LOCAL FILM PRODUCTION

 SEES MODEST INCREASE

2005 Local Revenue Tops $3.4 Million

(Ridgecrest)---2004 was a soft year for local film production and the Ridgecrest Regional Film Commission (RRFC) was happy to see 2005 start to revive.  Film Commissioner Ray Arthur thinks it could be a harbinger of better days ahead for the Ridgecrest region.

"We have averaged $4.2 million per year in local film production revenue from 1992 through 2003.  2004 saw a big slip to only $2.7 million.  And we're happy to see 2005 bouncing back," Arthur said.

According to the RRFC all three indicators: number of shoots, number of shoot days and local revenue generated, showed growth in 2005.  According to Arthur this means features and commercials made a modest comeback compared to 2004.  RRFC statistics show that portions of six feature films shot in the Ridgecrest region for a total of 26 days, 14 commercials shot for 32 days and there were 15 still photography shoots totaling 27 days.  Other types of production included three TV shows, three music videos and four student films, combining for an additional 23 shoot days.

In addition to the 45 productions permitted and/or facilitated by the RRFC, during 2005 the Inyokern Airport saw 16 projects and 39 days of filming, primarily on the world famous Runway 28.  Shoots included automobile commercials for Porsche, Cadillac, Lexus, Toyota, Mazda, Saab, a watch commercial and an European cigarette commercial, according to Inyokern Airport Manager Scott Seymour.

RRFC and "IYK" combined numbers see local revenue increasing $661,000 from 2004's $2,748,000 to 2005's $3,409,000.

While many see a $3 million year as very good, it wasn't so long ago that this Mojave "High" Desert community saw record years of $6 million and $7 million in film production revenue with big movies like PLANET OF THE APES, HOLES and HIDALGO.  But, according to Arthur, major feature film and television shoots have dropped off for three reasons:  Runaway Production, $200 million flops and Reality TV, "Countries like Canada, Australia and even the Czech Republic, as well as 26 states, are offering huge tax incentives to lure production out of California...and it's working.  Every time a super expensive movie like THE ISLAND drowns in red ink, five or six other films in development get cancelled.  And, Reality TV is produced relatively cheaply and almost always in the Los Angeles area.  Episodic TV and Movies of the Week, of which there are far fewer than there were five years ago, used to spend big bucks ‘on location.'"

The RRFC is a component of the Ridgecrest Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, a California 501 (c) 6 non profit corporation that markets the 10,000 square mile region around Ridgecrest to both the tourism and film industries.

EDITOR'S NOTE:

Also attached is a photo of Ridgecrest Regional Film Commissioner Ray Arthur with Director Clint Eastwood.  Eastwood's new feature film project, "Red Sun, Black Sands," is considering locations in the Ridgecrest area.