- Georgia offers up to a 40% tax break on film productions, fueling growth in rural areas like Quitman.
- A 145% tariff on China could limit international distribution, discouraging film investment in Georgia.
- Watch the video to hear veterans in the film industry in Valdosta weigh in.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Valdosta's Wild Adventures once hosted Zombieland. Quitman is home to the emerging South Georgia Studios.
And small teams across the region are fueling the rural film movement, thanks to Georgia's tax breaks of up to 40%.
But rising tariffs—especially the 145% one still in place on China—could change that.
Jason Brown, Director of the South Georgia Film Festival, says the global trade war is already shaking investor confidence.
"If you don't have certainty about the markets of where you're selling things, it's really hard to get people to invest in the production of the thing, and that applies to film as it does to any other industry."
Brown says it's not just about equipment—though that's a factor too.
Many films shot here are made for international release, and higher export costs could shrink the market.
"Those people still have to be able to sell those movies somewhere, and with all the uncertainty that it's created by this tariff situation, it's really difficult to imagine that people will invest to make more of it."
Steven Heddon, Creative Director of Fusion Marketing and Evergreen Productions in Valdosta, has worked on local films like The Southside Project.
He says rural regions already face steeper climbs due to smaller profit margins after production strikes and the pandemic.
"This area being in South Georgia, we're a little bit at the bottom of the hill compared to Atlanta and even sometimes Macon. But the industry itself here, I think if you're going to make money in production, you've got to diversify it."
Film and TV productions created over 60,000 job opportunities in the state in the last two years, which could come to a grinding halt if production slows down.
I'm Malia Thomas, reporting for ABC27.
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