In our fight to #SaveOhioFilmJobs, media production professionals from all across the state have lent their voice in support of saving the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit.  

Since 2009, the incentive has been responsible for creating over 5,000 full-time-equivalent (FTE) jobs, and an economic impact of over $750 million.

Real jobs. Real people. Real economic impact.

These are just some of the thousands of faces that represent Ohio film, in their own words.

Help us #SaveOhioFilmJobs by clicking HERE.

Jada Taylor
Costumer & Seamstress

“My ultimate goal is to become a designer. I’m afraid if the tax incentive is taken away that I won’t get the opportunity to really grow…I would hate to see that taken away.

Andy Tarr
S.A.G. Actor

“I got my S.A.G. card here in Ohio, as opposed to a lot of my friends who went to the coasts. And I’m proud of that. I think it’s incredible that I’ve set up shop here, and I’ve seen the rise of the amazing network of people.”

Allie Toman
D.G.A. 2nd Assistant Director

“I want to work here in Ohio where we can be anything that Hollywood needs. We need jobs, and they’re coming here. And we’re not just helping ourselves; we’re helping everybody. Film is everybody’s businesses and it affects everybody.”

Angela Boehm, Morganne Kaster, & Jason Tait
Angela Boehm Casting

“We’ve been working here locally for seven years…We have seen a lot of people that have been brought up in Cleveland, filmed in Cleveland, and started here that are major players in the industry.”

Bill Garvey
Location Manager

“My job is directly dependent upon the tax incentive…I have worked exclusively in Ohio for 10 years based on the tax incentive. I personally, on these movies, spend anywhere between $250,000 and $3.5 million. That varies from project to project. Over the last 10 years, I’ve spent quite a bit of money here.”

Cody Sherrill
Producer

“The tax incentive does bring in big films, but like Ivan [Schwarz] said, it raises all boats. And the Indie film community definitely benefits from having those here. It brings in jobs that we can get trained on, it builds people up that don’t get a lot of set experience, and they need to get on something to learn…If you don’t have the tax incentive here, then there’s no way for us to be able to do that.”

Kacie Keefe
Production Assistant

“I want to stay in Ohio; my family and friends are all in Ohio. I just want to make an honest living, and pay my taxes, and just be a part of this growing community. We can’t do that without the incentive.”

Jeff Yanik
Video Production Company Owner & Freelancer

“If the tax incentive were to totally go away, and we no longer had a motion picture tax incentive in the state of Ohio, really, it would be devastating…It’s crucial that this incentive, that we keep it here, and that we keep expanding it so that we can be competitive with other states like the Georgias, Louisianas, New Mexicos.”

Kayse Schmucker
Production Assistant

“The tax incentive has been the entire source of my career for these last three years. I didn’t work in film, and then I started working in film in Cleveland, and ever since then, every film that has come in, I’ve gotten to work on. Without that incentive, those films would not have come in.”

Jesse Anderson
Actor

“As I was trying to break into acting, I didn’t have much money or resources to get where I needed to be. If you don’t bring films to Cleveland people like me, and people in worse situations like me, are suffering because we won’t have the technology, or the resources in Cleveland. People sacrifice their lives, their families, and their homes to film. And if you restrict us from that, you’re basically killing us all.”

Linda Bruff
Former Crew Member

“I used to work for the show called The Vampire Diaries. They didn’t build a huge soundstage. They actually went and took over an old, abandoned textile mill and converted four or five warehouses into their soundstages. It completely revitalized that really suburban area. So please, please whatever you do, let’s bring film to Cleveland. Let’s bring film to Ohio. And in fact, if you want to get rid of the tax cap altogether, I would love for us to go head-to-head with Georgia.”

Joe Thompson
Grip/Electric

“When these folks come here, they’ve got to pay to be here. If they know that you will match their funds, they will continue to come, continue to spend, and we will continue to grow…A lot of people don’t know that one of the biggest, cheapest exports from this country, around the world, is films. Films make a lot of money all over the world. If we could become a center of filmmaking, we will benefit. We’re trying to make Cleveland a world-class state city.”

Liz Vondrak
Craft Services

“The tax incentive means the last seven years of my career that I’ve built, staying here with my family, buying a home, and being with the crew and family that I’ve worked the last seven years with and love. I don’t want to leave, I don’t want to start over somewhere else.

JT Diamond
Vendor – Environmental Cleanup

“That first shot when The Avengers came to town, year ago, gave me $130,000. I put a dozen guys to work for 3-4 months, and it gave me a kickoff and started my company. I’ve worked on 20-30 movies, a little bit here, a little bit there, but it has helped my family be able to live here and stay here. We need this drastically.”

Mary Ann Ponce
Director of the Chagrin Documentary Film Festival

“The tax incentive is enormous to the Chagrin Documentary Film Festival because it supports the film industry, not just in Northeast Ohio, but all over the state of Ohio. We draw filmmakers from all over the state, and this is the fabric of our film community here in Northeast Ohio. It will destroy the fabric of the film community entirely.”

