(C) Verite News New Orleans This story was originally published by Verite News New Orleans and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . New Orleans might toss dumpster permits for film shoots [1] ['Josie Abugov', 'More Josie Abugov', 'Verite News', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow', 'Class', 'Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus', 'Display Inline', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar', 'Where Img', 'Height Auto Max-Width'] Date: 2024-04-23 New Orleans film companies are tired of measuring their shoots in dumpster units. But under the city’s current system, that’s what they have to do. Now, the city’s film permitting office, Film New Orleans, says it’s time for New Orleans to modernize the permitting process to bring it in line with other major cities across the country. On Monday (April 22), the local film industry came one step closer to this change when a New Orleans City Council committee voted unanimously to advance a proposed ordinance that would create a film master permit, something the city doesn’t currently have. Under current city policies, production companies looking to shoot on public property or in locations that obstruct traffic must fill out a “construction zone/dumpster” permit. Fees are calculated, in part, by the number of construction dumpsters that would fit on the site of a proposed film shoot. The proposed film permit system would serve as a master plan for the film project, centralizing details about individual shoot locations and outlining a set of fees. Local film industry leaders and officials with Film New Orleans and the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Economy said issuing film permits would standardize the New Orleans film industry with its competitors across the country and help the film office track the revenue that the entertainment industry is bringing to the city. The ordinance will likely appear as part of the City Council’s consent agenda at the next council meeting on Thursday, May 2, according to a staffer for Councilmember Lesli Harris. The council approves items in the consent agenda — which have typically been endorsed by a committee — as a group, rather than debating them individually, meaning the film permit proposal is likely to pass. The cost for dumpster permits for film production companies can range from $60 to more than $1,200, depending on how long a shoot is and how much space it takes up. The total fixed cost of a proposed film permit and accompanying location permit would be $575. Morton said the figure was calculated to align with permit costs in other cities. The film office did not respond by publication time to questions about how much revenue the existing film location permits, which are submitted as dumpster permits, currently bring to the city. Carroll Morton, the director of Film New Orleans, told councilmembers that she did not have a precise estimate on how much the proposed film permit would make. But she said the new permits would likely bring in an additional $700,000 to $800,000 annually, based on previous figures. Jason Waggenspack, founder of The Ranch film studios in Chalmette, said having a film permitting ordinance in place promotes the broader goal of bringing more opportunity to Louisiana through the film industry. “We have such a strong workforce here in Louisiana,” he said. According to Film New Orleans, productions in the city spent $1 billion and paid local workers $314 million in 2022 — making New Orleans one of the country’s significant film hubs. The industry supports 7,000 local jobs with an average salary of $68,000, above the $51,000 median household income. Morton attributed the high average salary to unionized jobs within the industry. Presenters to the council noted that other major cities — such as Atlanta, Dallas and Nashville — have film permits like the one being proposed here. For producers and other industry professionals, the absence of such a permit can create confusion or unease, Waggenspack said. Separating film permits from construction permits will also help the city better track the revenue that the fees from shoots bring to the city, Morton said. The proposed ordinance language presented this week also includes parking fees calculated by meter and by block. The proposed permit will require production companies to more clearly spell out their filming plans. The film office currently requires production companies to fill out an application with basic information such as the kind of production, length of production, and local contacts. The revenue from the proposed permits would go into the city’s general fund. But the city might look at allocating funds generated from film permits for shoots in sensitive sites — like the famous cemeteries of New Orleans — for specific purposes, Harris said. “If we have a lot of production in a particular place that can use those additional funds for sustainment, I think that is a big opportunity that we should be talking about,” she said. Related Republish This Story Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license. 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