Usually the work at
IE Effects is about rotoscoping, compositing and all the high-tech special effects that go into 3D movies. From the Traverse City office of Los Angeles-based IE Effects, films like
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II,
The Green Lantern and
Gulliver's Travels leap from post-production to the big screen.
But for many months now, IE Effects’ work has also focused on the different and challenging production of showing state officials and the public why Michigan film tax incentives are crucial to helping businesses like theirs bring more jobs to Michigan.
Michigan's film tax credits are seen as among the most generous in the country, so generous that some lawmakers, state officials and competitors for the pool of tax credits across industries have complained that the tax credits are leading only to temporary employment, and workplaces that pack up and go when the shoots are done.
Since the film tax credits debuted in 2008, their true economic benefit has been a source of debate. Originally the incentives awarded a 40 percent tax discount and an extra 2 percent if filming took place in special zones. Everyone who applied got at least 40 percent, but the plan was seen as unsustainable, and the tax credits were cut back after Gov. Rick Snyder took office in 2011.
A revised incentive program hammered out by the current administration and legislature now lets the state treasury and Michigan Film Office determine how much each project is awarded, and it places a $25 million cap on the total amount the state gives out. The current $25 million pot is almost empty, but it will be replenished as of Oct. 1, when the state’s new fiscal year begins.
While some filmmaking in Michigan is indeed temporary and involves no brick-and-mortar development, there are film-related businesses bringing investment along with what could be permanent facilities and lasting jobs.
"There are still people out there fighting for changes to get our legislators to understand what this industry is about. It's high-tech manufacturing. It creates real jobs, full-time jobs in buildings behind computers. That part of it needs to be explored and exploited, especially in an economic climate and with an administration that's clamoring for jobs," says Clover Roy, director of regional operations for IE Effects, which opened the Traverse City office last October.
Before IE Effects renovated the 3,500-square-foot office space, outfitted it with equipment and moved in, the place was empty. Since then dozens of employees have worked on 3D and special effects, post-production work, work they thought they'd have to find in L.A., Chicago or New York, Roy says. With Warner Bros. currently pursuing IE Effects for a future project, there is more work to be had, Roy says, and IE Effects is looking for financial assistance from the state as it makes a five-year plan for growth.
IE plans to hire 50 people by the end of this year, and eventually, Roy says, "We could provide hundreds of jobs, good-paying jobs, right here at the corner of Division and Randolph."
"We are committed to staying here. Right now this is about the growth, and how big and how fast we can grow here in Michigan,” she says, adding operations like IE Effects can stop the state's brain drain and keep creative types in Michigan rather than looking for jobs elsewhere.
Roy says she hears from artists grateful to find their kind of work in their home state. Roy herself, who has forged a long career in the film industry in California and New York, never expected to find work in her field when she decided to return to Traverse City to be close to her family.
"We've been very surprised at how many people are finding us and reaching out to us, and, yes, they do this kind of work and they're so happy they don't have to relocate to do this kind of work," Roy says. "A lot of people are wanting to come back to Traverse City. I have a really thick database of people who are interested in Michigan."
I.E. Effects came to Michigan last year specifically for the film tax credits. As concerns and criticism over the program grew, IE Effects and other studios began their appeals and arguments for why their companies are good for Michigan.
“When it became clear that Michigan needed to reinvent itself, people asked, 'What's a new industry?' It's the film industry,” says Roy. “Everyone knew (the tax credit plan) wasn't going to be forever, but you need more than three years to jumpstart an industry that would bring in the jobs, the good jobs.
"There is a definitely an economic ripple effect that happens, but only when the infrastructure is solid. It's only when there's enough business coming through consistently and steadily," Roy says. "The perception right now about filmmaking in Michigan is it's money just going to Hollywood, paying for a home in Malibu for a millionaire filmmaker. It's actually high-tech manufacturing of a global product that we're putting out.
"There are schools and programs that are chomping at the bit for us to tell them what software they should train their students on so they can get a job out of school," Roy says. "That's what we're really able to do: give jobs to graduates that keep them in Michigan. These kind of jobs are exactly what the Snyder administration is looking for."
I.E. Effects first worked out of a temporary location in Traverse City before it renovated the first floor of a building at 315 North Division. Part of the ripple effect of the business is the purchases that come with hiring people, like the computers and supplies they need.
"Obviously every time we get more work we need more computer stations … Our work stations have computers filled with all of the software," Roy says.
Because film work can come and go with dry periods in between, I.E. Effects is also expanding its 3D technology to other industries.
"There's acquisition of fossil fuels, education, many areas that 3D technology is useful. My job right now, while we're in between projects, is to make connections with other industries, other companies," Roy says.
As for the future of the company, and others like it? Roy says they will try to make it work in Michigan.
“We are hoping Gov. Snyder will look at the industry more specifically, separate it out and see companies like ours work perfectly with his agenda,” she says.
Kim North Shine is a freelance writer in lower Michigan.
All non-movie photos by Elizabeth Price / http://www.pricelessphotography.com/