The long-term prospects for Michigan’s film industry are very much up in the air. Right now the state's hosting Sam Raimi's big-budget Oz: The Great and Powerful, but its annual film fund has been slashed and the film office is no longer accepting incentive applications for 2011-12.
Guam in the Western Pacific Ocean has announced plans to open a film office. At the moment there are no formal processes in place for production teams looking to film on the island, but the film office move is the result of requests from local production companies.
[slideshow id=165]Stefan first started location scouting in 1998. While he was studying multimedia engineering in Vienna a phone company asked him to find the perfect Austrian motorway for their commercial. It took several years and plenty of commercial work before Stefan broke into film and TV scouting.
Satirical comedy has come to film on location in Maryland. Veep focuses on a senator who becomes Vice-President of the United States. It’s directed by satirist Armando Iannucci. The Maryland economy could make USD25 million from the shoot and it may create more than 2,000 local jobs.
Creative England is now open to offer support for the creative industries operating outside London. The new organisational structure replaces the UK Film Council. It will be operating with Caroline Norbury as Chief Executive and has also announced its first seven Board members.
[slideshow id=161]Wales has become a bit of a go-to beach filming location in the UK. Kristen Stewart’s been at Marloes Sands near Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire for several days filming Snow White and the Huntsman. A several-hundred-strong crew is involved, along with dozens of costumed riders on horseback.
It’s been a busy week for pre-production news in the features industry, with both the James Bond and Iron Man franchises altering their location filming plans. GM-owned vehicle manufacturer Opel has come out with an ambitious shoot in Spain, and we profiled Hamish Walker in Glasgow and Chiana Coronis on the Greek island of Mykonos.
If the Governor of New Jersey has his way, MTV’s ‘reality’ show Jersey Shore won’t be receiving the filming tax credits it’s eligible for. Governor Chris Christie has blocked the USD420,000 the show can claim for filming in the state, saying he’s concerned about the show's image.