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Filmed in Oregon
Last night I went for a walk in my neighborhood and discovered a movie being shot just down the street from my house. A bunch of my neighbors were standing around. They said they'd just seen Brendan Fraser ace his scene. He walked from a car, into a house, and closed the door. Not much action, in my mind, but the neighborhood sure was buzzing about it. It made me start to wonder about the role of film in the Oregon economy. What's the art of filmmaking here? And how is business doing?
According to the curators of the Oregon Sesquicentennial Film Festival (which begins this weekend at Marylhurst University in Lake Oswego), Oregonians have made "significant contributions to the movie industry." While most people think of Free Willy, The Shining, and The Goonies, when they reflect on films made here, the Film Festival website lists many, many more.
The Governor's Office of Film and Television — known as Oregon Film for short — works to entice companies to shoot their films in the state. They say every dollar they spend generates an estimated $53 in direct revenue from out-of-state productions. What is the state doing to attract these productions? Are they doing enough? Or are our Canadian neighbors drawing more of the business? What role does filmmaking play in the Oregon economy?
And what is it like for Oregonians creating films here? What does the state do to cultivate filmmakers? Is it a good, creative place to work? What mark does Oregon leave on filmmakers who call this state home?
Guests:
- James Ivory: Academy Award-nominated filmmaker and co-founder of Merchant Ivory Productions who grew up in Klamath Falls and attended the University of Oregon
- Mike Rich: Oregon screenwriter whose credits include "Finding Forrester" and "The Rookie"
- Irene Taylor Brodsky: Academy Award nominated documentary filmmaker who lives in Portland
- Vince Porter: Executive Director of the Governor’s Office of Film and Television
- Shawn Levy: Film columnist and blogger for the Oregonian
Photo credit: J Beauchamp / Flickr / Creative Commons
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Thanks Sarah for your post,i really like it,i didnt knew that in oregon is so many actors living..=p
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The film business is growing in Oregon and our state is offering competitive incentives of 16% return on labor and 20% return on goods and services for productions over $750k.
If you would like to participate and support production in OR, please email Senator Rosenbaum at sen.dianerosenbaum@state.or.us and show support for The Oregon Production Investment Fund(OPIF) - SB621, and The Independent Oregon Production Investment Fund(IOPIF) - SB863.
OPIF is an annual fund of $5 mil in incentives for productions over $750k. IOPIF, if passed, is a new fund equalling 5% of the OPIF fund, for productions over $75k. Both funds are critical to making Oregon a competetive film state and creating a thriving industry here. More information on these incentives is available at www.ompa.org.Our business, HIVE-FX, is thriving since we returned a few years ago from CA - HIVE is a VFX/Animation/Post facility based in SE Portland(www.hive-fx.com). We currently employ 15 people and we're expanding into a larger facility with 3 new divisions, built on the business we generate from the PDX and LA production markets. We anticipate employing 30+ entertainment professionals within the next 12-16 months in both service based VFX and animation projects. At the same time, we're developing original content like MOUNTIES(www.mounties.com) and shooting our first feature this summer titled CHIHUANHAS (www.chihuanhas.com). CHIHUANHAS is a comedy monster movie of half Piranha/half Chihuahua creatures that take-over a Mtn lake and campground. HIVE-FX will serve as both the production company and post VFX facility for the film. Our goal is to produce a feature a year by accessing state incintives and partnering with private investors - Oregonians interested in the film industry and job creation.
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Vince Porter is our new Executive Director in the Governor's Office of Film and Television - he recently left his position with Showtime and actively meets with our state legislators, local film professionals and promotes production in Oregon.
With regard to current production, the TNT television series LEVERAGE has just relocated to Portland and they're in full production. Also shooting is the Harrison Ford produced film CROWLEY, the feature GOLF IN THE KINGDOM(shooting in Bandon) and as you may know, the hugely successful film TWILIGHT was shot here recently.
