A film commission is a specialized office under the authority of a government entity or administrative office whose purpose is to promote the region through the development of film, video, and multimedia production; to act as liaison between local governments and communities with production entities by educating, setting standards of professionalism, and serving as a clearinghouse for production information; and to proportionally increase the economic impact of the industry throughout the region.

Mission: To increase and maintain film and video production taking place in the region, and to proportionally increase the economic impact of the industry on the region. To provide coordination and leadership while serving as the liaison between agencies, services, businesses, and the film production industry.

Each film commission regularly competes with over 300 other officially recognized film commissions and other local and regional organizations trying to attract productions to their jurisdictions worldwide.

Why? Because the film and video business generates large amounts of clean, and in many cases sustainable, economic growth through the hundreds of millions of dollars spent annually for “on-location” production. A studio based feature film can spend upwards of $250,000 per day in a local economy and a large national or international television commercial can generate local spending of up to $1 million in less than two weeks. The economic impact generated by productions can positively impact local hotels, car and truck rental, catering, barricade rentals, local cast and crew, and a host of other local businesses. Finally, film production can help generate a sustained growth in tourism when a region or community is featured in a successful film.

Further, production companies in the film, television, and multimedia industry consider film commissions a valuable partner and resource. Often the presence and level of development and resources offered by a film commission determines whether or not production companies will consider bringing production to a particular region. This highly competitive environment makes a film commission an economic necessity as well as an integral ingredient in attracting this “clean industry” and its ensuing revenue to a region.