It’s Friday. I’m a little tired from a long week but I’m looking forward to next week. I’ll be working on an indie film called DADGUM, TEXAS, playing Deputy John Scooter Smoot. It’s a funny script and a funny couple of scenes. If I can snag some iphone shots next week, I’ll share.

The following is a list of POSSIBLE SAG signatory productions that are either already shooting or are considering production in Texas. Keep in mind that some productions begin the signatory process but don’t follow through, so before agreeing to participate in any film production, verify its signatory status with SAG. Check www.sag.org for online verification or to locate the appropriate phone contact number.

The start dates as listed below are not set in stone. For instance, the ULB (Ultra Low Budget) film, NATURAL SELECTION, has pushed back their start date to at least March 22, apparently due to the availability of their lead actress. Actual start dates of other productions may likely vary from the stated dates as well.

If you see something you’re interested in pursuing, be smart. The best method is to work through your agent. If you don’t have an agent or for some other reason don’t want to work through your present agent, be very careful about contacting production sources. Always be professional and to the point in any emails. Avoid phone calls to the production office, if the number is listed. Don’t get yourself put on someone’s ‘always ignore’ list.

This list is being published as a service to the Texas actors community. Use the information below wisely.

The list:

“Benavides Born” – 00257737
SDB, LLC – Low Budget
Location: San Diego/Benavides, TX
Start Date: March 15, 2010
Casting: Toni Cobb Brock/Sally Allen

“Beyond the Farthest Star” – 00233502
Pathlight Entertainment, LLC – Low Budget Modified
Location: Dallas/Ft Worth, TX
Start Date: March 15, 2010
Casting: Karen Armstrong

“Cash’n In” – 00256261
Lisa Norcia – Low Budget
Location: Dallas/Waco, TX
Start Date: To be determined

“Cherry Bomb” – 00246793
Strike Anywhere Productions, LLC – Ultra Low Budget
Location: Austin, TX
Start Date: To be determined
Casting: Garrett Hargrove at  contact at cherrybombfilm.com

“Cowgirl Chicks, The” – 00248526
Rodeo Films, LLC – Low Budget Modified
Location: Ft. Worth, TX
Start Date: March 2010
Casting: Judy Belshe-Toernblom, Los Angeles

“Friday Night Lights” – 00246956
NBC Studios, Inc.
Start Date: September 2009
Location: Austin, TX
Casting: Beth Sepko at  info at bethsepkocasting.com

“Limited Engagement” – 00252416
Rodeo Pictures, LLC – Low Budget
Start Date: Late April, 2010
Location: Tyler/Dallas, TX

“Mortal Vampire, The” – 00256260
E. W. Bradfute – Low Budget
Start Date: To be determined
Location: San Antonio, TX

“Natural Selection” – 00228417
Windar Productions, LLC – Ultra Low Budget
Location: Smithville, TX
Start Date: March 15, 2010
Casting: Karen Halford (TX), Meg Morman/Sunny Boling (L.A.)

“September Morning” – 00254521
Doki-Doki Productions, LLC – Low Budget Modified
Location: Texas and California, unspecified
Start Date: To be determined
Casting: Jacqueline Rush Rivera at  submit at chriseska.com

“Ten Days in County” – 00252746
Real Men Productions – Theatrical
Location: Houston, TX
Start Date: To be determined

“Theory” – 00258132
Aqua Foxx Productions, LLC – Internet/New Media
Location: Houston, TX
Start Date: March 23, 2010
Casting:  TheoryPilot at gmail.com

“True Grit” – 00257202
DW Studios Productions, LLC – Theatrical
Location: Austin, TX., Santa Fe, NM
Start date: March 15, 2010
Casting: Debbie DeLisi at  texascasting2010 at gmail.com

“Under the Western Sun”
Zobest Pictures
Start Date: April 13, 2010
Location: Austin/Smithville, TX

Yours truly has another quick appearance as Grandma Saracen’s doctor, Dr. Campbell in this Friday’s episode, A HARD RAINS GONNA FALL., directed by Michael Waxman.

Don’t Become Media Roadkill

This SRO event returns to Austin to speak of all things Screen Actors Guild.

