Who is running Indiana’s efforts to attract film, TV, music and computer game productions? I don’t believe it is anyone with real experience in such things.
Indiana now offers a break to any production company that rents motel rooms in Indiana for 30 days or more. Let’s see, when I was filmed for “Power Rangers,” that was a two-day shoot. When I was filmed as a blackjack dealer in an episode of the NBC TV show “Rags to Riches,” that was a three-day shoot. I don’t think that a little discount on a 30-day motel bill will motivate any production to come to Indiana.
I don’t want to brag, but I do want to add credibility to my comments. I have been in films or TV shows with Jerry Lewis, Ben Vereen, Stacy Keach, Kirstie Alley, Dustin Hoffman, Tom Cruise, Willard Scott and other stars. I have produced and directed TV shows, too.
Indiana’s “incentives” and efforts to attract the entertainment industry are pathetic, badly reasoned and badly managed. If you check the website filmindiana.com, you will find a job board with postings for jobs that existed in 2019 and 2020, which are now useless.
I asked a state legislator why Indiana makes no serious effort to attract the entertainment industry with movies, TV shows, music and computer games. He said that most Indiana politicians never saw how incentives could help Indiana’s economy. If that is so, then I suggest our state legislators should rethink that.
The movie “A Christmas Story” was about a boy growing up in Hammond, Indiana. But it was filmed in Ohio. Now the house used in that film is a tourist attraction. Put scenes from Indiana in a movie, and some people will want to visit the scenes from the movie.
The incentives should help and encourage people in Indiana working any size project—large or small. We should help home grown people and companies gain experience while attracting people and companies from outside the state, too. But to be effective, the people leading our efforts should know Indiana’s strengths and weaknesses.
Right now, that is NOT happening with current Indiana officials. I don’t believe the public officials are bad people. I just believe they don’t know what they are doing because they don’t have the minimal knowledge and experience in the entertainment industry needed to do a good job to attract entertainment business.
—Woodrow Wilcox Dyer, Indiana