The exciting challenge for us right now is to encourage and support a new generation of producers and directors based in Oregon: JIM CLARK, GRETCHEN MILLER, JAMES WESTBY, NEIL KOPP, BRETT CRANFORD and DAVID CRESS.
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I am an Oregonian transplant originally from Hollywood.
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I am an Oregonian transplant originally from Hollywood. I lived there and worked in the industry most of my life. Trying to get any project done there is next to impossible. Navigating through the permit process and the egos makes any of the creative process secondary. Several times I tried to make films independently, but even getting decent actors to work for you can be challenging because inevitably someone will be in Screen Actors Gild and SAG will cause problems for you and them if you don't jump through the right hoops. Furthermore, if you are launching something low budget, it's hard to get anyone excited about it if your project isn't immediatly going to help someone's career.
Four years ago, I moved here. Last year I created a Science Fiction franchise called Project 912. We are launching on May 25th. I never would have been able to pull this off in Los Angeles. But here, I found an army of creative and talented people willing to help out. The rescources are limitless and abundent. A few weeks ago, I had the head of the Governor's Office of Film and Television and the Portland film commision on a conference call with me as we figured out locations for me fory my shoot. Micheal Fine, who runs the Portland film commision was completly accessable and helpful. He treated me as if I were mounting a large production here even though I have ZERO budget. His counterpat in LA wouldn't even return a phone call.
I can only hope more productions come to Oregon. -
Dear TOL,
My friend Junis would be VERY interested in this conversation; however she is in Hong Kong teaching special effects make-up. She has been a make-up artist (and I mean artist) in LA for 20 + years. She moved here to Portland to be closer to family. She is finding it very tough to find serious crews capable of performing up to the standards of the LA crews.
Junis has worked on many projects; including a few Star Trek - Next Generations; Seasons 4 & 5 of Babylon 5; and she did the special effects make-up for the Silas character in the DaVinci Code (remember when he tightens the thorns around his leg). This is a very short resume to show she does have what it takes to make it in the business.
She has worked very hard since coming to Portland last September; to make contacts with everyone who would return her many calls, sometimes making appointments and no one would show up. She feels Portland has a reputation for being POT smoking flakes and deservedly so. She believes that Portland lost the opportunity to have Twilight filmed here because the flake factor is so rampant. And the TV series with Kevin Bacon is being run by an LA crew because there are NO qualified crews here in Portland. The flake factor entails: people who show up when they want to show up, they have poor work ethic (In LA there are 5 people waiting in the wings for your job so you have to work hard to keep your job.), and the arrogance of the people who are know nothing about the industry and feel entitled to preferential treatment.
I will forward the link to this “Think Out Loud” show to her. I know she has so much more to say about this subject. I have listened to many frustrated phone calls speaking of all the many facets of this subject. I know she would have really wanted to talk with you.
Perhaps people would be willing to open their mind to learning new skills. That would be a benefit to all.
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Karen, thank you for telling us about her experience. It would be great if she could listen online today and either call in or share her comments here. Thanks!
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As one of about 450 professional actors (members of SAG) living and working in Oregon, I must say that, in all the years, I've been here, I've heard nothing but praise from out of town producers about not only the quality and professionalism of the actors but the crews as well. We are not flakes, we take our jobs very seriously. I don't know who this woman worked with, but it certainly wasn't with anyone I know, and I've been an officer of the Portland SAG branch for years.
Chrisse Roccaro
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I couldn't agree more. I work in the film business in Oregon and everyone I've worked with who is from Oregon, and never worked in New York or LA lacks the proper work ethic and just doesn't "get it." These people definitely have the "arrogance and know nothing about the industry and feel entitled to preferential treatment" that 42keys wrote about. It is refreshing to be able to work in the industry outside of New York or LA but you need to work there first and come back to be successful in this business.
