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SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Film Commission announced Thursday that five new productions have been approved to film in Utah and to receive incentives from the state.
The productions are expected to generate $6.9 million in economic impact and create 300 local jobs, according to a news release from the commission.
The Governor's Office of Economic Development board approved three productions for the Motion Picture Incentive Program and two for the Community Film Incentive Program to support smaller, local projects. The larger productions include the two-part Hallmark film "Christmas at the Madison," starring sisters Kimberly Williams Paisley and Ashley Williams, and the feature film "Summering" from the minds behind "Brigsby Bear" and "The Spectacular Now."
"For over 15 years, I've chosen to film in Utah as much as possible," said "Christmas at the Madison" producer David Wulf. "The crew base, diverse locations, the business friendly environment, and the incentives have all been crucial to these particular projects."
The two Christmas films are scheduled to shoot consecutively in April and will be responsible for an estimated $4.2 million spent locally and 186 crew members hired.
"Summering" will begin filming in June and bring an estimated $2 million to the state, the release says. "We're thrilled to make 'Summering' in an environment with so much timeless beauty, drama, and unique personality," said James Ponsoldt, the film's director and co-producer.
The second season of "Line Upon Line," an animated series from local production company Living Scriptures, is one of the Community Film Incentive Program projects on tap. "Mistletoe Mixup," a feature film starring the Lawrence brothers — Joey, Matthew and Andrew — was written by Park City local Kaylin Richardson and will begin filming in March around Wasatch and Summit counties.
The new production announcements come just a week after the Utah Legislature OK'd an increase in the state's maximum tax credit for motion picture production. SB167 upped the credit from $6,793,700 to $15 million; however, the bill still requires a signature from Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and was not among the 57 bills he signed Thursday.
The Legislature upped the incentive after "Yellowstone," the popular Paramount Network drama, moved production to Montana after filming its first three seasons in the Beehive State. SB167 sponsor Sen. Ronald Winterton, R-Roosevelt, said during the legislative session that "Yellowstone" helped his district while it was filming in the state.
"We're talking about filming crews, we're talking about support crews, they spend money at our hotels, restaurants, retail, transportation, vendors," he said. "They bring in a large sum of money that continues to revitalize these cities. They increase the profile of the state."
But Sen. Jake Anderegg, R-Lehi, said upping the incentive amounts to a "bid war" with Montana.
"We've got the film in the first instance, and then someone from Montana did something and they got a bigger portion. Now, we're being asked to come back and ante up. So this is already stage three of the bid war between Utah and Montana. Let's not pretend it's anything otherwise," Anderegg said.
Cox has until March 25 to sign or veto the bill.
