UWG News Archive

Film Industry Meeting

October 10, 2003

CARROLLTON, GA - Governor Sonny Perdue recently demonstrated his interest in reviving Georgia’s film industry by sending one of his staff to meet with a group of local business and community leaders exploring the industry’s possible economic impact on Carroll County and the state.

Michael Gravley, the Governor’s film and entertainment industry liaison, said that in the 1970s, Georgia was one of three states in the U.S. that had a film office and today, more than 300 municipalities around the country and the world have created similar offices to attract this industry.

“The infrastructure still exists in the state to offer industry-specific equipment, materials and services for every phase of production,” Gravley noted. “For more than 30 years, film, video and music projects have been produced in Georgia and we want to expand this industry.”

The Georgia Film, Video and Music Office exists within the Department of Industry, Trade and Tourism as a gateway for filmmakers and production companies to explore Georgia’s resources.

“The Governor is taking a serious look at a variety of options to once again make the film industry a thriving economic resource for the state,” said Gravley.

Richard Mix of Carrollton Film Partners pulled the group together after creating an awareness within the community of the economic possibilities of Georgia’s film and video industry. He and his partner, Sam Hensley, Jr., will produce a feature film documenting the journey of the University of West Georgia cheerleading squad that battled back from a 1997 van accident that killed two cheerleaders and the coach to win the national championship for the past two years.

Shay Bentley-Griffin, member of the board of directors for Economic Development through Georgia Entertainment (EDGE), called the community’s involvement in supporting Carrollton Film Partner’s project “truly groundbreaking.”

“As we seek to become a statewide industry, production will be attracted to those regions that take the lead in creating a film-friendly environment,” Bentley-Griffin said. “Certainly West Georgia is becoming recognized as an aggressive community for filmmaking. The interest that has been generated over the past year-and-a-half is impressive as evidenced by the caliber of leaders gathered here today.”

She noted that the goal of EDGE, a non-profit corporation, is to develop competitive economic incentives for Georgia’s entertainment industry, specifically as it pertains to moving picture production. New industry-related jobs and ancillary support businesses can be created and retained, thereby contributing greater tax revenues to the state.

Slater Barr, president of Carroll Tomorrow, pointed out possible win/win scenarios for the industry and the community. He referred to the work of Dr. Richard Florida, author of The Rise of the Creative Class.

“In this book, Florida discusses the relationship between a creative culture and the attraction of knowledge-based technology industries,” Barr said. “So, if we were able to attract large numbers of creative, technical people such as you find in the movie industry, it increases our ability to attract software developers, entrepreneurs, etc.”

Barr also pointed out the advantages this region has to the film industry.

“We’ve got a supportive community, proximity to Atlanta and Hartsfield, a major University teaching video production and also West Central Technical College teaching a variety of programs which support the industry,” he noted.

Mix explained that filmmaking is a very foreign process for many people and he has been involving the community by educating business, academic and political leaders about the industry.

“We want to keep films in Georgia and create more jobs for Georgians,” Mix said. “By educating people about the ‘Cheer the Brave’ project and filmmaking in general, we are widening that scope of understanding and support.”

For more information concerning the “Cheer the Brave” project, contact Mix at 770-834-1655. For more information concerning Georgia’s economic development opportunities in the film industry, contact Bentley-Griffin at 404-603-8755 or Gravley at 404-651-7765.

-30-

Use your browser's BACK button to return to the previous page.
Or find more news & info at the Communications & Marketing site.