Back in 1980, seven years after the opening of the Mississippi Film Office (then called the Mississippi Film Commission), Ward Emling spent a lot of time answering the phone.
After all, the office was a one-man show. Starring him. There were no assistants, no support workers, no development experts. There were no cell phones, no FedEx, no one-hour photo. Back in the office’s baby days, people would call Emling up and ask if he knew of certain locations in Mississippi where a certain kind of film might be shot—”Intruder in the Dust,” for example, or “Baby Doll”—and he would say yes, he knew of a place, or, if he had to, he’d say that no, he didn’t. Basically, Emling was a service provider. The New Orleans native (who grew up in Jackson) knew film, and he knew Mississippi. And that, in those good ol’ days, was that.
Today—and how could they not be?—things are different. Things are complicated. Bringing a film to a certain location is a lot like bringing (or trying to bring) a certain automobile company to a certain state. Think Nissan. Depending on the film, stops are pulled out. Red carpets are unrolled. Funding is offered. Incentive programs, rebate programs and training programs are dangled. Emling, who is the office’s manager, stays busy, and so does his staff.
After all, there’s stiff competition. Just because a film takes place in Mississippi doesn’t mean it has to be shot here. What about Texas, Florida, Georgia or Louisiana? Canada? These days, states, provinces and countries have caught on to the act. Back in 1980, there were fewer than 30 film commissions. Today, there are more than 300.
And the Mississippi Film Office is still going strong. The week of Jan. 13, the MFO will celebrate its 30th birthday with proclamations, declarations, celebrations, screenings, ribbon cuttings and cake. There will be congratulatory speeches, calls for action, the obligatory thumpings of backs.
And why not? In the last few years alone, we’ve seen a number of successful films made in the state. To name a few: “O Brother, Where Art Thou?,” “My Dog Skip,” “A Time To Kill,” “Cookie’s Fortune,” “Big Bad Love.” (And just think, people wore shoes and there was indoor plumbing—if not central air-conditioning—in all of them.)
Film production in the state has generated more than $100 million in direct expenditure over the years, including hundreds of thousands of paychecks made out to the order of Mississippians.
“The greatest success of this film office has been that we have been able to get most of those projects that are set in Mississippi,” Emling says. “There is no other state that can say that.”
The week-long birthday bash consists of the following: a Filmed in Mississippi Day (Jan. 13); Mississippi Film Industry Day (Jan. 15); and Mississippi On Location Day (Jan. 17), which is the date of the actual anniversary and party. Festivities will culminate with the annual Mississippi Film Summit on Jan. 18, whose concept this year explores the components of film production, “from inspiration to exhibition,” according to the Mississippi Film Office.
Both film fans and made-in-Mississippi cheerleaders are, of course, welcome. Visit the Division of Tourism’s Web site at http://www.visitmississippi.org or call Emling at 359-3297 to find out more.
— Lori Herring
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The Mississippi Free Press produced this story through the MFP Solutions Lab, supported by the Solutions Journalism Network. This series digs into Mississippi’s systemic issues and sheds light on responses to them in other communities. Beyond just reporting on problems, these stories interrogate their causes and inspect potential solutions.
