A bill set to launch a statewide film production incentive is currently being considered by the Wyoming Legislature. The state hopes to attract the production of films, T.V. shows, and commercials by using $3 million dollars in lodging tax to attract producers.
The Legislature’s Travel, Recreation, Wildlife and Cultural Resources Committee voted during its May meeting to draft a bill regarding the film incentive, with the goal of having the bill considered during the 2023 general session.
“I think, as we try to diversify away from the mineral industry, tourism is a big attraction and a lot of what attracts tourists to Wyoming is the scenery,” Michael Brown, an emeritus professor at UW, said,
“Those sorts of things should attract television and film producers as well. And some of the benefits of that can be unexpected.”
Many productions that are set in the state are generally filmed in states with similar scenery, such as New Mexico, Utah, and Canada. The bulk of the well-known television series “Yellowstone” has been filmed in Montana. The popular film “Brokeback Mountain” was set against the backdrop of Wyoming, but was filmed in various locations of Alberta, Canada.
“I think this incentive is a good idea because Wyoming has a very strong potential to serve the film industry because of the various sites and physical places that filming can be done,” Brown said,
“You know, the Tetons have been used in a lot of films.”
It is currently very difficult for producers to film in Wyoming because of the lack of production incentives and overall high costs compared to other states.
“There was a television series called “Longmeyer” on a few years ago, based on books by a guy that writes out of Johnson County in Buffalo, Wyoming,” Brown said,
“Now they have Longmeyer days there that bring in as many as 10,000 people, for a celebration in little tiny Buffalo, Wyoming. So there’s a residual effect of filming here.”
The film incentive bill, if passed, would aim to bring Wyoming more state revenue in taxes, as well as create thousands of new jobs and bring tourists to parts of the state that are not often explored through the production of movies, television, and advertisements.
