State Film Office Hitting the Road with
Community-Oriented Workshops

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The West Virginia Film Office will host community-oriented workshops that will help counties and municipalities become familiar with what to expect when filming occurs in their communities and how they can become known as a "film- friendly" location.

"As West Virginia becomes a more popular place to shoot feature films, television programs, music videos, and commercials, it is more important than ever for the Film Office to be able to reach out to communities and community leaders to better prepare them when their region is chosen for filming," said Pam Haynes, director of the Film Office.

While the workshops are free and open to the public, Haynes encourages representatives of convention and visitor bureaus, chambers of commerce, economic development authorities, mayors and city managers, county managers and commissioners, film and video production companies, and freelance film crew to attend.

"The workshops will occur in several regions across the state," said Jamie Cope, location services manager for the Film Office. "We will kick off the first workshop in Wheeling on Sept. 18, followed by Martinsburg on Oct. 3 and Charleston on Oct. 6," Cope added.

Cope explained that an expected increase in filming activity relates to tax credit incentives recently passed by the legislature. "The incentives allow the Film Office to participate more competitively with other states to recruit film production to West Virginia," Cope said.

Haynes said that the workshops, titled "The Business of Film: Paths to Opportunity," will provide an overview of the tax incentives and how they will benefit West Virginia businesses, how communities may become film friendly, what to expect and how to handle filming when it knocks on the door, how locations are chosen, and how to work effectively with the Film Office. A brief tutorial on location scouting also will be highlighted, and there will be an assortment of helpful handouts.

Beverages will be available throughout the workshops, and participants will be encouraged to take advantage of local dining options during the lunch breaks. The current workshop schedule is as follows:

Thursday, Sept. 18, 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., The McLure House, 1200 Market Street, Wheeling
Friday, Oct. 3, 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Holiday Inn Express, 301 Foxcroft Avenue, Martinsburg
Monday, Oct. 6, 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., WV Dept. of Environmental Protection, 601 - 57th Street, Charleston (Kanawha City)

Haynes said additional workshops are slated to occur in the spring. She also added that the Film Office will conduct the workshops in any county or community where interest and participation would be significant.

The West Virginia Film Office is a section under the WV Department of Commerce, Division of Tourism, and can be visited at www.wvfilm.com.