Everybody's angry and confused about the latest changes to Louisiana's film tax credit program.
Before our bike-in this Friday (screening the Best Short Films from Sundance this year!), Indywood is hosting a conversation with Sherri "Mac" McConnell, one of the authors of HB 829--the bill that disrupted the tax credit program.
Sherri and Rep. Joel Robideaux wrote the bill with nobel intentions--they were trying to make the tax credits helpful to local filmmakers so that they might foster a self-sustaining film industry in Louisiana.
But a lot of things went wrong when the bill hit the Senate floor. If you don't know already, the situation is pretty bleak.
The original bill would have kept Hollywood production at current levels while creating opportunities for local filmmakers. Instead, we ended up with a law that reflects the frustration of policymakers trying to deal with a fiscal crisis and a misled industry unwilling to compromise.
Many of my friends have lost their jobs, and some people I really respect are threatening to move to Atlanta because of the tax credit spending freeze.
But what is the actually going on with the production cap? Why the freeze? What are our options for re-orienting the conversation and fixing the problem?
Indywood hopes to help clarify this debacle (or at least create a platform for discussion).
It's imperative that we local filmmakers develop a unified voice in order to craft the tax credits to be maximally beneficial in creating a long term, self-sustaining film industry in Louisiana.
When the lawmakers meet again to discuss this issue, we need to make our voice heard.
This conversation will be the first of many.
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