North Carolina’s film industry is gaining momentum, again

At least seven films and television shows are in production or soon to be in production here in North Carolina. These films follow what’s described as a banner year for television and movie production in the state in 2019. At least one of them, Delilah, a new series for Oprah’s television network, will film in and around Charlotte.

“They’re (production companies) able to come in and spend a lot of money in the communities in which film making is taking place immediately,” said North Carolina Film Office director Guy Gaster. “You look at a series like Delilah, they’re in Charlotte, and their budget you’re talking about over $1 million being spent per episode.”

Why N.C.?: North Carolina’s diverse terrain, from the ocean to the mountains, and generally mild weather create options for production companies.

“There’s about every location,” said director Horace Priester. “You’ve got urban Charlotte, and then you drive ten minutes away and it’s rural. You have mountains with snow. So I think you’ve got about every single set you could imagine in the state of North Carolina.”

Wilmington, the state’s production hub, serves as the backdrop to many of the state’s films. The city is especially attractive because it has dedicated studio space, EUE / Screen Gems Studios. The studio has hosted over 400 films, commercials, and tv shows. The studio’s infrastructure provides cover sets to keep production going despite weather-related setbacks.

Why production is a good thing: One film can create hundreds of jobs, and boost local economies. Plus, successful movies or tv shows can translate to increases in tourism, and the bragging rights aren’t bad either.

According to the North Carolina Department of Commerce, in 2019 production companies spent $167 million in direct in-state expenses. Those projects produced in 2019 also created 11,820 jobs. Those jobs include everything from background actors to crew members who could be responsible for anything from sound to operating cameras.

Priester, who wrote Fall Nights in China Grove with his childhood best friend and also directed the film, says China Grove’s small town feel attracted him to film there. Because not many other films were shooting in the area, Priester says it was easier for him to find available crew members to work with.

“That’s how we really pulled off a lot of production value for that movie. If we were to go shoot this movie in downtown Atlanta or Los Angeles or New York City, no chance we could’ve gotten it done as efficiently as we did,” he said.

The movie wrapped up production in 2019. Priester estimates 90 percent of the coming-of-age film was shot in China Grove, a small town of around 4,000 people in Rowan County, or nearby areas.

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Setbacks: In 2014, the legislature elected to end most incentive funding, including the 25 percent Film Tax incentive that had made the state a mini-Hollywood of the east for a short spell. The incentive made production companies eligible for refundable tax credits up to $20 million. Critics say the incentive did little to benefit the state.

The tax credit has now been replaced with a less attractive grant program, but it’s still reviving previously lost opportunities especially with productions that have budgets of $50 million or less.

Then, in 2016 the General Assembly passed HB2, or the bathroom bill, which overruled a Charlotte nondiscrimination ordinance. It required all people, including transgender people, to use the bathroom that corresponded with the gender they were assigned at birth.

All around the country, artists and businesses canceled North Carolina — the state lost everything from championship sports games to tv shows to NBA All-Star Weekend to Outer Banks, the Netflix series about North Carolina’s strip of beaches moved production to Charleston. Some estimates show that HB2 created an estimated $3.76 billion in lost business.

Governor Roy Cooper led a repeal of the controversial bill, which sunsets at the end of 2020. Though critics say the repeal doesn’t go far enough.

And now in 2020, like it’s done with every industry, Covid-19 is creating setbacks for film and television. But Gaster says the way North Carolina has managed the virus has allowed production to continue.

“A lot of credit to some of the measures that the state has taken on mitigating the spread of the virus. And also just being a little more open,” he said. “Not as crowded as some of our other cities. Charlotte is a great big city, but it’s not as compact as New York City or some other major production centers like Chicago.”

Incentives: The North Carolina Film and Entertainment Grant offers funds to attract both movie and television productions. Five recent grant recipients are expected to spend a combined $107 million in the state and create 8,671 jobs. In return those productions will be given anywhere from $1.1 million to $12 million in grant funds.

However, not all films are eligible for the grant program. And production companies don’t get the money up front. The qualifications vary for different types of productions.

“Last year we saw our highest spending by productions in the state since the grant program was created so I think it’s definitely paying dividends,” Gaster said. “That said, the program has a very specific market that it works best for.”

Films and television shows that have been or are being shot in N.C.

Movies and shows in production now: 

• USS Christmas: The made-for-television film will shoot in the Wilmington area. It’s holiday movie about a journalist who finds love on an aircraft carrier.

• A Nashville Christmas Carol: Another made-for-television holiday film will tell the classic story of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, but this time a busy director and producer will be visited by three ghosts of country music’s past and present. It will film in the Charlotte area.
• Parkside: That’s the working title for Scream 5. The horror film will be shot in Wilmington.
• Delilah: A new Warner Bros. series for OWN, Oprah’s television network, will film in and around Charlotte. It’s about a busy Charlotte lawyer who leaves her demanding firm to prioritize her family.
• Hightown: The STARZ series is in its second season. It tells the story of a woman battling addiction while simultaneously solving a murder. The series will shoot in Wilmington.
• My Big, Fat, Fabulous Life: The reality show follows the life of Whitney Thore, a dancer who was diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome and gained 200 pounds as a result. The show is filmed in the Piedmont Triad area.
• Love It Or List It: The popular real estate/ design makeover show is filmed in the Triangle area. The reality show follows homeowners who can either put their home on the market or undergo renovations to fix areas they don’t like.

Popular movies and shows that were shot in North Carolina:

• Swamp Thing (season 1): A CDC investigator travels to her hometown in Louisiana to investigate a swamp. Her partner dies and is transformed into a swamp creature.
• Halloween Kills: The twelfth installment of the Halloween franchise. The slasher film stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Nick Castle.
• The Bachelorette (season 8): The wildly popular reality show centers around a single woman and the couple dozen bachelors fighting for her love. Season 8’s bachelorette was Emily Maynard.
• Dirty Dancing (2016): The classic remake aired on ABC. It starred Abigail Breslin, Colt Prattes, Debra Messing, Bruce Greenwood, Sarah Hyland, Nicole Scherzinger, and Tony Roberts.
• Homeland (pilot, seasons 1, 2, and 3): The Showtime drama follows a Marine who was held captive overseas and a CIA agent who suspects him of being involved in a terrorist organization.
• The Hunger Games (2011): The film adapted from a book of the same name stars Jennifer Lawrence as her character Katniss Everdeen navigates the dystopian universe which mandates annual fights to the death between 12 children.
• The Secret Life of Bees: The drama originally adapted from a book of the same name stars Queen Latifah, Dakota Fanning, Jennifer Hudson, and Alicia Keys. Its producers include Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith.
• One Tree Hill: I couldn’t not mention this one. The CW’s drama series was shot in Wilmington and was North Carolina inspired. In true N.C. fashion the show leads battled for top spots on the basketball team.
• Talladega Nights: The often quoted comedy stars Will Ferrell who plays a NASCAR driver who falls from the sport’s top spot and then fights to get it back.
• Dawson’s Creek: The teen drama was shot in Wilmington and ran from 1998 to 2003. It starred James Van der Beek and Katie Holmes.

For a full list, visit the North Carolina Film Office website.

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