The Camp Lucky event was the first stop in the Texas Media Production Alliance’s (TXMPA) educational “roadshow,” covering proposed enhancements to incentives the state uses to attract media productions. The Dallas Film Commission and Dallas Producers Association co-presented the meeting, which included a letter-writing campaign to representatives to support SB 22.
“What we’re trying to do is just educate the community and let them know what [SB 22] is, what’s happening. We’re pairing it with a letter-writing campaign so that the community can tell their story about why a bill like this would matter, how it would affect their lives and their jobs and the community, and what they’d love to see in the future of this bill,” said Ian Loomer, who serves as the president of DPA and oversees technical operations for TXMPA.
“It is a significant increase in funding, as well as a commitment over a 10-year period,” explained TXMPA Executive Director Fred Poston ahead of his presentation at Camp Lucky. “The significance of that is that historically, in Texas, the [film incentive] program was only funded every two years, which limits larger productions, especially television-type productions, from coming in.”
Poston calls the bill, as proposed, a “game-changer” for the industry. Texas’ incentives have not been able to compete with other states in recent years, which has caused productions like AMC’s Fear the Walking Dead and Richard Linklater’s Hit Man to go elsewhere. SB 22 could change that, and Poston and his team are doing everything they can to get the word out.
“Tonight is a perfect way for people who are directly impacted by legislation that’s written about their industry to let their representatives know what it means to be a film industry worker here in Dallas,” Dallas Film Commissioner Katie Schuck said.
“All of this matters because they live here locally. They pay taxes locally, they’re sending their kids to local schools, they eat in our restaurants, and they’re telling Texas stories,” she added. “So all of this is super important and we just want to make sure that we’re protecting their livelihoods.”
Tim Nagle, president of Camp Lucky, and Cameron Gray, executive producer for the company, shared their perspectives on what SB 22 would mean for Camp Lucky and the state as a whole.
“I think what’s really exciting for us is we’re seeing the migration from the coast inward, and I think this incentive represents some of that energy as well and the acknowledgment of what’s happening,” said Nagle.
Gray, who recently moved to Texas from New York, said that bringing more productions to Texas could help improve the state’s image in other areas of the country as well.
“It’s about everyone making this absolutely a great place to shoot, pulling things in from the coast,” said Gray. As a gay man coming to Texas from the Northeast, he said, he has had to explain to friends that the perception people have of Texas is not always accurate. “I’m reiterating, as who I am, this is not some scary place.”
TXMPA’s roadshow comes in the wake of a combined push by Texas representatives and entertainers to turn the state into a premier destination for the entertainment industry. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has shown support for SB 22, which would see the state allocate $500 million every two years for a decade to an incentive fund to support media productions that meet certain eligibility requirements (i.e., hiring a certain number of Texas residents).“It’s about everyone making this absolutely a great place to shoot, pulling things in from the coast.” - Cameron Gray, Camp Lucky
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Actors Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson have also drawn attention to the legislation. The duo recently starred in an advertisement riffing on their True Detective characters from the show’s first season to raise awareness and later testified before the Senate Finance Committee on SB 22. Actor Dennis Quaid and producer Chad Gundersen have also shown support for the bill, and Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan has engaged with legislators on enhancements to the state’s incentives.
The arguments for the bill, which Poston covered during his presentation, are compelling. The money will not be handed out at random to filmmakers. To qualify, productions need to spend a certain amount of money in Texas and a percentage of their crew must be Texas residents (starting at 35% and increasing by 5% every two years until the requirement reaches 50%).
The goal is to get people to spend money and create opportunities in Texas, and the backend incentives (currently capped at a 31% return for large productions meeting all eligibility requirements and earning multiple additional add-on incentives for things like conducting post-production in Texas) encourage them to come here to begin with.
During his presentation, Poston shared that there is an estimated 469% return on every dollar that the state puts into productions. Schuck said that an incentive program like the one outlined in SB 22 would make Texas even more appealing to producers looking for a home for their next project.
“It means funding an entire industry here in Texas that will pay dividends throughout the entire society,” said Ed Leon, the region’s executive director for SAG-AFTRA, who said the bill would likely increase employment opportunities for actors in Texas.
Leon has bicoastal experience, working as a producer in Los Angeles and New York. He sees no reason why Texas could not compete with either as a filmmaking destination. “The infrastructure is here, the talent and the energy is here, and the skill set is here.”
And, with Senate Bill 22 now on its way to the House, it may not be long before the money is here, too.
