Below is the HillCo client report from the October 24 House Culture, Recreation & Tourism Committee hearing.
The committee met to consider and hear invited testimony on multiple interim charges. This report focuses only on the following interim charge:
Evaluate the Texas Film Commission and the Texas Music Office to determine their effectiveness in economic development in Texas. Determine how the offices can better collaborate with local economic development entities and state agencies to further the economic development goals of the state.
Heather Paige, Director, Texas Film Commission
- The moving picture industry is currently a $1.5 billion industry in Texas
- Texas is number 2 in the country for video game production
- Film tourism has become a hot economic tool for regions worldwide in recent years
- When films are shot in a region, people are familiarized with that region
- Studios now recognize the value of employment dollars being used in an area and the value to a community if it is chosen as a shooting location; incentive programs are becoming more popular in the industry
- Producers who receive incentives from Texas have returned in the past even without an incentive because they enjoy working here and appreciate the quality moving picture industry workforce in Texas
Casey Monahan, Director, Texas Music Office
- Office was created to promote the development of the music industry in Texas
- There are 136,000 jobs in Texas related to the music industry
- Attempting to incentivize live music as opposed to recording because that is where the growth in the industry is
Bill Hammond, Texas Association of Business
- It is very much proven that the moving picture industry incentive is doing a lot to grow the industry in the state
- Incentives through this program are all paid based on receipts and payrolls and go to the production after the fact; much different than all other incentives in the state
Jim Butler, City of Austin, Economic Development Department
- Work very closely with the Texas Film Commission
- The work they are doing with the video game industry is helping to make Texas a strong player in that industry
- Read comments from other industry groups who have benefitted from working with the Texas Film Commission