Kiely Cronin
Assistant Camera

“I’ve worked this business for 30 years now. I had to leave Ohio because there weren’t enough films being made here. The tax incentive passed, I had to come back for family reasons, I love being here. I don’t want to leave. This is what’s driving the business in Ohio. It needs to continue. If it were to go away, I probably would move.”

Kelleigh Miller & Sarah Willgrube
Production Designer & Prop Master, Script Supervisor

“This tax incentive is very important. We’ve been working here in Ohio for over a decade. Every production that comes through; commercials, feature films, everything from The Avengers to Love Find You in Sugarcreek, we’ve loved working here…A big group of us grew up together, and a part of that was the tax incentive. We are a film family, and the tax incentive affects more than just the immediate workers; it affects our families, it affects our vendor’s families. Losing that would mean losing family.”

Ryan Kelly
Entrepreneur

“Without the tax credit, and without the support of the film commission, it puts a very big thorn in the side of the business that I’ve trying to create, and the industry that I’m trying to create here in Cleveland and in Northeast Ohio in general…We need these jobs to stay here so that this industry can grow from the ground up, and be a legit, Cleveland strong industry.”

Shawna Foley
Costume Designer

“The film industry really offers a lot of opportunity to a lot of different people. Whether that’s crew members, food service, construction, painting, retail; there’s an opportunity in film for you to work in film!  I think it’s a really good industry to support locally…Keep the incentives, raise the incentives, just keep that work here because I believe that it can have a really positive impact on Cleveland. It gives people an opportunity to make a living wage, beyond a living wage! It’s a good living.”

Scott Hallgren
Composer, Sound Editor, Educator

“If the tax incentive leaves, it takes away the opportunities for internships, it takes away the opportunity for jobs, it takes away the opportunity for people to grow into something here, from an industry standpoint, from an educational standpoint, and from a commercial standpoint, quite honestly. You want people who have the opportunity to say, ‘I want to live here, and  I can now do this work from anywhere in the world; I don’t have to live in Atlanta, I don’t have to live in L.A. or New York. I can do this work from here.'”

Schuyler White
Special Effects Coordinator

“We don’t want it to go away, because if it goes away, everybody is going to be moving out of town. It’s going to become the next North Carolina. North Carolina had an amazing tax credit. They took it away, and it’s literally a ghost town now. It was a thriving movie town, had great jobs, great everything. Now, North Carolina is literally a ghost town; all it is is a vacation town. And they’re even talking about bringing their tax credit back because it made such a big dent to their economy that it messed up a lot of things for them.”

Weasle Strychnine
Teamsters Local #407 & Picture Cars

“Without this tax incentive, I’m not going to make any money. I help support a 90-year-old mother of mine, I take care of my gal, a rescue puppy and a rescue cat. I have seven cars and three vans that I pay insurance on, that I pay taxes on; they’re for movies. I also pay taxes on three houses and a lot in the city of Cleveland. Without this work, I’m going to have to leave.”

Diana Frankhauser
Actress

“I want to be able to support film in this market, in the hopes that maybe one day this will become the next big market. And so far that’s been holding true…We’ve worked so hard for this over the past couple of years, within the past decade with the tax incentive. By taking it away, we’re taking away everything we’ve already built.”

John Vourlis
Director & CSU Instructor

“Do the math, think about it. Do you want to grow Ohio? Do you want to see people come back to Ohio? We have lost an enormous amount of talent and people in the last twenty years because jobs left. The industries Ohio relied on have shrunk or left…That’s what I think the governor would want; jobs for young people who are going to stay here, plant roots, pay taxes, grow families. All those things that Ohio is really perfect for. Give them a job, and what else do they need?”

Monica Plunkett
Property Master

“Films will not continue to come to Ohio without the tax incentive. It simply won’t happen; they can get a better deal in another state. This is an industry in which we need to be patient in its development. Its effect on the economy has a ripple effect, some that you may not even realize; in terms of businesses, in terms of product placement, and in terms of offering employement, which I pay taxes on in the state of Ohio. People like me.”

Chris Singleton
Storyboard Artist & Locations

“If the tax incentive were to leave, I think it would put myself, as well as a lot of people, into a bit of tailspin, because it’s so unexpected.  And I think it would be very tragic, specifically for the Ohio area because so many of us would be forced to relocate somewhere else in order to find work. That would ultimately cripple the economy a little bit in Ohio as well.”

Jessica Houde Morris
Houde School of Acting

“I have over 100 studnets, and it keeps my students here rather than going to Atlanta, or New York, or L.A. They’re staying here because they’re actually getting work here.”

Marlowe Taylor
Sound Mixer

“To know it might leave, hurts. To know it might leave…because then what happens? What do I tell my daughter who’s doing this? What do I say, you know, ‘Ok, I gave up.’ What do we do? And I don’t think they get that. I think that they should consider that.”

Cayla Koslen
Production Assistant

“It’s always been my dream to work in film; I’m incredibly passionate about it. If the incentive goes away, there goes my dream.”

