Alaska Film Office aims to increase state's cinematic role

June 25, 2010|Christine Kim

Mike Porcaro, CEO of Porcaro Communications, says Alaska can look like many different places on the globe. (Mike Nederbrock/KTUU-DT)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The Alaska Film Office says the number of producers interested in filming in Alaska is the highest yet -- and it's a trend that's growing.

Whether it's commercials or feature films, the Alaska Film Office says there's a rising interest in producing films in the Last Frontier.

Mike Porcaro, CEO of Porcaro Communications, has coordinated hundreds of commercials for his clients, including a recent shoot for GCI. He attributes the increase in business to the scenery.

"Look what you've got, you got this incredible backdrop," Porcaro said. "When you look at Alaska you see so much, there's so many possibilities. It can look like so many different places on the globe."

Porcaro says there's an untapped talent base in an undiscovered area -- one he says won't stay hidden for long. That's one of the reasons why the Anchorage Film Office was recently created, to serve as a liaison for the growing interest to film in Alaska.

"Anchorage has a very -- a history of film productions that goes back almost to our founding," said the film office's Jack Bonney. "But really in the last few years, I think, you've seen people realize what Alaska has to offer -- not just natural shots."

According to the Alaska Film Office, tax credits are making the Last Frontier more marketable, because using more local resources means a larger tax credit.

"A lot of movies and productions have been set in Alaska and filmed elsewhere, and the Legislature thought that if something is going to be set in Alaska it ought to be filmed here," said Alaska Film Office development specialist Dave Worrell.

There are currently 25 productions considering shoots that are pre-qualified for the film office's incentive program, including the Drew Barrymore feature film "Everybody Loves Whales."

"Without some sort of tax credit, I think that that production may well have gone elsewhere -- I know that they did look at Canadian provinces," Worrell said.

For films that qualify, the tax credit's base rate is 30 percent. There are added credits for hiring Alaskans, as well as shooting in rural areas and in the winter.

Contact Christine Kim at ckim@ktuu.com

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