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After over 20 years on film and commercial work here, I am stunned to hear 42kes comments on Oregon crews being flaky pot smokers. This has rarely been my experience. The growth of the industry should prove this isn’t the case.
One of the things I appreciate the most as a freelancer, is that you are only as good as your last job. You are easily replaced lacking a good work ethic, so only the strong survive. It can be difficult to break in if you have an "attitude", often the case for people who have come here from LA or NY. They may know their job, but quite often have a condescending attitude that isn't endearing when you are trying to break into a new market and make friends. Film is ART, art is fluid, there is no ONE way of making movies. Those who come here from out of State may do well to recognize that perhaps they can also learn something from us.
Having worked with many of the same crew people since I started, we DO know the industry and don't feel entitled to preferential treatment, but perhaps she does? Her opinion of local crews is the opposite of what I have heard from NY and LA Producers and Directors who have come to film here. People who are attracted to this industry for the wrong reasons will get ONE shot to do it right, or they are GONE. We will not hire anyone a second time if they don't do their job - they are weeded out immediately. When you work an average of 12-14 hours a day, the last thing you tolerate is a flake on your crew.
We are very fortunate to have someone with Vince Porter's credentials at the helm of our State Film Office. We are very fortunate we have a Governor who values this industry. We are also very fortunate to have Michael Fine, another industry insider, as Portland's Film Liaison, a man with the diplomatic skills needed to work with City Bureaus and cares enough to go the extra mile to assist productions when they come here. There is a sense of family within the industry in Oregon, I hope we don't lose it as the industry grows.
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Wouldn't it be nice if those who are critical of the level of professionalism of the film industry in Oregon took a proactive role in using their experience to mentor those who are genuinely interested in improving there craft? Not everyone here can be a bad apple.
Also, making a comparison between a film industry with a size and history of L.A. with the film industry in Portland is not constructive. I can understand the frustration professionals from bigger cities might experience as they adjust, but it's not helpful to behave like a victim. Be the change you want to see.
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I am so terrible sorry for using Junis's name. She told me things that I interpreted wrongly and I appologize for using her name to voice my opinion. Junis is inoccent of the things I said. I am truely sorry the pain this has caused. I, Karen Sorbel, feel that Portland has great potencial as a movie mecca, however, we do need to learn a LOT more about the whole industry.
Remember: Pleace forgive Junis for she was totally unaware that any of this was being said. -
Film business in Oregon is good for film education.
Portland is increasingly looked to as the next big city for film. Recent success of Laika's "Coraline" made it possible that creative professionals stay living and working in the city. Film educators and students benefit from this success by having access to these professionals through lectures and demos, such as in the NW Film Center's current class-Stop Motion Animation.
Thank you for talking about film on Think Out Loud!
Jessica LynessNorthwest Film Center -
One of my top ten favorite movies was filmed here. Animal House.
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On a trip to Medford earlier last month, I learned about one of the coolest secrets in Southern Oregon: Land Mind Productions
I took a tour with the founder, John Foote, and was totally blown away with quality of the studio and John's vision.
Next time you're going down to Ashland I'd strongly encourage you to stop by and take a tour - it's amazing.
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Don't forget Mr. Holland's Opus!
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As the Creator of Or Bust (or-bust.com) I am amazed by the diverse beauty and stories in Oregon. Our intent was to travel the country and document America at this moment; one month later we are glad to be stuck in Oregon, finding new stories daily.
To OPB, please fund local filmmakers, not the likes of Burt Wolfe, who hardly needs it and never sets foot in this state.
Sincerely,
Brad Lockwood
Creator, Or Bust
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Filming in Oregon is helping our small tourism business: Portland Movie Tours® (www.portlandmovietours.com). We love movies and Oregon and decided to share that with others. The revenue our guests bring, and their excitement for the actual film locations they see, should encourage legislators to do what they can to bring film productions to the state. Without Twilight and the hundreds of other great movies filmed here, we wouldn't be able to start our dream business in this state or be involved in a business we love.