Vincent Sarowatz
Actor

“You’re not looking at just potentially losing the actors, the crew, and the writers, and all of that. It’s their families. You’ve got the opportunity for all those people to leave Ohio.”

Rebecca DeNoewer
Costume Supervisor/Set Costumer

“It’s not just about displaying products and services in Cleveland, but also we spend pretty much our entire budget here in Ohio when we’re working on a film.”

Max Eberle
Production Coordinator

“My own insurance would be a lot harder to figure out. My wife has some medical issues, and without that insurance, I don’t know what we’re going to do.”

Kassie DeAngelis
Set Decorator/Set Dresser

“I hire local artists, I use local vendors. I try to bring people into this that don’t really have the experience. I rent from people that have never done this before, as well. I think that helps the local businesses and the local economy. It’s the bread and butter of anything creative…It’s not really an option for me to be like, “I want to go pursue a different career path, or do something else,’ This is something that’s really important to me”

Mark Hamer
Director

“This is our job. This is our 9 to 5. This is our career.”

Teresa Strebler
Set Dresser

“They’re not temporary jobs, they’re freelance jobs. We are here spending money, we’re here making money. We’re freelance. It may only be 8 months of work out of the year, but it’s the same amount of time. I did the math once: if you work 8 months at 12 hours a day, it works out to the exact amount as 12 months at 40 hours…”

Steve Campanella
Producer/Line Producer

“It’s really the people of Ohio that contribute to making every film that comes here.”

Kirsten Hock
Art Department

“The connections that we’ve made with the neighborhoods, all of it. I’ve learned so much about Cleveland doing this job. Going places I would never otherwise even know about. Seeing directly how we’ve impacted those neighborhoods, and the people involved, and the vendors we use, it’s part of the movie magic for me. I don’t wnat to lose that.”

Matthew Divis
Actor/Stunt Performer

“If the incentive were to go and leave, me and a lot of my friends would have to do the same. If the dream goes somewhere else, we will have to chase it…I am one of those 35,500 people who are chasing my dream doing this.”

Rich Fishburn
Locations

“I did six years of active duty, and when I got back, I attended Tri-C. I got two Associate’s degrees in film and digital media, and because of the tax incentive, I was able to get on The Fate of the Furious…If the incentive is totally done, in all honesty, I don’t know that I would be able to provide for my family.”

Jeff Lange
Sound, Set Dresser, Propmaster

“How much did we just put into Cleveland State’s film school? How many students at CSU are Cleveland natives, still living at home and going to school? Now, we’ve created this school that is fostering growth in an industry that no longer exists at home? We are now training people to leave, that’s what’s happened. With everything that we have put into CSU we are taking young minds and going, ‘Here’s how you do a job, somewhere else.’ That’s insane.”

Bryan Robinson
Production Assistant & CSU Film Student

“The film incentive and the film school are kind of a package deal. I was assuming when I came out that they were going to have this community that was going to help us get jobs and stay in Cleveland…There are big crews of people that you don’t see behind the camera, but they rely on this as a means to make a living, to support their families, and want to stay in Ohio. And I would like to be one of them.”

Vince Calabrese
Set Dresser

“The tax credit has allowed me to work on features without leaving home. Working in the midwest, we’re able to work on features here where they are typically not big budget, but they are movies where you can be in a position and view everything. You can learn so much in every single department while working in Ohio. I’ve worked in locations, I’ve worked in camera, I’ve worked in the A.D. department, I got a taste of everything. And you don’t get that everywhere else.”

Mike Suglio
Director, Founder of Short Sweet Film Festival, CSU Instructor

“If the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit is no longer available and simply just does not exist here in Ohio, it’s going to affect me in many different ways.  I don’t know how many teaching opportunities are going to be at the film school because I simply don’t know if many students will want to enroll in this program any longer. It would be very poor of us to make false promises that there will be jobs after graduation when I know 100% there won’t be. I don’t like lying.”

Charles Moore
Director

“I always loved the idea of getting into movies. Watched Cleveland when there wasn’t an incentive, hoped that we would get one one day and that would provide opportunities for somebody that was from this state to be able to produce movies in their hometown and was eventually able to do that. I’m very proud of that.”

Joe Quinn
Producer, Director, Writer, Actor

“There’s a misconception that our tax incentive is a handout. It’s not a handout. It is a rebate, more than anything. The money has to be spent in the state of Ohio before money can go back to the productions. This incentivizes more productions to come here and create a thriving industry that will create thousands of jobs. Production jobs, actors, but also vendors, the locals, the restaurants, hotels, construction, all of that benefits from a film production.”

Today, the Ohio Senate has passed the Senate’s version of the budget which included
the reinstatement of the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit.

Thank you to everyone who has shown support by writing letters, sharing our social media posts, making phone calls, and especially to those who submitted and gave testimony.

WE NEED YOUR HELP AGAIN!