Keep your career in the fast lane and off the shoulder.

Get all the info you need for your next film, webisode, video game, commercial, industrial or music video.

Join SAG Experts:
Darrien Michele Gipson, National Director of SAGIndie
Bob Jensen, Manager of National New Media Department
Steve Graham, National Director of Digital Marketing (iActor)
Todd Amorde, National Director of Organizing

Indie filmmakers, game developers, animators, directors, cds, agents and performers get together to get questions answered and discuss building the biz.

When: Saturday, March 14, 2009
2 – 4 p.m.
(Members only reception begins at 1 p.m.)

Where: 501 Studios
501 North IH-35
Austin, TX 78702
Free parking

Cost? Zip. Zilch. Nada. Nothing.

SXSW, March 13-22, 2009AFS Screenings & Special Events During SXSW

1. SXSW PANEL: GET THE MOST OUT OF SXSW (3/13)
2. AFS SXSW Member Showcase 1 & 2 (3/14, 3/15)
3. SXSW PANEL: A CONVERSATION WITH RICHARD LINKLATER AND TODD HAYNES (3/17)
4. SXSW PANEL: TEXAS FILMMAKERS PRODUCTION FUND MINI-MEETING (3/17)
5. SXSW PANEL: SURVIVING THE FESTIVAL CIRCUIT (3/17)
6. AFS/Austin Studios @ SXSW Film & Interactive Trade Show (3/14-3/16)
7. AFS Documentary Tour: THE EYES OF ME (3/15)
8. AFS Co-Sponsored Screening: THE 2 BOBS (3/16)

Friends of AFS and Program Alumni Screen at SXSW:

1. ALONG CAME KINKY… TEXAS JEWBOY FOR GOVERNOR – Directed by David Hartstein
2. FOR THE LOVE OF MOVIES: THE STORY OF AMERICAN FILM CRITICISM – Directed by Gerald Peary
3. THE LEAST OF THESE – Directed by Clark & Jesse Lyda, Produced by Marcy Garriott (former AFS Board President)
4. LOVE, SADIE – Directed by Naiti Gamez
5. THE OVERBROOK BROTHERS – Directed by John Bryant
6. OVER THE HILLS AND FAR AWAY – Michel Orion Scott
7. SKIP AND LESTER: HERE’S THE STAPLER IF YOU NEED IT – Directed by Lance Myers
8. ST. NICK – Directed by David Lowery
9. SUNSHINE – Directed by Karen Skloss
10. SWEETHEARTS OF THE PRISON RODEO – Directed by Bradley Beesley
11. TRUST US, THIS IS ALL MADE UP – Directed by Alex Karpovsky

See ticketing information at the bottom of this message.

AFS Screenings & Special Events During SXSW

1. SXSW PANEL: GET THE MOST OUT OF SXSW FILM (3/13)

WHEN: Fri March 13, 2-3 PM
WHERE: Austin Convention Center (500 East Cesar Chavez)
COST: SXSW Film/Gold/Platinum Badge-holders only
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/talks/schedule?acti…

Created for SXSW Interactive attendees, but useful for everyone, here’s an introduction to SXSW’s film conference and festival. Learn how to make meaningful connections with all the movie professionals in town for the event.

Moderated by Agnes Varnum, Communications Manager for the Austin Film Society

2. AFS SXSW Member Showcase 1 & 2 (3/14, 3/15)

WHEN: Sat Mar 14, 2 PM & Sun Mar 15, 12 PM
WHERE: Hideout Coffeehouse & Theatre (617 Congress)
COST: $10/Free for AFS members with current membership card, SXSW Film/Gold/Platinum badge-holders & Film Pass Holders
INFO: http://www.austinfilm.org/film/2009_sxsw…
 http://www.austinfilm.org/film/2009_sxsw…

SPANISH LESSONS WITH CHUPACABRA VOLUME 7: CONVERSATIONAL SPANISH by Bob RayThe Austin Film Society will present two programs of exciting, funny, eye-opening new short films from some of our 500-plus Filmmaker-Level Members at The Hideout during the SXSW Film Festival.

