The Cedar Rapids Area Convention & Visitors Bureau Endorses Iowa's Film Tax Credit Program
The Cedar Rapids Area Convention & Visitors Bureau (CRACVB) endorses Iowa’s film tax credit program and encourages state officials to get a clear and fair accounting of film projects planned and underway in Iowa.
In 2006, the CRACVB worked closely with the producers of “The Final Season” by scouting locations and connecting cast and crew with member hotels and restaurants. Production of the film brought close to a million dollars in spending in Linn County. The CRACVB advocated to legislators to enact tax credits to make filmmaking in Iowa more attractive. The tax credits took effect in July 2007.
Just in the last three months, the CRACVB has been approached by, at least, 8 potential film projects and helped scout locations for two. One of those projects, titled “Cedar Rapids”, is set to star Ed Helms of NBC’s “The Office.”
This spring, the cast and crew of “12:30” stayed at a local member hotel and spent $33,400 while filming in Cedar Rapids. Another local property just booked nearly $60,000 in business for a film project starting in mid-October.
Cedar Rapids Area Convention & Visitors Bureau President Tim Boyle: “Filmmaking is a new industry for us, a creative and exciting one. It creates significant direct spending in hotels, at restaurants and for dozens of services. Movies shot in Iowa also carry the image and message of the state all over the world. We have to take advantage of filmmaking without being taken advantage of.”