A few of the film industry professionals who came to Columbus to #SaveOhioFilmJobs

Letter Writing Information

We are extremely grateful to Senate President Larry Obhof, Senate Finance Committee Chair Matt Dolan, and the entire Senate, as well the many others who have shown continued support for the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit.

Please encourage Governor DeWine, Speaker Householder, and your House Representative to keep the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit in the budget and increase the cap to $100 million per year.

Senate President Larry Obhof
Thank him for his support and encourage him to expand the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit to $100 million per year.

• Copy and paste THIS LETTER into your email and send it to: [email protected] 
• Call and use THIS LETTER as a guide for your conversation: 614-466-7505

Governor Mike DeWine
Encourage him to keep the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit and increase the cap to $100 million per year.

• Copy and paste THIS LETTER into your email, personalizing the greeting for each recipient:
  • Governor Mike DeWine – [email protected]
  • Chief of Staff Laurel Dawson – [email protected]
• Call and use THIS LETTER as a guide for your conversation: 614-644-4357

House Speaker Larry Householder & Your House Representative
Encourage them to keep the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit and increase the cap to $100 million per year.

• Copy and paste THIS LETTER into your email, personalizing the greeting for each recipient:
  • [email protected] – Speaker Householder
• Email YOUR representative, found in this Directory
• Call and use THIS LETTER as a guide for your conversation:
  • Speaker Householder – 614-466-2500
  • Email YOUR representative, found in this Directory

Interested Party Testimony for Am. Sub. HB 166

Presented by Ivan Schwarz
President, Greater Cleveland Film Commission

Mr. Chairman Dolan, Vice Chair Burke, Ranking Member Sykes, and Committee Members:

My name is Ivan Schwarz, and I am the President and CEO of the Greater Cleveland Film Commission. I am here today to testify to the importance of keeping and expanding the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit. Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today to discuss how we can continue to create and grow a media industry in the State of Ohio.  

Let’s start with some numbers. Over 5,000 full-time-equivalent (FTE) jobs have been created since the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit was enacted in 2009.  If the program is discontinued, most of those people will have to seek employment in other states. According to a study by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), over 850 businesses have been used in the state.  The program has had an economic impact of nearly $700 million. For every dollar that is spent on the program, $2.01 has come back to Ohio’s economy, according to a 2017 Cleveland State University study. The average salary in the media industry in Ohio is over $60,000 per year.  

The state invested $7.5 million in Cleveland State University’s School of Film and Media Arts. There are currently 300 students and that number is expected to rise each year.  These students have chosen to stay in Ohio and attend CSU. They could have chosen film programs in other states, but they wanted to stay in Ohio. They are expecting to graduate and get a job in their desired field. That won’t happen without the tax incentive.  Please, let’s not create a situation where the state educates people in Ohio and then forces them to leave to pursue employment.

Film also is an industry that pays well at entry-level positions and has many different entry points.  You don’t have to be a college graduate to succeed and earn a comfortable living. You can get work in the industry after high school; after attending a community college; after attending a four-year institution; after getting a master’s degree; or as a mid-career change.  The film industry accepts ALL hard-working people.

These are the faces of the people who work in film and TV in Ohio.

Simply put, the media industry is the “new” manufacturing in Ohio. As with all manufacturing jobs, many people who contribute to creating media productions assume key roles behind the scenes, like line workers. Ninety-five percent of people working in the media industry will never walk the red carpet, but rather will play integral roles in the creation of the artistic content. Production crew jobs include grips, electricians, gaffers, caterers, production assistants, drivers, accountants, set builders, plasterers, location managers, security, painters, medics, script supervisors, policemen, security guards, boat wranglers, editors, foley artists, boom operators, sound mixers, camera loaders, cable pullers, production coordinators, assistant directors and many others. The film industry brings these jobs to Ohio, creating employment opportunities for a diverse workforce. In 2009, only 12% of the production crews were local.  Presently, anywhere from 80%-85% of the crews are Ohio workers. The hours are long and the work is not glamorous – but it’s meaningful, plentiful and well paid.

Let’s be very clear – NO projects will come to Ohio without an incentive.  These projects will go to other states. Thirty-four states have some type of incentive program.  More content is being made today than ever before. This is not a race to the bottom; it is a race to the top. This is brand new money to the state. Money that would never be spent in the state if not for the incentive.  The state of Ohio is not in the position to turn away people who want to move here or to turn away hundreds of millions of dollars filmmakers want to spend in our state – filmmakers who hire local people to work on their projects and use local goods and services.  

To the groups saying we should use the incentive money in other ways, like to hire more teachers, your views are misguided. If we keep losing population, then we will not need as many teachers.  The state needs to focus on creating high-paying jobs, keeping young people from having to leave the state to seek employment and attracting new people to work and live in the state. The film and media industry checks all three boxes.  

I understand that the impact of the media industry can be hard to understand, especially because it isn’t easy to physically see – right now it’s not housed in new factories or buildings. But just because you can’t always see it, doesn’t mean it isn’t making an impact. Just because not everyone is familiar with how movies and television shows are made does not mean they are not important to the growth of our state’s economy. However, what I think we all can understand our jobs … and there is demonstrable proof that this industry creates jobs for Ohioans.