Program 1, Mar 14, 2pm:
SPANISH LESSONS WITH CHUPACABRA VOLUME 7: CONVERSATIONAL SPANISH by Bob Ray
BI DEFINITION by Kai Salim
TINKER TOY by Jabbar Raisani
REMAINS by Allison Cook
TYMPANIC by Benjamin Slamka
BLADE THROWERS by Mark Mederson
HEADCHEESE by Laura Android

Program 2, Mar 14, 12pm:
HEARTBREAKS by Avram Dodson
MARTHA by Katja Straub
SUNLIGHT by Alex Harder
JUNIOR by Allison Cook
VITULA ARCUS by Benjamin Slamka
DUPLEX by Cristina Salinas
SLEET/SNOW by Daniel Laabs

3. SXSW PANEL: A CONVERSATION WITH RICHARD LINKLATER & TODD HAYNES (3/17)

WHEN: Tue Mar 17, 1-2 PM
WHERE: Austin Convention Center (500 East Cesar Chavez)
COST: SXSW Film/Gold/Platinum Badge-holders only
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/talks/schedule/?act…

Writer/directors Todd Haynes and Richard Linklater hardly require introduction. As two of modern cinema’s great standard-bearers, they’ve spent the last couple of decades forging filmographies as aesthetically rich as they are thematically diverse. Join us at SXSW Film Conference to witness a rare discussion between these fierce independents as they discuss their influences, inspirations, their innate sensitivity to actors, and their working methods; both within and outside the system. We can’t wait, and hope you can’t either!

Moderated by Richard Linklater, Artistic Director, Austin Film Society

4. SXSW PANEL: TEXAS FILMMAKERS PRODUCTION FUND MINI-MEETING (3/17)

WHEN: Tues March 17, 11 AM-12 PM
WHERE: Austin Convention Center (500 East Cesar Chavez)
COST: SXSW Film/Gold/Platinum Badge-holders only
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/talks/schedule?acti…

Since 1996, the Austin Film Society’s Texas Filmmakers’ Production Fund has supported Texas filmmakers by giving out $930,000 in cash, goods and services to 265 film and video projects. The deadline for the 2009 cycle is June 1st and if you are a filmmaker who has resided in Texas for at least one year, you are eligible to apply for up to $25,000 in funding for your project. At this workshop, the Austin Film Society’s Director of Artist Services will take you through the application process step-by-step.

This workshop is open to SXSW Film/Gold/Platinum Badge-holders only, but AFS will host more TFPF workshops, free and open to the public, in April & May in Austin and other Texas cities. Stay tuned to www.austinfilm.org for dates, times & venues.

5. SXSW PANEL: SURVIVING THE FESTIVAL CIRCUIT (3/17)

WHEN: Tue Mar 17, 3-4 PM
WHERE: Austin Convention Center (500 East Cesar Chavez)
COST: SXSW Film/Gold/Platinum Badge-holders only
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/talks/schedule?acti…

Nowadays it seems like nearly every city has its own film festival, eager for your entry fees. Navigating the field can be a confusing, expensive, and nerve-wracking experience. Join experienced festival programmers and filmmakers for a discussion of the ups and downs of today’s film festival circuit and a look forward to how new technologies and new expectations will shape the circuit in the future.

Moderated by Bryan Poyser, AFS Director of Artist Services

6. AFS/Austin Studios @ SXSW Film & Interactive Trade Show (3/14-3/16)

WHEN: Sat Mar 14 – Mon Mar 16, 12-6 PM (ends at 4 PM on Tues)
WHERE: Austin Convention Center (500 East Cesar Chavez)
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/trade_show/exhibito…

Austin Studios opened in the year 2000 as a unique public/private partnership between the City of Austin and the Austin Film Society. The centrally located 20 acre film/video facility contains 10,000 square feet of production office space (the ‘Red Building’) and over 100,000 square feet of production space.

The newly renovated Austin Studios’ five stages include full soundproofing and air-conditioning for two stages, improved security and safety, and state-of-the-art digital infrastructure including 3 wall hard cyc – largest in Texas (23x87x23) – ideal for photo, commercial and visual effects shoots. With the upgrades, Austin Studios will be a competitive draw for commercial, gaming and feature film production, bringing increased economic activity to Austin.

