Movie studio planned for Pa.

By Joe Pelone
Collegian Editor
October 31, 2007

Hollywood is coming to Philadelphia.

Pacifica Ventures, a Santa Monica, Calif.-based company centered around developing and maintaining production studios for motion pictures and television, has announced plans to build a $75 million studio in the Philadelphia area, which is expected to generate thousands of jobs. Many of those jobs will go to college students/graduates. However, an exact location has not been named yet, although Bucks, Delaware and Philadelphia counties have all been discussed. What is specified, though, is the site’s opening –– fall 2008.

The decision to build in the Philadelphia area came after Pacifica Ventures experienced huge success in Albuquerque, N.M.

“New Mexico has the best incentive program in the country,” a Pacifica Ventures representative said. “Pennsylvania also understands that. They passed a very strong program that we think we will attract a very strong clientele.”

The program alluded to is the Film Production Tax Credit Program. Enter Executive Director Sharon Pinkenson, who has worked for over 15 years to bring cinema to Philadelphia.

“I started at the film office in 1992 and shortly after made a statement that we needed three things to really compete: more Philadelphia screenplays, financial incentives and a real studio,” she said.

She delivered all three of those shortly after, with several film projects over the years, as well as a film studio in 1995 thanks to a decision to convert “the old Civic Center into the first municipally-owned soundstage in the U.S.” The Film Production Tax Credit Program came 12 years later.

Effective July 1, the tax credit program provides a 25 percent tax credit for film production expenses incurred within Pennsylvania (hence the name), provided that at least 60 percent of total production expenses be from within the commonwealth. Other benefits include no fees for filming on state-owned or Philadelphia-owned property (provided it can be made available), exemption from hotel taxes for stays of over 30 days and the right to up to two free police officers for traffic control and security.

“The program has already stimulated unprecedented growth of the Philadelphia area’s production activity,” Pinkenson said. 

“Several movies and TV shows have either filmed here or are getting ready to film here that would not have chosen the Philadelphia area had the tax credit program been rejected by state government. For example, Lionsgate is planning two TV series and Peter Jackson [recently started] filming The Lovely Bones.”

These kickbacks have certainly proven to be attractive to studios out west. In addition to Pacifica Ventures, a Norristown, Pa. studio has been promised by Logan Square Studios. Benefits are a two-way street here, though. Just as Pacifica Ventures and Logan Square Studios can expect to maximize profits, Pennsylvanians—and college students in particular—can expect some boons for themselves.

“Having real purpose-built studios in our area will attract the level of production that will ensure a thriving film business for the foreseeable future,” Pinkenson said. “TV series and major feature films that might have visited for a few weeks will now base out [of] Philadel-phia.

“Students who are interested in pursuing careers in film can do so without leaving the region,” she continued. “Everyone who wants to work in film will realize their dreams right here. The film industry will become a major business stimulator in our region.”

The benefits to La Salle students from these studiosare obvious- it’s work!

While it’s somewhat ironic that two film studios have been announced in or around Philadelphia the same year the Communication Department has done away with its film track, there are still plenty of communication majors who find work close to home, or at least find a high-profile internship in the area.

This is to say nothing of the public relations track, which will certainly be generating more and more local heat as work in Philadelphia picks up.

The studio is already causing a stir at La Salle, according to Brother Gerard Molyneaux, director of external and international relations for the Communication Department.

“Parents at open house were asking me about the new film studios that will open,” he said. “The studios will make the city a movie-making mecca and an East Coast hub of the industry.

“The studios will mean jobs of all kinds, but especially jobs in film production. Right now, those positions are very hard to find here. Having professional filmmakers in town will provide accessible expertise that can be called on, e.g. guest lectures, career nights and so forth.”

For their part, representatives from Pacifica Ventures have indicated that the studio will be interested in culling interns and students from area colleges.

“Training programs and job training are a priority in any market for us,” said a Pacifica Ventures representative. “That’s what we need, that’s what the state needs. We’re creating that.”

While the film track has disappeared from the Communication curriculum, the department still intends to make the most of these upcoming studios.

“Right now, there’s a proposal for a film minor that has been waiting for a review by different University committees,” Molyneaux said. “That minor includes film production and editing which would prepare students for internships.

“If we can get that minor in place and use the opportunities that the new studios provide, then La Salle could become a very hot film school on the East Coast,” he said.

These new classes would certainly help La Salle compete with other schools like Temple University, which has communication tracks for broadcasting, telecommunications and mass media, as well as film and media arts; University of the Arts, which offers tracks in both creative and technical aspects of filmmaking; and University of Pennsylvania’s Fine Arts major, which covers film/video production.

Molyneaux, however, remains confident in La Salle’s ability to adapt to change and utilize the new studios.

“We already have a pretty good history of alumni in film and video production, he said. “This week’s Sunday Inquirer had an ad listing several of our Emmy Award winners. I also know a lot of alums now in L.A. would love to work back here, so I’m sure they’re following the studio story very carefully.”

pelonej1@lasalle.edu