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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

HOLLYWOOD OF THE NORTH

Lights, camera, action

Tax incentives help draw filmmakers to Iron Range

Tom Klein
Posted 8/13/14

REGIONAL – Northern Minnesota, get ready for your closeup.

At least seven different films have been shot on the Iron Range this year and more are scheduled for later this year and the next, …

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HOLLYWOOD OF THE NORTH

Lights, camera, action

Tax incentives help draw filmmakers to Iron Range

Posted

REGIONAL – Northern Minnesota, get ready for your closeup.

At least seven different films have been shot on the Iron Range this year and more are scheduled for later this year and the next, according to Tony Sertich, commissioner of the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board.

Sertich credits financial incentives offered by the state and IRRRB for drawing more filmmakers to northern Minnesota. The state has set aside $10 million for its rebate program while the IRRRB earmarked $800,000 for rebates for filmmakers shooting on the Iron Range.

Lucinda Winter, head of the Minnesota Film and TV Board, said the incentives have been critical in landing more film projects.

“There are so many states and countries competing for film projects, you have to offer some type of incentive to get filmmakers to come to Minnesota,” she said.

Even so, Minnesota’s incentive program pales compared to the incentives offered by other locations. Winter noted that Michigan ponied up $35 million to land the new Batman movie while New York has an annual film incentive budget of $432 million.

“We’re not courting Hollywood with the incentive package we offer,” Winter said. But the state has attracted a number of independent film projects, including “After the Reality,” which shot scenes at Crane Lake and Orr, and “Sdanka’s War,” which recently shot scenes at the Soudan State Park using area residents as extras.

The latest film project, “The Blood Stripe,” will be filming at Camp Vermilion this month. The film tells the story of a female Marine who returns from Afghanistan and struggles to re-enter her marriage and life as a civilian.

The movie is written by Remy Auberjonis and Kate Nowlin, both of whom have worked with film luminaries like Mike Nichols, Tim Robbins, Phillp Kaufman, Jason Reitman and Peter Horton. Auberjonis has performed extensively in films and television and on Broadway, while Nowlin has had recurring roles in TV series on NBC, AMC and the CW in addition to her film work.

The film’s executive producer G. Mac Brown has produced 30 films including “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” “Men in Black 3,” “The Departed” and “You’ve Got Mail.”

Winter, who has read the script for “The Blood Stripe,” calls it a beautiful and moving story that has the potential to be a sleeper hit.

Incentive program

Both the state’s and IRRRB’s incentive programs reimburse filmmakers for the purchase of services and items at Minnesota businesses.

The state’s “snowbate” program provides rebates to film companies for 20 percent of what they spend in the state — and 25 percent if they shoot outside the Twin Cities metro area. The IRRRB has set aside $800,000 to offer a 20-percent rebate to projects that film in its service area in northeast Minnesota.

Filmmakers can qualify for both rebates if they film in the IRRRB’s service area. That amounts to a combined rebate of 45 percent, among the best in the nation.

Winter said the incentive program differs from incentives offered to other businesses because the economic activity has to take place before they qualify for the rebate.

“It’s not like when you offer a tax break to a business to locate in Minnesota,” she said.

Before rebates are provided to filmmakers, the film board scrutinizes receipts and ensures that businesses were paid for the merchandise or services. If receipts top $1 million, an independent financial review is conducted. In addition, Winter added, the state’s Department of Employment and Economic Development reviews the claims before a check is cut to the filmmakers.

So far, the Minnesota Film and TV Board has $2.8 million in commitments for rebates to filmmakers, according to Winter, but has paid only a fraction of that figure while the applications are being vetted.

Sertich said the IRRRB is still processing applications for its rebate program and had no dollar figure available as yet.

Other attractions

While the financial incentives offered by the state and IRRRB are helping lure filmmakers to Minnesota, the region’s unique scenery and locations are also a draw, according to Sertich.

Winter agrees and noted that “The Blood Stripe” crew will use former mining locations to double for Afghanistan in flashback sequences for the film.

Sertich said film crews have also praised the support they get from the communities on the Iron Range.

“They say it’s easy to work up here because the people are so helpful in the area communities,” he said.

Winter said the Minnesota Film and TV Board plans to shoot a trailer about Iron Range filming locations next week to help spread the word about the opportunities to film on the Range.

“Just like any other business, we have to get the word out about Minnesota,” she said. “We were so far off the radar of the film industry for so long, we had to get the word out.”

Those efforts included visits to the West Coast to promote Minnesota to filmmakers and spread the word about the state’s incentives, said Winter. “We were kind of like evangelists.”

Winter said she hopes to convince lawmakers to continue the incentive program and possibly double the amount available for rebates. She plans to invite area legislators to visit Camp Vermilion while “The Blood Stripe” is filming on location to help press her case.

In the meantime, she’s excited by the slate of film projects that are expected to be shot in Minnesota, including “Safe from the Sea,” which will be shot in Duluth and on the Iron Range. The film, based on a book by Minnesota author Peter Geye, tells the story of a survivor of an iron ore boating disaster and is expected to star Malcolm McDowell.

“We’re very excited about the increase in films being shot in Minnesota,” concluded Winter.