Attendees must be SXSW badge holders or iF! pass holders.

7. AFS Documentary Tour: THE EYES OF ME (3/18)

WHEN: Thu Mar 18, 7:15 PM
WHERE: Alamo South Lamar (1120 S Lamar Blvd)
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…
 http://illegalfilms.net/

The AFS Documentary Tour and SXSW present Keith Maitland’s THE EYES OF ME, an extraordinary look at 4 blind teens. The parallel stories of 2 freshmen and 2 seniors unfold over the course of one dynamic year at the Texas School for the Blind in Austin. THE EYES OF ME was a 2008 TFPF recipient and screened as part of AFS’s Docs-in-Progress program.

Other screening times for THE EYES OF ME:
7:15 PM, Wednesday March 18th – Alamo Lamar 1
11:30 AM, Friday March 20th – Alamo Lamar 3

8. AFS Co-Sponsored Screening: THE 2 BOBS (3/16)

WHEN: 6:30 PM, Monday March 16th
WHERE: The Paramount Theater (
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…

Just as they finish their groundbreaking violent video-game masterpiece, the two gaming legends known as “The Two Bobs” discover that their precious game-software has been stolen… and with it, their livelihoods, genius reputations, everything they own. Directed by former AFS Board Member Tim McCanlies.

Other screening time for THE 2 BOBS:
6:45 PM, Friday March 13th – Austin Convention Ctr

Friends of AFS and Program Alumni Screen at SXSW:

The following films and filmmakers have been supported through AFS’s filmmaker programs like the Texas Filmmakers Production Fund (TFPF), fiscal sponsorship and our Docs-in-Progress and Narratives-in-Progress series. See ticketing information at the bottom of this message.

Along Came Kinky…Texas Jewboy for Governor by David Hartstein1. ALONG CAME KINKY… TEXAS JEWBOY FOR GOVERNOR – Directed by David Hartstein
Screening in Lone Star States. 2006 TFPF recipient, Docs-in-Progress alumnus
AFS Fiscally Sponsored Project
Documentary Feature
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…

This documentary chronicles singing Jewish cowboy Kinky Friedman’s 2006 independent gubernatorial campaign in Texas.

7:30 PM, Thursday March 19th – Paramount

2. FOR THE LOVE OF MOVIES: THE STORY OF AMERICAN FILM CRITICISM – Directed by Gerald Peary
features appearances by AFS Artistic Director Richard Linklater and AFS Advisory Board Member Harry Knowles
Documentary Feature, Spotlight Premiere
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…

The first documentary to dramatize the rich, fascinating history of American film criticism.

8:00 PM, Monday March 16th – Alamo Ritz 2
12:00 PM, Wednesday March 18th – Alamo Ritz 2
4:00 PM, Saturday March 21st – Alamo Lamar 3

3. THE LEAST OF THESE – Directed by Clark & Jesse Lyda, Produced by Marcy Garriott
Documentary Feature, screening in Lone Star States
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…

Detention of immigrant children in a former medium-security prison in Texas leads to controversy when three activist attorneys discover troubling conditions at the facility. This compelling film explores the role – and limits – of community activism, and considers how American rights and values apply to the least powerful among us.

11:00 AM, Monday March 16th – Alamo Ritz 1
7:00 PM, Wednesday March 18th – Alamo Lamar 3
11:00 AM, Friday March 20th – Paramount

4. LOVE, SADIE – Directed by Naiti Gamez
Narrative Short, screening in Texas Shorts
2006 TFPF recipient
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…

Sadie and her high-school friends struggle to escape the banality of everyday life. Her friends search for approval, and answers about life, from Sadie, the one confidant who can’t articulate her own reality.

4:30 PM, Tuesday March 17th – Alamo Lamar 1
7:30 PM, Wednesday March 18th – Alamo Lamar 2
11:00 AM, Friday March 20th – Alamo Lamar 2

THE OVERBROOK BROTHERS by John Bryant5. THE OVERBROOK BROTHERS – John Bryant (2007 TFPF recipient)
Narrative Feature. In Competition
Narratives-in-Progress alumnus
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…

Jason brings his girlfriend home for Christmas… and bad things happen.