Finally, the inclusion of theater is also very important in helping grow our media industry.  This brand-new money to the state. The three parts to this addition to the OMPTC would not happen unless there was an incentive in place.  This would be a new and amazing opportunity for the state.

Let’s create an industry in Ohio that helps increase the tax base by growing the population with high-paying jobs so that we can train people to “fish” and put food on their tables. I urge you not only to vote to keep the tax incentive in place but to raise the incentive from $40 million per year to $100 million per year.

Over 30 people gave testimony, in addition to President Schwarz’s, in front of hundreds of vested supporters at the Senate Finance Committee hearing on Sub. HB 166 on Thursday, May 23rd, 2019.

Watch the full testimony HERE; the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit testimony begins at 01:11:50.

The Senate Finance Committee held a hearing on Thursday, May 23rd on Sub. H.B. 166 to hear testimony on state tax matters.

Film and TV industry professionals traveled from all across the state to show solidarity with us as we led the charge to testify to save the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit program.

Over 30 people gave testimony in front of hundreds of vested supporters in the room; we did not go unnoticed.

Click the video link below to watch the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit testimony, starting at 01:11:50.

Read the testimony of GCFC President Ivan Schwarz HERE.

Thank you to everyone who has written letters, shared our social media posts and photo frames, made phone calls, and especially to those who submitted and gave testimony.

We couldn’t fight to #SaveOhioFilmJobs without you!

Your personal stories of how Ohio’s film and TV industry affects yourself, your family, and your community are invaluable to this fight; we believe we were heard loud and clear yesterday.

Even though the hearing went very well, there is still a lot of work to do to save the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit.

Keep Up the Fight

Our lawmakers in Columbus have made it known that they don’t want to hear from Hollywood, they want to hear from YOU, the local film professional!

They want to hear how YOU will be affected if the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit is eliminated.

If you couldn’t make it to Columbus on Thursday, there are several other ways you can help!

Contact Your Lawmakers – Click HERE
Write an email, mail a letter, or even make phone calls to the decision makers!

Use our template letter and personalize it to each recipient, or create your own.

Share on Social Media

Use #SaveOhioFilmJobs to help us spread our message across Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Share, retweet and regram these posts to help raise awareness.

Follow us on Facebook? Update your profile pic with our new frame! Click HERE and search #SaveOhioFilmJobs to add.

CALL TO ACTION:
Join us in Columbus on Thursday, May 23rd at 9:00 AM
to testify for the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit

WHO:  EVERYONE
WHAT:  HEARING ON SUB. SB 166
WHERE: FINANCE SENATE HEARING ROOM
WHEN:  MAY 23, 2019
TIME: 9:00 AM SHARP

The Senate Finance Committee will be holding a hearing on Sub. HB 166. Specifically, they will be hearing public testimonies on the tax and general government topics on Thursday, May 23rd at 9:00 AM. Tax matters will be heard first, so please plan accordingly if you intend to testify.

Testifying is not mandatory to attend; we want to show the strength of our numbers as much as we want to tell our lawmakers how this decision will affect our industry.

For those testifying, send a complete witness slip and your testimony no less than 24 hours in advance of the committee hearing time to Sarah Totedo (Chairman Dolan’s LA) at [email protected].

Click HERE to be taken to the interactive witness slip. If the “Submit” button doesn’t work, please save the completed document and email it as an attachment to Sarah Totedo.

Download Witness Slip
Download Meeting Agenda

For questions, please contact Development Coordinator Juli Johnson at 216-344-7424 or [email protected].

The Ohio Statehouse
1 Capitol Square
Columbus, OH 43215

Senate Side of the Statehouse
Finance Hearing Room

Parking Information
PLEASE NOTE: Parking at the Statehouse Underground Garage is extremely limited and a poriton is currently under construction. Please plan accordingly for other arrangements.

Other Ways To Help

Our lawmakers in Columbus have made it known that they don’t want to hear from Hollywood, they wants to hear from YOU, the local film professional!

They want to hear how YOU will be affected if the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit is eliminated.

If you can’t make it to Columbus on Thursday, there are several other ways you can help!

Contact Your Lawmakers – Click HERE
Write an email, mail a letter, or even make phone calls to the decision makers!

Use our template letter and personalize it to each recipient, or create your own.

Send us a Selfie or Headshot – Click HERE

According to the MPAA, the media production industry in Ohio is responsible for 35,000 jobs.

Help us show the faces behind Ohio’s film job numbers.

Send your self or headshot by Monday, May 20th at 5:00 PM to be included in our Faces of Ohio Film collage.

Share on Social Media

Use #SaveOhioFilmJobs to help us spread our message across Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Share, retweet and regram these posts to help raise awareness.

Follow us on Facebook? Update your profile pic with our new frame! Click HERE and search #SaveOhioFilmJobs to add.

