How the film industry can benefit Emery County

By PATSY STODDARD Editor

How can Emery County become more involved in the film industry. Ricky Flores from the Utah Film Commission presented at the November Emery County Business Chamber Lunch and Learn. The event was held at the West Winds Restaurant in Green River and Allen Burns gave the local business spotlight. He said the restaurant opened in 1975 and the truck stop and motel property was added in 1980. In 1984 the diesel repair aspect of the business was added. In 1986 the Rodeway Inn bought the motel. In the late 1990s ten acres of property was purchased for overflow parking. The business is one of the largest in Green River employing 70 people and the business sits on 17 acres. The expanded parking area has plug-ins for trucks which were added two years ago.
The business is slowly recovering from the economic downturn. The business was at its busiest before the freeway took traffic around the town. Burns has been with
West Winds since September of 1981 and he said everyone in town has worked at West Winds at one time or another.
Julie Jones chamber president presented the business of the month award to Cathy Gardner of Ray’s Tavern. Gardner said she appreciates all the help her business gets from the county. Right now they are going into their slow season and they will work on projects around the business. She has owned the business since 1995 and is the third owner of Ray’s. “I love Green River. We collect T-shirts and decorate the walls with them. We have a simple menu. We are doing good. We have eight full-time employees,” said Gardner.
Flores began his presentation with a short video highlighting all the films shot in Utah throughout the years. To name a few: Thelma and Louise; Planet of the Apes; Need for Speed; John Carter of Mars; Dr. Who; Forever Strong; High School Musical 1, 2 and 3. World’s Fastest Indian, Lone Ranger, Forest Gump, Dumb and Dumber, Transformers, Age of Extinction; Independence Day; Stage Coach, 127 Hours; Pirates of the Caribbean, At World’s End, Indiana Jones, Back to the Future part three and Sand Lot. To date there have been more than 950 films shot in Utah. Flores said the film industry in Utah is a global business with film makers from around the world noticing Utah.
The Utah Film Commission is involved with anything involving a camera including photo shoots, commercials, domestic and international science shows, etc. They aren’t involved with news. The film commission is part of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development.
He encouraged the participants to visit their website. It’s been created as a marketing tool for Utah and includes pictures of areas available for films and commercials. If you click on the movie on the website then it will show you where it was filmed. The site includes lists of crews and support services for the film industry. He encouraged the Green River businesses and businesses in Emery County to register on the website. Vendors, motel operators, caterers, transportation, equipment and many other support industries are needed when a film crew comes into Utah. There are 900 people registered on the site.
Flores said, “Just one commercial I watched being filmed had 40 support people behind the scenes. Utah is epic. It has great locations and landscapes. These are shown in the visual museum. If you have pictures of your area you want showcased. Send them to me. Locations for Need for Speed included Moab and Dead Horse point. There were 217 people here and spent $2.1 million while here. Our state is film friendly. The Salt Flats is the most notable and requested location. The Pirates of the Caribbean spent two days filming on the Salt Flats. It’s unique. Commercials are the most filmed thing in Utah. Last year 50 permits were issued for shoots on the Salt Flats. There is no bigger billboard than a movie to promote Utah. The Mighty Five national parks are promoted in the previews. These promotions are seen in other countries.”
Flores said his office helps film companies navigate the permits they need for filming on federal lands. They are very active with the Sundance Film Festival and use it to really promote the locations in Utah for future projects. They also hold a summer workshop at Sundance for directors and producers. The film commission operates The Hub on Park City Main Street during the Sundance Film Festival to promote Utah. It’s a hospitality spot to acquaint people with what’s in Utah and to identify the landscapes as being Utah. A lot of people confuse Colorado with Utah.
Some TV series are now being shot in Utah, Granite Flats and American Ride from the BYU channel along with the recent movie The Giver, The Mentor, Running Wild, Saints and Soldiers, etc.
The film commission offers incentives to bring film crews to Utah. Granite Flats is shot in Magna and many props are needed to make the town look like 1960. The fashions for the clothing are researched and careful attention is paid to every detail to get it right. This series has brought $14.6 million into the state and created 90 jobs. Incentives are offered if a film company hires 85 percent of its crew in Utah, then they can receive a 20-25 percent tax rebate depending upon the size of the project. If the project is under $1 million the incentive is 20 percent and over $1 million the incentive can be 25 percent.
“Utah is competing with 39 other states for film projects. In 2003, Canada started offering incentives and during that time a lot of films were shot there. The first state to start offering incentives was Louisiana in 2004. New Mexico and California are our biggest competitors,” said Flores.
The film commission sponsors a commercial contest each year to promote Utah. The only requirements are the commercial have the website, logo and phone number for the film commission. When High School Musical was filmed at East High, it brought in $40,000 for the school.
Flores said permitting usually takes three days on the Salt Flats; forest service-30 days; BLM- three-five days to two weeks; state parks-two weeks. Shooting on public lands requires a permit. The film commission can help with the permitting process.
Flores encouraged the businesses in Emery County to get involved and register to be a vendor. He requested pictures be submitted of prime Emery County locations that would be good for a film project.
The next Lunch and Learn for the Emery County Business Chamber will be on January 21 and Laren Huntsman from the Hunter Power Plant will be the presenter.