Written by new-contact on Feb 15, 2012. Posted in Incentive News

Alaska filming incentives cover third of costs on whale drama Big Miracle

Alaska paid out nearly USD10 million - about 30% of the Alaska spend - in filming incentives to the Big Miracle production team, reports the Anchorage Daily News. The film tells the true story of efforts to rescue grey whales that became trapped in Alaskan pack ice in the late 1980s.

The Alaskan filming incentives have provoked controversy since their launch. Big Miracle - originally called Everybody Loves Whales - became the first major film to take advantage of the programme, but it helped attract negative publicity for some of the state’s energy policies. More generally, there have been recent complaints that servicing companies aren’t being given a chance to present bids to visiting shoots.

We have fishing. We have tourism. We have oil. We had timber. We need something new. We’ve got to keep looking for something new because we can’t count on those industries being here for us forever.

Robin Kornfield, Piksik

Robin Kornfield is President of production services company Piksik and told the outlet: “We have fishing. We have tourism. We have oil. We had timber. We need something new. We’ve got to keep looking for something new because we can’t count on those industries being here for us forever.”

Despite filmmakers being able to claim up to 44% of their production expenses under the incentive scheme it’s only attracted a handful of high-profile shoots to Alaska. Survival thriller The Grey and upcoming Superman film Man of Steel both doubled British Columbia for Alaska, with the former citing more favourable costs and accessible locations in the Canadian province.

Big Miracle is in the middle of a staggered global cinema release.

(Main page still image courtesy of Universal)