We try to be involved in filming projects as much as we can and have to say that the local crews have always been professional—not "pot smoking freaks." The professionalism and sense of humor we saw on the set of Crowley this week made it a great experience.
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As James Ivory pointed out, Oregon has done an amazing job of cultivating of an incredibly vibrant creative economy and culture of the arts. There have been, and continue to be, a lot of smart decisions in the public sector to encourage this development. Oregon’s reputation for being a haven for Filmmakers and other creative media makers is also largely a result of this community’s unique emphasis on staying connected and building community together. Through formal and informal networks, Oregon’s independent crews and other businesses serving the industry share their best practices and learn to work and produce together at a high level of functionality – even without the benefit of a longstanding studio system.
The Oregon Media Production Association (OMPA) keeps crew and services connected with regular communications and high-value networking events. Those interested in this business are invited to find out more at www.ompa.org. (Click on “Film Oregon” for reviews of a sample of some of the independent work done recently in Oregon. A more complete list of films shot in Oregon is at www.oregonfilm.org/history).
Those who would like to experience the full and incredible breadth of Oregon’s film, video and media production industry can find them in Oregon’s media production directory, online at www.SourceOregon.com.Tom McFadden, OMPA Executive Director
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Is animation no longer filmmaking? Why is it that often when the discussion of filmmaking in Oregon comes up animation is not in the discussion?
Internationally, Portland and Oregon is far better known and distinguished by its many innovative independent and studio animators than it is for its fine and deserving live-action filmmakers.
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One thing that has to be adressed is that we are only talking about less than half of what it takes to produce a movie. Now a days a movie can be shot for 2 months, but be in Post from 6 months to a year.
More and more movies are spending more time in Post then they are in principle photography production, and if you are just hiring grips and pa's from Oregon for two months, we are not even touching a fraction of what could be consistent work for Oregonians.
Vancouver, BC still dominates the post arena for productions posted north of LA. If portland figured out a way to bring post to oregon it would employ more people for longer periods of time then the two or three live action features brought to oregon every other year.
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One of my favorite Oregon films is "Bandits" starring Cate Blanchett, Billy Bob Thornton, and Bruce Willis. Filmed in Portland, Lake Oswego, Oregon City, Sandy, and Crown Point, "Bandits" shows Oregon in a beautiful gray light, and it's a wonderfully entertaining film.
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Support for incentivizing film- and television production has long been seen as one of the best uses of taxpayer funds. For every $1 of tax revenue spent, $53 is spent in our state. Ya think taxpayers get the same bang for their buck when it's spent on the military? The OR legislature is dragging its feet on increasing the budget--"in a recession (shudder!)"--alloted to the Oregon Production Incentive Fund--from $5 milliion (which reportedly was spent mostly on TWILIGHT in one year) to only $7.5 million. New York State has a similar incentive program--only 80 times greater than ours (more than $400). Understand: Oregon will NEVER reach its potential as a site for media production if legislators and taxpayers continue to ignore the economic potential of such incentives. Pass SB621 and The Independent Oregon Production Investment Fund(IOPIF), SB863.
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Sorry for the typo: The New York State program has a budget of more than $400 MILLION.
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We all want to be a part of something bigger, and movies are large shared dreams. Our legislatures, yours in Oregon and ours in Wisconsin, have to determine the value of the product they will purchase with a large amount of our tax dollars. It's a big-ticket item.
[A recent news article about our debate: http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/43253947.html]
[And an anecdote: I returned from Madison to my home in Green Bay today, but I took a detour from the freeway (much to the chagrin of my recalculating GPS receiver) just to see a building.
In many news articles, local television news broadcasts, in conversations at work, at the grocery store or tavern, I had heard about "the Johnny Depp movie." Wisconsin's film incentives program had brought a major production to locations from downtown Milwaukee to the rural Northwoods. And everyone knew. And we're pretty excited to be a big part of this dream. And if I could just see that old building in downtown Columbus, Wisconsin, just off the freeway, then maybe I'd have just a little bit better grasp of this dream.]