The Ohio House has proposed ending the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit
as a means to help fund a reduction in state income taxes.

We believe to eliminate the tax credit is a GRAVE ERROR that will do great damage to our economy and to so many Ohio taxpayers who either work in media production, run a business that works with the media production industry or dream of someday working in this industry right in their own backyard.

The success of the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit is real and demonstrable.

To see how you can help save Ohio film jobs, click HERE.

The MPAA reports on the industry impact (jobs/wages), and numbers are updated annually following the release of the prior year’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data.

Movie & TV Production:  By the Numbers¹

• 2015-2016:  During the course of 2015 and 2016, 28 movies and 5 TV series filmed in Ohio. Movies include The Fate of the Furious, Bye Bye Man, UFO, Trouble, Blood on Wheels, My Blind Brother, and In Search of Fellini. TV series include Fat n’ Furious: Rolling Thunder, Lachey’s Bar and Preach.
• Impact:  While shooting on location, a major motion picture contributes an estimated $250,000 per day, and a single one-hour television episode contributes $150,000 per day, to the local economy.
  • In 2014 and 2015, film and TV productions spent $22.6M in the Cincinnati area, directly employing 4,331 people.²
• Historic:  Key titles that filmed in whole or in part in Ohio include Captain America: The Winter Soldier, The Avengers, Draft Day, The Ides of March, Parker, Touchback, Spider-Man 3, The Soloist, Air Force One, Antwone Fisher, A Christmas Story, Major League, Men in Black, Shawshank Redemption, Rain Man, Redemption, Silence of the Lambs, Tango & Cash and Traffic.
  • Captain America: The Winter Soldier spent an estimated $35M in Ohio over approximately 150 days, creating roughly 2,778 Ohio jobs and opportunities.³
  • The Avengers spent more than $25M in Ohio in 2011, employing 3,875 Ohioans.⁴
• Production Incentive:  The tax incentives for Ohio include refundable credits for film, TV, video and digital media equal to 30% of production expenditures (with a minimum in-state spend of $300,000) including out-of-state wages. There is an annual $40M cap on available credits.
  • From July 2011 through June 2015, 31 productions received a total of $32.6M in Ohio tax credits. These productions contributed to more than 1,700 jobs, $70M in wages, and $225M total output impact to Ohio’s economy.⁸

Economic Impact of the Motion Picture & TV Industr

• The motion picture and television industry is responsible for more than 35,500 jobs and $1.2B in total wages in Ohio, including indirect jobs and wages.
• Nearly 11,700 people are directly employed by the motion picture and television industry in Ohio, including 2,974 production related employees.
• There are 2,080 motion picture and television industry businesses in Ohio, including 1,200 production-related companies.⁹
• MPAA member companies paid $17M to 851 vendors in Ohio in 2016. These local businesses include transportation, retail, hardware, and technology. Since 2012, MPAA members have paid on average $27M per year to local vendors in Ohio.

Download MPAA Report for Ohio HERE

Download MPAA Report for the U.S. HERE

^{1 Film commission listing and industry sources. Includes only feature films and TV series, not individual episodes, documentaries, specials, or other programming.
2 Cincinnati.com, “Why an expanded film incentive matters to Cincinnati,” 7/8/2016.
3 Ohio Development Services Agency, “Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit Helps Lure New Captain America Movie,” 9/28/2012.
4 Cleveland State University, Analysis and Economic Impact of the Film Industry in Northeast Ohio and Ohio, March 2012.
5 U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data as of year end 2016. U.S. Census Bureau data as of July 1, 2016.
6 BLS Data, using SIC to NAICS bridge. Production-related includes motion picture and video production, independent motion picture production artists and technicians, production-related businesses, post-production, re-production and studio distribution. Consumer distribution-related includes motion picture theaters, video wholesale and rental operations, television broadcasting, cable and other subscription programming. Total jobs calculated using RIMS II model of the BEA and some additional film/TV specific employment in other industries (e.g. retail). Data as of year end 2015.
7 Analysis of studio submissions received, using additional detail to ensure greater accuracy in estimating the number of vendors paid. Data as of year end 2016.
8 Cleveland State University, Box Office Ohio: Analysis and Economic Impact of the Film Industry in Northeast Ohio and Ohio, June 2015.
9 Analysis of Dun & Bradstreet industry reports. Data as of year end 2016.}

The Ohio House has proposed ending the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit
as a means to help fund a reduction in state income taxes.

The Greater Cleveland Film Commission is reaching out to our state officials to strongly urge them to reconsider eliminating the tax credit and we ask our supporters to do the same. We believe to eliminate the tax credit is a GRAVE ERROR that will do great damage to our economy and to so many Ohio taxpayers who either work in media production, run a business that works with the media production industry or dream of someday working in this industry right in their own backyard.