4:15 PM, Sunday March 15th – Alamo Ritz 1
9:30 PM, Monday March 16th – Alamo Lamar 3
10:00 PM, Saturday March 21st – Paramount

6. OVER THE HILLS AND FAR AWAY – Michel Orion Scott
Documentary Feature. Screening in Lone Star States
2007 TFPF recipient, Docs-in-Progress alumnus
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…

This documentary chronicles the journey of the Isaacson family as they travel through Mongolia in search of a mysterious shaman they believe can heal their autistic son.

11:00 AM, Tuesday March 17th – Paramount
1:30 PM, Thursday March 19th – Alamo Lamar 2
7:00 PM, Friday March 20th – Austin Convention Ctr

7. SKIP AND LESTER: HERE’S THE STAPLER IF YOU NEED IT – Directed by Lance Myers (2001 & 2005 TFPF recipient)
Animated Short, screening in Animated Shorts
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…

It’s Lester’s first day on the job at Copy-O’s copy shop and his manager has given him one very important directive: don’t let the customers use the big paper cutter in the back.

2:00 PM, Sunday March 15th – Alamo Lamar 1
11:30 AM, Tuesday March 17th – Alamo Lamar 1
1:30 PM, Wednesday March 18th – Alamo Lamar 1

8. ST. NICK – Directed by David Lowery
Narrative Feature. Screening in Emerging Visions
2007 TFPF recipient, Narratives-in-Progress alumnus
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…

A stark, haunting portrait of childhood following the adventures of a runaway brother and sister as they try to survive, all on their own, out on the wintry plains of the great southwest.

12:00 PM, Sunday March 15th – Alamo Ritz 2
2:30 PM, Tuesday March 17th – Alamo Ritz 2
12:30 PM, Friday March 20th – Alamo Ritz 2

9. SUNSHINE by Karen SklossSUNSHINE – Directed by Karen Skloss
Documentary Feature, Screening in Lone Star States
2003 & 2004 TFPF recipient
AFS Fiscally Sponsored Project
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…

In 1975 rural Texas, the local mayor’s daughter grapples with an unplanned pregnancy finally deciding to have her baby in secret before giving her away in a hidden adoption. Twenty-three years later, the adopted child also has an unplanned baby out of wedlock. The film tells the intimate story of these two single mothers, while exploring the times and circumstances that afforded them very different options.

3:00 PM, Saturday March 14th – Alamo Ritz 2
9:15 PM, Monday March 16th – Austin Convention Ctr
2:00 PM, Friday March 20th – Alamo Ritz 1

10. SWEETHEARTS OF THE PRISON RODEO – Directed by Bradley Beesley (2004 TFPF recipient)
Documentary Feature, Special Screening
AFS Fiscally Sponsored Project
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…

Amidst stories of murder, hardship, heartache and redemption, the film follows the convict cowgirls of the Eddie Warriors Correctional Center in their preparation for the only rodeo where female prisoners compete rough-stock and as equals against male prison teams.

11:00 AM, Saturday March 14th – Paramount
1:30 PM, Tuesday March 17th – Alamo Ritz 1
4:30 PM, Friday March 20th – Austin Convention Ctr

11. TRUST US, THIS IS ALL MADE UP – Directed by Alex Karpovsky
Documentary Feature, Screening in Emerging Visions
Docs-in-Progress alumnus
INFO: http://sxsw.com/film/screenings/schedule…

Immortalized in the world of improv comedy, Second City veterans TJ Jagodowksi and David Pasquesi explore the unique partnership and transcendental forces that govern their legendary performances.

9:15 PM, Friday March 13th – Alamo Ritz 2
6:30 PM, Tuesday March 17th – Alamo Ritz 1
8:00 PM, Friday March 20th – Alamo Ritz 2

SXSW Film Festival Admission Policies:

* Free admission for SXSW Platinum, Gold, and Film Badge holders and SXSW Film Pass Holders.
* Individual tickets are $10 and go on sale 15 minutes prior to screenings at the theatre box office, if space is available.
* SXSW Film Passes are $70 and are available at Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas.