I would urge our legislatures to make the dream work. The value of being a part of something bigger is difficult to calculate. In fact, it is immeasurable.
And to use a line from a movie, "That's my wish. And is there enough magic out there in the moonlight to make this dream come true?" - Field of Dreams (filmed on location near where I used to live - the Tri-State area of Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin.)
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Hollyweird films are made in Oregon? Who knew? I know several master thespians who'd prefer to work in theater and celluloid rather than toil in the slave cubes of corporations. Did I say that? I curse my cynical insensitivity.
If memory serves, Goonies and Short Circuit were filmed in the Astoria area. I thought Oregon, with it's natural beauty (amidst the clear cuts) was going to have more movies made here, but has that been the case?
There was a scene of what looked like the Columbia Gorge in Twighlight, and I didn't realize a lot of it was filmed in St. Helens and Portland (according to an >authoritative< wikipedia entry).
Here's a link for Amazonians who wish to watch movies filmed in Oregon.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/richpub/syltguides/fullview/2PVPX4Q3K62O1
Baudelaire
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Very strange indeed! I'm from Vancouver and we don't need the competition Oregon!! Ah, I think we'll be okay. There's lots of film business to go around. Seems to me that Oregon shares a lot of the same climate and scenery as Vancouver.
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William C.
My side project netbook sleeve -
More and more movies are spending more time in Post then they are in principle photography production, and if you are just hiring grips and pa's from Oregon for two months, we are not even touching a fraction of what could be consistent work for Oregonians.
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This comment has been removed by the TOL staff.
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This comment has been removed by the TOL staff.
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I can understand the frustration professionals from bigger cities might experience as they adjust, but it's not helpful to behave like a victim. Be the change you want to see.
free ringtones -
Micheal Fine, who runs the Portland film commision was completly accessable and helpful. He treated me as if I were mounting a large production here even though I have ZERO budget. His counterpat in LA wouldn't even return a phone call.
catalogues -
Film is ART, art is fluid, there is no ONE way of making movies. Those who come here from out of State may do well to recognize that perhaps they can also learn something from us.
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Sorry for the typo: The New York State program has a budget of more than $400 MILLION.
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This comment has been removed by the TOL staff.
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I am an Oregonian transplant originally from Hollywood.
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Hey, I'm Steve from fast cash. I do agree that local venues must be utilized by the film industry. It will help boost the economy by enhancing tourism and jobs after all we have production designers and other creative teams to redesign the location for whatever scene is needed. Go, go, go Oregonians!
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I'm one of several hundred professional actors living in Oregon who tries to snag a gig in whatever production comes through town. (Why, just last Friday morning, I sold a generator to Harrison Ford and Brenden Fraser - a key scene in plot of the movie, as I had to tell Brenden his credit card was no good!)
Not many 'large' films are made here, but those that come are attracted not only by the talent pool, the crew pool and the locations, but also the wonderful Film Incentive Program that the legislature enacted a few years ago. The Film Office played a significant role in guiding the creation of that program and has a staff member in LA to liaise w/the Hollywood moguls and get them interested in coming here.
It is, therefore, alarming to learn that the incentives and possibly the Film Office Budget are on the hit list for cuts from the legislature.
FYI, the Washington State Legislature just passed an Incentive Bill of its own. So, if ours goes away, where do you think the industry will go?
The Film Industry is clean - it comes in, drops tens of thousands of dollars and leaves narry a trace of itself when it goes, except paychecks.
I also want to acknowledge the vast group of indy filmmakers who are creating on a daily basis, but my concern, as a member of Screen Actors Guild, is the possible loss of the most significant draw for the big projects that use my union brothers and sisters - the incentives and the film office.