THE SUCCESS OF THE OHIO MOTION PICTURE TAX CREDIT IS REAL AND DEMONSTRABLE.  The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) recently reported that nearly 35,500 people are directly and indirectly (hotels, caterers, carpenters, dry cleaners, etc.) employed by the motion picture and television industries in Ohio, with total wages earned exceeding $1.2 billion. We ask our state leaders to keep the incentive in place so we can continue to grow this industry and make Ohio a global production destination so that we can bring even more jobs and economic impact to our great state.

• Copy and paste the letter below into your email, personalizing the greeting for each recipient:
  • [email protected] – Governor Mike DeWine
  • [email protected] – Governor DeWine’s Chief of Staff
  • [email protected] – House Speaker Larry Householder
  • [email protected] – Senate President Larry Obhof
• Copy and paste the letter below onto your company or personal letterhead and mail to the appropriate recipient.
• Call the Governor, Speaker of the Ohio House and President of the Ohio Senate to express your support using the letter below as a guide for your conversation.
  • Governor DeWine – 614-644-4357
  • Speaker Householder – 614-466-2500
  • Senator Obhof – 614-466-7505

• Share these social media posts to Facebook and Twitter, and use #SaveOhioFilmJobs

For questions, please contact GCFC President & CEO Ivan Schwarz at 216-623-3910 or [email protected]

We strongly encourage that you personalize your emails, letters, and phone calls.
Use this letter as a template. 

Dear Speaker Householder:

I write to you today with a profound sense of urgency as a supporter of the Greater Cleveland Film Commission and Ohio’s growing media production industry. It has come to my attention that your office has proposed ending the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit and consequently pulling the plug on a successful industry poised for even greater growth.

The success of the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit is real and demonstrable. The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) recently reported that nearly 35,500 people are directly and indirectly (hotels, caterers, carpenters, dry cleaners, etc.) employed by the motion picture and television industries in Ohio, with total wages earned exceeding $1.2 billion.

This is a successful program that is putting Ohioans to work and putting hundreds of millions of dollars into their pockets right now. These aren’t just people working on movies and television shows, but also small business owners who have found a niche supporting this industry or whose businesses have found more paying customers from the growth of the industry in Ohio. Making media content is the manufacturing of the modern age, and it creates economic impact wherever it is fostered.

In 2008, Georgia passed a motion picture tax incentive that transformed their economy to the tune of $9.5 billion of economic impact in 2017 alone and made them arguably the media production capital of the world. New Mexico has seen similar success with their incentive. Netflix recently bought Albuquerque Studios and plans to invest over $1 billion in the state by driving production there.

I can personally attest to the incredible impact of this program. (Insert your story here.)

Growing this industry is a chance to grow something special in Ohio. This is a chance to stop our state from hemorrhaging bright, young people and keep them engaged – and employed – with an industry that’s not only hip and exciting but expanding by the day and filled with tremendous opportunity. The new film school at Cleveland State University has been designed from the bottom up to be one of the best in the nation and attract, train and retain the brightest young talent not only in Ohio but across the country. This is also a chance to bring skilled tradespeople back to Ohio to live, work, support local economies and pay state taxes.

I strongly urge you to reconsider eliminating the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit. To do so would be a grave error that would do great damage to our economy and to so many Ohio taxpayers who either work in media production, run a business that works with the media production industry or perhaps dream of someday working in this industry right in their own backyard.

Let us continue to grow this industry and make Ohio a global production destination so that we can bring even more jobs and economic impact to our great state.

Before last weekend’s record-shattering box office opening with Avenger: Endgame, Cleveland-native Anthony Russo (of the directing duo the Russo Brothers), talked with Michael Sangiacomo at The Plain Dealer about Endgame, and the next movie that he and brother Joe Russo want to bring to Cleveland, Cherry. ORIGINAL ARTICLE HERE.  The Russos also talked out Cherry and their wishes to make it in Cleveland in a recent interview with Collider (see below).

Last year’s “Avengers: Infinity War” earned more than $2 billion worldwide, which is more than the gross national product of Greenland and other countries and the 2017 budget of Cleveland.

The sequel, “Avengers: Endgame,” is expected to do even better with its opening this weekend. So why would directors Anthony and Joe Russo choose now to give up on the Marvel movie franchise?

Anthony Russo, born and raised in Cleveland, took time from putting the finishing touches on “Endgame,” to talk about the movie and their cinematic future.

“We’ve done four movies for Marvel in seven years,” he said. “It’s been the greatest time of our lives. We have loved the material, the comics, since our childhood. Making movies for them has been a dream. But ‘Endgame’ is the ending of the current Marvel Cinematic Universe that started with ‘Iron Man.’ It all comes together here, all of it. We have no plans to do another, but on the other hand we might like to work with Marvel again someday down the line.”

Next up for the brothers is a movie called “Cherry,” written by fellow Clevelander Nico Walker. They hope to shoot the movie in Cleveland.

