Thursday, November 03, 2016
Atlanta rivals Hollywood to become major film mecca
www.cnbc.com: Dressed in heavy winter clothes, Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman, Kate McKinnon and Oliva Munn are sitting inside a family van on a snowy city street at night. They're filming a scene for "Office Christmas Party," due out in early December. The film, which is about an epic holiday bash after the CEO (Aniston) tries to close the branch, is set in Chicago in December, but the production is a world away, both from a geographical and calendrical sense. Filming is actually taking place in the heart of Atlanta in the middle of summer.
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I took two classes at SCAD at their Savannah campus two summers ago and even that small city had become a hub for filmmaking. It's no surprise that their Atlanta campus contributes to this extensive industry overwhelming the state. Often Hollywood and the culture surrounding it is inseparable from horror stories of its gluttony, vanity, the drug culture, etc. While Atlanta certainly isn't free of problems, it's nice that creators, businessmen, and everyone involved in film have a new workspace to take advantage of. Atlanta is also a great example of how economical consideration and investment into the arts creates jobs directly and indirectly. To be fair, Atlanta's architecture, geography, and their proximity to the airport make the city an ideal location, and the tax incentives mentioned may not be as successful in other cities across America. Still, the industry is booming and investment in the arts pays off again.
Where films take place versus where they were filmed has always interested me, and Atlanta seems like a very logical choice for the film industry’s next big step. Atlanta is huge – it definitely won’t have any space limitations like in the congested parts of California, and like the article mentions, Atlanta holds many different landscapes and scenes due to the size and diverse economic climates of the state. I actually have family in Atlanta and one of them works for CNN. The entertainment industry in Atlanta has always required his job to be mobile (in fact, he’s currently at the white house covering the current election) but now with this shift of industry, he might e able to hop on all these new opportunities closer to home. This article also reminds me of all the ones we’ve had in the past about films being shot in Pittsburgh, but geographically I think Atlanta is a better choice.
This has been a trend thats been happening for a couple years now. The Walking Dead series is set and filmed here, but other big franchises like The Hunger Games, have taken the incentive to film there. Not only that but CNN headquarters is located there. Now, one of the most popular shows this year is Donald Glover's Atlanta. It's nice to see a place other than L.A. flourishing, especially one that's cheaper to live in and cheaper to film in. I can see why so many people want to film there, I mean a 200,000 dollar return for every 1 million is such a huge tax return. Why wouldn't you film there? It's probably great for young filmmakers hoping to start out their careers. I would say that it might be obvious that things are filmed in Georgia as opposed to the place they may actually be set, but I had no idea Stranger Things was filmed there, as opposed to the Midwest somewhere, where its set. And, its always pretty obvious when things are filmed in the hills of California, as opposed to where they're actually set. So, really its a great setting, its cost is good, its clearly a good alternative.
Being born and raised in Los Angeles, living very close to downtown LA/Hollywood, having gone to school with some celebrity’s kids, and getting a lot of opportunities to go into the studios (different class tours/other stuff), I am not surprised at all why they would want to film in other places. LA IS TOO DAMN EXPENSIVE (and we don’t get seasons, and it hardly rains, so the vegetation isn’t that great, etc.). Because of our rich history of movie/TV making and other stuff, the living style and the cost of practically everything has gone up the roof. DON’T GET ME STARTED ON THE TRAFFIC!!! It’s no wonder people are starting to venture somewhere else, and I say good. Please don’t get me wrong, I love LA, it is my hometown and I am so grateful to be born there, because I have received so many amazing opportunities, meet so many wonderful people, that I wouldn’t have if I was born someone else. But it is an understatement when I say LA tends to be overrated. LA does great in a lot of ways, but if companies find better opportunity elsewhere where it doesn’t cost them so much, then for the sake of project, don’t be afraid to leave. LA has received the spotlight for movies for years, and as I’m sure it will continue doing so, but because it has been eating up the pricy style of Hollywood for years, it is hard to financially live there.
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