Georgia Slips To No. 2 Spot To Make A Movie

ATLANTA, GA — Georgia is still on the minds of movie makers. But, at least this year, the Peach State will have to settle for second-place.

In 2017, Georgia was the location for 15 of the year's 100 top-grossing films — good for second place behind Canada, where 20 such movies were produced. A year earlier, Georgia had topped the list with 17 of the year's most popular features, beating out the United Kingdom, Canada and California.

According to Film L.A. Inc., the nonprofit group that compiled the list, Georgia was still head-and-shoulders above other filming locations in the United States, though. Compared to Georgia's 15 top-grossing films, California was home to 10, New York to six and Louisiana to five.

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The report notes that Canada benefited from a favorable money exchange rate that made filming in Canada attractive in 2017, as well as the nation's groundbreaking tax credits for movie productions, which were mimicked notably, and to great success, in Georgia.

In all, the top 100 domestic grossing movies of 2017 were worked on in more than a dozen U.S. states and 20 countries in Europe, South America, Africa, Asia and Australia. The report also found that post-production — like visual effects — can account for half of the credited jobs on top movies.

That's a big deal for places like Georgia, where significant investment has gone into the building of production facilities.

Gov. Nathan Deal, a champion of Georgia's feature-film incentives, found plenty to like in the new report.

"Gov. Deal is immensely proud of Georgia’s thriving film industry and the economic development that follows feature film production," Deal spokesman John Vaughan said in an email. "This latest LAFilm study found that Georgia is the No. 1 state for feature film production, once again topping both California and New York.

"As home to a record 455 film and television productions last year, Georgia remains a top destination for filmmakers and production companies. Gov. Deal is proud to see the success of this industry continue, as films and shows shot in Georgia generated more than $9.5 billion in total economic impact for every corner of the state during the last fiscal year."

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In 2005, Georgia's legislature passed what would become known as the Georgia Entertainment Industry Investment Act. Under the bill, which went into effect in 2008, Georgia offered one of the nation's most aggressive tax-incentive programs to production companies working in the state.

As a result, TV and film studios were able to shave off significant sums from their overhead doing business in Georgia, as opposed to other states. Productions of $500,000 or more that take full advantage by including promotion for the state — usually in the form of the Georgia, USA peach logo – can save 30 percent on their taxes.

In the wake of the new law, Georgia's entertainment-industry infrastructure began to grow as studios, sound stages, post-production facilities and the like began springing up to support the companies arriving to take advantage of the tax break.

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