The Revitalist

Much has been made recently of the film-production tax credit arms race going on in this country. Film location decisions for the most part are not sentimental; they're bottom-line decisions, driven by costs of labor, transportation, etc. According to Glenn Rifkin of the New York Times, almost every state has a tax incentive program designed to attract the film industry, and these are getting more and more lucrative as competition heats up: In New York City, filming enjoys a 35% benefit, and even California, despite its Hollywood home-court advantage, is looking at a larger incentive program. Massachusetts raised its tax credit to 25% last year, and has seen a remarkable increase in filming in the state.

If it's all a money game, critics say, the escalation in subsidies may be stripping out all of the benefits of attracting movie business. Not so in Massachusetts. Steady film business helps sustain the creative economy jobs that are so critical to the vitality of metro Boston and the State overall. But it is outside of metro Boston that other benefits of the film tax credits are more obvious. This summer, several movies are being filmed in the Merrimack Valley. Film companies appreciate the lower costs there, and their patronage of local businesses, restaurants, hotels, etc. is a huge economic benefit to the communities.

Towns like Lowell, Haverhill, and Lawrence, with their gritty urban settings and grand historic industrial architecture, offer great sites for filming -- local resources that the tax credit helps the cities leverage. The movies and TV shows bring to town not just money, but also a chance for the towns to market themselves. Just last week, AHF licensed with Disney to film part of a new futuristic action movie outside Washington Mills Building #1, our new loft apartment building in Lawrence. The movie is filming at a number of other nearby sites as well.  It can’t hurt the Merrimack Valley to have A-list actors like Bruce Willis and Rob Lowe spending time there.


In Massachusetts, film credits are supporting good jobs and bringing film business to the state’s industrial towns that can benefit from it. Everyone wins with the mutual benefits to both the community and filmmaker.