For the official SXSW website, please visit http://www.sxsw.com

I’ll be on tonight, Jan. 23, as Dr. Campbell, Grandma Saracen’s doctor and will return in Episode 11 near the end of the season.

Be sure to visit the TXMPA site and get involved in the effort to bring film production back to Texas.

December 04, 2008
By Mark Dundas Wood
Recently, Drew Barrymore directed and starred in a feature called Whip It!, set in Austin, Texas, and based on a novel by a former Austinite, Shauna Cross. The film was shot in…Ann Arbor, Mich.

Say what? Why would a town with a rich film culture and at least two major favorite-son film directors — Robert Rodriguez and Richard Linklater — miss out on hosting a project that’s such an obvious fit?

As usual, it’s a money thing. Michigan — along with such states as New Mexico, Massachusetts, and Louisiana — currently offers producers hefty incentive packages to shoot on its soil. As Gary Bond, director of the Austin Film Commission, points out, the 8.25 percent sales-tax exemption and other incentives that Texas offers to filmmakers don’t add up to the same breaks available elsewhere.

Nevertheless, last January, Austin was named the No. 1 American movie city by MovieMaker magazine, beating out such incentives-rich locales as Albuquerque, N.M., and Shreveport, La., not to mention Los Angeles and New York. Austin may not be getting the same kind of commercial projects as other states, but apparently it is doing some things very well.

A (Lone) Star Is Born
The first Hollywood-size project that lensed in Austin, says Bond, was 1977′s Outlaw Blues. In subsequent years, a handful of TV movies and occasional theatrical features (1982′s The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, for instance) shot in the area, but no cinematic stampede to the city ensued. Things began to change in the mid-1980s when the first sequel to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and the Jeff Bridges-Kim Basinger vehicle Nadine were shot back to back in Austin, with both films employing many of the same personnel. Gradually, says Bond, local crew — especially members of art departments — amassed impressive production credits and reputations.

At the same time, Austin was becoming a major music hub. The city’s famous South by Southwest (SXSW) festival actually began as a music event in 1987 but soon incorporated film and other media. “We were sort of a two-headed calf,” says Bond. “People wanted to come here and see what this buzz was all about.”

Filmmakers venturing to Austin found a city surrounded by a wide range of physical terrains: hills and lake chains to the west, rolling prairie to the east. “It’s always been an excellent place to do a road movie,” says Bond, noting that the bulk of the cattle-drive miniseries Lonesome Dove (1989) was shot within 30 miles of Austin, with the countryside standing in for Canadian and Mexican locales.

In the 1990s, the scene grew, especially with the emergence of Linklater and Rodriguez and the latter’s then wife, producer Elizabeth Avellan. Other Austin-based filmmakers include Tim McCanlies (Secondhand Lions) and Mike Judge (Office Space).

Rodriguez and Avellan developed Troublemaker Studios at the site of Austin’s former municipal airport. Meanwhile, Linklater had founded the Austin Film Society. What began as a film-appreciation organization eventually expanded, assuming management of Austin Studios: other refurbished, city-owned airport property that became “production central” for projects coming into town.

The Actor Factor
But what about human infrastructure? What does Austin provide to filmmakers in the way of an actor workforce?

Beth Sepko, who operates Beth Sepko Casting, as well as an affiliated company, Third Coast Extras, began her career as an agent in San Antonio, returning to her native Austin in 1994. Sepko has worked on several films with Rodriguez. She also casts Austin’s first major network series, NBC’s Friday Night Lights, for which she won a 2007 Emmy. “We have a really strong talent pool,” she says, “but it’s sort of shallow. If I have a film project that has, like, 90 roles on it, then I definitely have to pull from other markets.”

Read the FULL BACKSTAGE ARTICLE HERE.

Friday, December 5, 2008
New action in local film sector
No. 1 ranking in movie magazine lures producers

Brady Anderton and Ben Hurst of Fueld Films based the relocation of their company on two things: a spreadsheet and a gut feeling.

Fueld Films, a commercial and film production company, moved from Denver to Austin four months ago. But before the company moved here, the duo put together a spreadsheet that looked at factors like livability and infrastructure. Then, they compared the city to other top film production markets from Los Angeles to Chicago.

