The last few weeks brought a rash of celebrity sightings to Georgetown, from George Clooney running across the Key Bridge for a scene in an upcoming movie to Kiefer Sutherland filming the new season of 24 . Unfortunately, what happened next is all too common with movies and television shows that film in the District.
The celebrities and production crews left, taking with them a few quick establishing shots of that crucial monument or street that lends a film its Washington cred. The lack of sufficient economic incentives makes it financially unfeasible for most productions to film in D.C. for an extended period of time. The District should increase these incentives in order to give the local economy a boost and let lesser-known neighborhoods get their share of screen time.
Across the country, state legislatures have approved financial incentives for filming on location that vastly outpace the District’s. Maryland offers as much as a 25 percent rebate of direct costs incurred in-state, and Pennsylvania just increased its tax credit to 25 percent. In comparison, D.C. provides a measly 10 percent of qualified expenses or 100 percent of sales and use taxes, whichever is lower.
Modest increases in the incentives would give D.C. a financial windfall. Louisiana saw a 2300 percent increase in revenue after the implementation of the state’s new incentive program. New York City, which has incentives just a little higher than the District’s, has seen $2.4 billion dollars worth of growth over the last two years.
Granted, the District’s resources are limited, and the city should not spend inordinate amounts of money to encourage filmmakers to come to town, since monuments, federal buildings and a few famous neighborhoods like Georgetown guarantee that at least a few productions will stop by every year.
“There is a sense of complacency that we’re not as vulnerable to all this financial concern on the part of Hollywood because we have things they need,” Jane Love, assistant executive director of the Washington/Baltimore branch of the Screen Actors Guild, said.
But incentives are the difference between a few days and lasting shoots that can strengthen local economies. Right now, D.C. allocates only $1.6 million for all productions that will be filming in the city for the entire year.
The benefits will certainly outweigh the costs if D.C. decides to increase its incentives for film and television production. And if it keeps George Clooney in town a little longer, who’s going to complain?