Director Joe Russo and Chris Evans (Steve Rogers/Captain America) and Anthony Mackie (Sam Wilson/Flacon) on the set of ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’

“We’re working with the Greater Cleveland Film Commission to see if we can get the tax incentives to do it in Cleveland,” Russo said. They filmed “Captain America: Winter Soldier” in the city. “ ’Cherry’ is a very intuitive portrait of a man who joins the Army and has a bad experience in Afghanistan. He returns home, where he suffers from PTSD, which leads to a heroin addiction. To feed his habit, he robs banks. We feel like it’s a very timely movie considering the opioid epidemic in our country.”

Anthony talked about “Cherry,” but clammed up when asked about the three-hour-plus “Endgame.”

“I can’t speak to it, specifically,” Russo said. “Joe and I want to make sure that people can have the full experience in the theater.”

“As I said, this is a closure of the Marvel universe, but with every closure there is a new beginning,” he said.

As anyone who’s seen “Infinity War” can attest, there is not much of the Marvel universe left after the end.

Spoiler alert for the benefit of the seven people who have not yet seen it; what follows are some facts about the previous film that will impact the new movie.

The evil, godlike villain Thanos took possession of the Infinity gems, which gave him control of everything: time, space, reality, the whole shebang.

Thanos believed that the universe would be a better place with fewer people, so at the end of the movie he snapped his fingers and half the living creatures on Earth dissolved.

Shown dissolving were Spider-Man, Black Panther, Doctor Strange, Winter Soldier, Scarlet Witch, Nick Fury, Hank Pym (the original Ant-Man), Loki, Heimdall, Gamora and most of the Guardians of the Galaxy.

The survivors include Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye, Ant-Man (Scott Lang) and War Machine, who, with an assist from Captain Marvel, will take on Thanos.

Suspicious people have noted that the “survivors” were the big-paycheck actors whose contracts were ending, so maybe they are really the ones on the way out.

“No comment,” said Russo. “Really, I don’t want to spoil it.”

But …

The Russo Brothers and Chris Evans (Steve Rogers/Captain America) on the set of ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’

“Keep in mind that there was a rift between Cap and Iron Man in ‘Civil War’ that has never healed,” Russo said. “They did not reconcile in ‘Infinity War,’ and that prevented them from working as a team. Perhaps that is the reason Thanos won. I’m not saying anymore.”

Russo said the brothers have been busy.

“We used our success at Marvel to set up our own company, AGBO,” he said. “The origin of that name is a funny story. When we were students at Case [Western Reserve University], we started a sketch comedy troupe. We were trying to get publicity, and Joe had an idea.

“He wrote a scathing review of the show for the Case student newspaper,” he continued. “The reviewer despised the show. But we were able to talk about everything that was special about the show, disguised as a nasty review by someone named Gozie Agbo. Joe also used that name when he performed as an actor, so that’s how we ended up with AGBO.”

Since Marvel movies are not in the Russo Brothers’ foreseeable future, is there any chance that the brothers would bring their directing skills to DC and Warner Bros., whose superhero films have paled before Marvel’s?

“We consider all possibilities,” he said. “We would consider doing a DC superhero movie. After all, when I was a kid, my favorite character was Batman.”

Russo said it’s also too soon to talk about the repercussions of the purchase of Fox by Disney, meaning they can now bring the X-Men, the Fantastic Four and others into a joint universe.

“It’s all too new,” he said. “But my brother and are have always been huge fans of Wolverine.” Never say never, he said. “There are no plans for that, but who knows?”

Last April, after the release of “Infinity War,” the brothers hosted a showing of it along with both of their Captain America movies at the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque. He said something similar is planned for the opening of “Endgame.”

“We will return to Cleveland and host a showing; we’re still working out the details,” he said.

In order to bring the Russo Brothers back to the CLE to make their next movie, Cherry, we must expand the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit.
See how you can help by contacting your lawmakers HERE.

As we continue to advocate for the expansion of the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit, we still need your help in encouraging our State lawmakers to pass this important legislation.  The current legislation offers a tax incentive for movies, television, web series and gaming and we would like to add touring Broadway productions that: are pre-Broadway engagements; launching national tours or run for a minimum of 5 weeks

Currently, we are about to lose $250 million in production to other states if this does not pass. We have already lost over $1 billion dollars in business due to our small incentive. This activity would have a significant impact on our economy, and part of our mission is to positively impact our region’s economy.  SB37 will boost the entire State of Ohio.

• Copy and paste the letter below into your email and send to the appropriate recipient:
  • [email protected] – Governor Mike DeWine
  • [email protected] – Governor DeWine’s Chief of Staff
  • [email protected] – House Speaker Larry Householder
  • [email protected] – Senate President Larry Obhof
• Copy and paste the letter below onto your company or personal letterhead and mail to the appropriate recipient.
• Call the Governor, Speaker of the Ohio House and President of the Ohio Senate to express your support using the letter below as a guide for your conversation.
  • Governor DeWine – 614-644-4357
  • Representative Householder – 614-466-2500
  • Senator Obhof – 614-466-7505

• Share these social media posts to Facebook and Twitter, and encourage others to show their support.

For questions, please contact GCFC President & CEO Ivan Schwarz at 216-623-3910 or [email protected]