square,” MSAB member Trevor Dunham said. “I think we will see a lot of shoots around that area because of the character.”

The board is finalizing the city’s film guidelines to include information about necessary permits and costs. Pirie at the film commission will edit the document and send it back for final approval by City Manager Paul Brandenburg.

“Once we get the designation, we want to take that to council to make them more aware and let them sign off on it,” Hargrove said. “So they understand that this is a way that we are helping to diversify the local economy by bringing in those new dollars through filming.”

Movies with scenes filmed in Georgetown, Hutto or Taylor

• Georgetown
  • Leadbelly (1975)
  • Johnny Be Good (1987)
  • Doodles (1987)
  • Gideon Oliver (1989)
  • A Seduction in Travis County (1991)
  • Shady Grove (1993)
  • Dazed and Confused (1993)
  • My Boyfriend’s Back (1993)
  • The Unspoken Truth (1995)
  • Michael (1996)
  • Two Mothers for Zachary (1996)
  • Varsity Blues (1998)
  • Lemmy Lemm… (1998)
  • Where the Heart is (1999)
  • Picnic (2000)
  • Going to California (2001)
  • Grindhouse (2007)
  • Temple Grandin (2009)
  • Extract (2009)
• Hutto
  • Snake Tales (1996)
  • 25th Hour (2002)
  • America Brown (2003)
• Taylor
  • The Hot Spot (1989)
  • The War at Home (1995)
  • Suburbia (1996)
  • Purgatory County (1996)
  • Fools Gold (1997)
  • Varsity Blues (1998)
  • Where the Heart is (1999)
  • The Life of David Gale (2001)
  • The Rookie (2001)
  • Drop Dead Sexy (2004)
  • The Return (2005)
  • The Hitcher (2006)

Sources: Texas Film Commission, Georgetown Main Street Manager Shelly Hargrove