“Austin outscored everybody,” Anderton says. “And it looks like additional infrastructure is coming as far as studios, additional crew and additional talent.”

“We also got a feeling,” Anderton adds with a chuckle.

Fueld Films is among a handful of film or video companies that have gotten a good feeling about Austin in the last year. Independent film and video production company Publik Pictures LLC also relocated to Austin a few months ago from the East Coast.

Many of these filmmakers are pointing to Austin’s first-place ranking in MovieMaker magazine’s list of best places to live, work and make movies. Austin outranked New York and Seattle, along with up-and-coming locations like Albuquerque, N.M., and Shreveport, La., according to this year’s survey.

And it’s not only small production companies making the move.

This week, four Hollywood veterans debuted Wildfire Films Co., an Austin-based film production company that has received the green light for close to $86 million in film projects.

Wildfire Films’ first project is a $25 million feature film, “16 Minutes,” about Hispanic civil rights leader Gustavo “Gus” Garcia. It is co-producing the film with Fred Roos of Overture Films.

Wildfire Films Producer Mark Hacker says the company selected Austin because of the availability of production talent and the concentration of “new media” companies.

“We came here because of the people and the artistic community for filmmakers,” Hacker says. “Now there is also a resurgence with new media that’s flourishing in Austin.”

Not much to report right now but WHIP IT!, the Drew Barrymore directed film about roller derby, starring Ellen Page has apparently wrapped in Michigan and is shooting some exteriors here in our fair city. Exteriors and second unit work…that’s what you get for a 5% film inventive package vs the 40% offered by Michigan. Just a little reminder that Texas legislators have a lot of work to do to help bring film production back to the state.

Screenings:

John Bryant’s currently untitled feature based on his highly regarded short film BROTHERLY LOVE screened last week to an enthusiastic crowd. Sponsored by the Austin Film Society, the film delivered with solid performances across the board resulting in a lot of laughter in the room…always a good thing for a comedy. Looking forward to seeing the final cut on this film which shot on location in Colorado this summer.

Writer/Director Tim McCanlies’ comedy THE TWO BOBS screened this week as well….no reports yet on how this indie comedy fared in this early test.

McCanlies is moving back to more family friendly territory with his next project, directing ALABAMA MOON, based on the fine teen novel of the same name by Watt Key.

From PRODUCTION WEEKLY:

STATUS – October 27 LOCATION – Covington, Louisiana
PRODUCER: Lee Faulkner WRITER: Watt Key – James Whittaker DIRECTOR: Tim McCanlies PM: Rob Ortiz

For as long as ten-year-old Moon can remember, he has lived out in the forest in a shelter with his father. They keep to themselves, their only contact with other human beings an occasional trip to the nearest general store. When Moon’s father dies, Moon follows his father’s last instructions: to travel to Alaska to find others like themselves. But Moon is soon caught and entangled in a world he doesn’t know or understand, apparent property of the government he has been avoiding all his life. As the spirited and resourceful Moon encounters constables, jails, institutions, lawyers, true friends, and true enemies, he adapts his wilderness survival skills and learns to survive in the outside world, and even, perhaps, make his home there.

American Cartel – Ultra Low Budget

Agave Productions, LLC

Location: San Antonio, TX

Start Date: August 24, 2008

Devil’s Thumb – Low Budget Modified

Ranch Studios

Location: Austin, TX

Start Date: August 4, 2008

Friday Night Lights – TV Series

NBC Studios, Inc

Location: Austin, TX

Start Date: July 2008

Casting: Beth Sepko

Guys – Low Budget

Guys the Movie, LLC

Location: Austin, TX

Start Date: To be determined

More Moments the Go – Ultra Low Budget

Blank Action Productions

Location: Austin, TX.

Start: July 8, 2008

Portion 71 – Ultra Low Budget

Manny Hernandez

Location: Dallas, TX

Start Date: To be determined

Power Sun, A – Ultra Low Budget

Field Up Productions

Location: Dallas, TX

Start Date: To be determined

Unbridled–Low Budget

Unbridled the Movie, LLC

Location: Brackettville & Jacksboro, TX

Start Date: To be determined