CBS Pittsburgh: Some fear the budget stalemate in Harrisburg could end up costing Pittsburgh thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in revenue.
Pittsburgh has been called “Hollywood East” because of the movies and TV shows filmed here in recent years. Each one creates jobs and pumps money into the economy.
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I'm not sure if it still works this way but just a few years ago the tax credit worked as a limitless present until it was out. Money was not distributed to projects by any department. Instead money was spent as much as used by the film industry until it ran out and then nada. So shows tend to come here at the beginning of the fiscal year and leave at the end. A viscous cycle. I for one am in favor of raising the credit but I don't think that would actually solve any problems. If it means more shows film here, doesn't that mean we still run out. We don't have limitless money there has to be some sort of cap. Maybe instead of letting each project take as much as they want, they could spread it around, or set limits on individual projects.
I'm not saying my solution is a great one, but we need something that isn't the current situation.
It’s kind of crazy how many TV shows and movies have filmed in Pittsburgh over the last few years, and it is really great for Pittsburgh to have this kind of notoriety because it is still just a growing city. However, the threat that the TV shows will leave could seriously hurt Pittsburgh even if it is all resolved. The fact that the tax credit holdup had happened before could make other shows and movies less likely to set up shop here. This article makes it seem like something spectacular has to be done to keep the TV shows in town and stop them from moving to Toronto or Atlanta. The only consolation it gives is that the movie industry is separate form the TV industry so if TV leaves, movies might not jump ship as well. It is fair that the TV producers would want to make sure there team got a tax break for living in cities that they usually aren’t in and for putting so much of their money into a single city.
Being from Pittsburgh, it’s been amazing to see the development the city has gone through in the past 10 years. Most notably, I remember my dad, who works downtown, telling me about the filming of “The Dark Knight Rises” and watching the city come together over a movie. Pittsburghers are proud of their city and are happy to have people here to film, not only because of the increased revenue for those affected by the filming, but also because they get to see their small city on the big screen, which at least for me is so cool. Being able to see more and more movies now and recognize a location and say, “I know where that is!” or “I’ve been there” is so interesting. In addition to the revenue for the city, it raises interest in the city as a whole for tourism, additional filming, and people wanting to know more. If this budget issue continues, we could see a lot of those things go away which could mean big problems.
1 billion dollars into the local economy in the past twenty years is absolutely fantastic for a place like Pittsburgh, especially as the former steel empire is trying to reinvent the gruff, blue-collar brand on the city. Personally this news comes as a disappointment for me, because one of the reasons I've become so excited about living in Pittsburgh is the opportunity to stay over the summer and see if I could get myself onto one of the filming locations to understand what it's like to be an assistant on a film or television show. Being the "Hollywood East" comes with a lot of perks that, if the tax breaks don't come through, will keep turning Pittsburgh into the place to be in the next ten to fifteen years. Not to mention -- the city is absolutely perfect for American film locations. There's a certain quality to the streets, homes, and landmarks of Pittsburgh that scream midwestern America, and it'd be a shame if directors and production companies didn't have the ability to use Pittsburgh to their advantage.
I think it would be a huge mistake for the state to not try to resolve this film budget issue as soon as possible because the the alluring tax break for film projects is what drives a lot of studio projects to shoot in the area. These projects not only pump tons of money into the local economy and serve as a new revenue stream to support the city of pittsburgh now that the hay day of the steel industry is long past, but they also help give the city notoriety and attribute to Pittsburgh's redefinition. If anything the fact that some are referring to the city as the "Hollywood of the East" should stand as a notable achievement of the city being reinvented. I personally think Pittsburgh should embrace this film culture as the city has a important history with the film industry's initial growth in our nation, and should reflect and embrace that part of its past. I think the state legislature should do their best to welcome and encourage filmmakers to shoot in the city, to not only revitalize it and bring in business into the city, but to also to bring a new legacy for the proud and hardworking people who inhabit it.
It seems kind of ridiculous that a tax break that has been so successful might not continue. Pittsburgh has benefited greatly from the income these movies produce. Hundreds if not thousands of jobs are created from these movies and as pointed out, wood sales are benefited, restaurants, hotels, there is not much to loose…we also get bragging rights. Now this article only pointed out one side of the story and I am sure the side opposed to this tax break has good reasons, but as someone who is naturally on the side of the film industry (by nature of the work I love doing) I can’t help but think movies and TV shows should get tax breaks if it helps the economy at large. Pittsburgh is set up to produce these big budget movies with the sound stages we have and the crew members that are attracted to the city because of the work, with this in mind I hope that these productions can stay here.
Ugh, Pittsburgh. Our growing film industry has been so great for the Pittsburgh community, and it has also instilled a major sense of pride in yinzers. Seeing the city in The Dark Knight Rises or in Perks of Being a Wallflower is such a cool experience for a city that often does not get a lot of national attention. I don't really understand why the city is just now not passing the budget for tv and film when we have already agreed to have multiple projects here this year. What the city officials may not understand is just how much the film industry helps our city. Not only do we benefit from multi-million dollar films, but many of our local citizens and vendors make their living off of this industry. By pushing away major films from Pittsburgh, the city is also pushing away Pittsburgh citizens and vendors who work in this industry. In order for the city to make a smart move here, I think they really need to look at the numbers and analyze how many people and business the film industry in Pittsburgh impacts.
I must say that I am very surprised to see Pittsburgh being called “East Hollywood”. There are many other locations on the east coast that I would have thought to be movie and TV hot spot. It is a bummer that all these production companies are considering relocation because of the tax rate. I can’t say that I am surprised about this and if I were them I would have already started packing. It is ridiculous that the government thinks they can get away with this, there is nothing that special about PA where they can jack up the prices. This is also a bummer for me because if I ever wanted to get an internship in the Pittsburgh area I would probably go for something in the media field. You can bet I will be watching for upcoming articles that show the governments decisions on tax law. For now we keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best.
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