Despite a significant downturn in big-budget productions over the past few years, Georgia’s independent filmmakers showed up at this year’s Atlanta Film Festival.
Jon Kieran, the programming director for the Atlanta Film Festival, described this year’s selections as a restaurant menu, emphasizing the variety of the films selected – there was a little something for everyone.
Kieran noted a sizable increase in the number of Georgia films submitted for the festival this year, specifically feature films. This year marked the 50th anniversary of the festival, and according to the Atlanta Film Society, it also featured the highest ever number of films made by Georgia creatives – approximately 30 percent.
“We’re showing more Georgia feature films than we have at any time during my time here,” Kieran said. “When you get into long-term status of people making films here – whether that’s large-scale commercial production or indie production – when you have that happen over years, you build up a sort of base of resources.”
Film and television tax incentives, originally passed by the Georgia General Assembly in 2005 and then expanded in 2008, helped Atlanta gain traction as an international film hub. Big-budget films swarmed to Atlanta to take advantage of these perks. With them came a multitude of independent filmmakers hoping to work on those productions and make it big.
However, over the last few years, many Hollywood productions have moved overseas, including those run by Marvel Studios. According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, Marvel decided to move to the United Kingdom due to the country’s low labor costs and better tax incentives.
While there may be places that offer better tax incentives than Georgia, Kristy Calabaugh of ELEMENT – a film and entertainment-focused CPA firm – still believes that Georgia’s incentive is “more beneficial and more lucrative.”
“The turnaround is quicker, and more things follow that,” she said.
Though Hollywood movies are how Atlanta gained notoriety as a film hub, indie productions are now making a name for themselves. Smaller movies, driven by the local community in Atlanta, have risen into the limelight, with multiple featured in this year’s festival.
The Atlanta Film Festival receives thousands of entries every year from all across the globe, according to the festival’s website. This year, audiences were treated to 154 films, including features, shorts, documentaries, and even music videos.
Glen Kwon, Atlanta resident and director of festival selection “Bloom,” has seen and experienced the growth in Atlanta film firsthand and still believes the industry to be in its “early stages.” He said he thinks Atlanta film industry workers have to find their lane and ride it out.
“I know a lot of people who have found their lane, and they’re the go-to guy because they got in early,” he said.
Kwon believes that, even with the decline in big-budget production, there is still an abundance of work to be done in the city.
“The more projects that are being shot here, the more talent can be grown here,” Kwon said. “I think every filmmaker has their own goals and ambitions, maybe even agendas. I think that’s what makes film so special, because it is so individualized to the filmmaker.”
