FILM PERMITS ISSUED ONLINE CALIFORNIA'S NEW SYSTEM AIMED AT SPEEDING UP PREPRODUCTION PROCESS.Byline: Greg Hernandez Staff Writer The California Film Commission, mindful mind·ful adj. Attentive; heedful: always mindful of family responsibilities. See Synonyms at careful. mind of the ongoing struggle against runaway production  An editor has expressed concern that this article or section is .Please help improve the article by adding information and sources on neglected viewpoints, or by summarizing and , introduced an online film permitting system Tuesday to make doing business in the state easier and more efficient for filmmakers. The system makes the commission's services available online 24 hours a day and provides an application designed to reduce paperwork and streamline the process. The goal is to process most film permits in two or three business days instead of the earlier turnaround Turnaround A situation where a company that has had poor performance for an extended period of time experiences a positive reversal. Notes: A speculator may profit from a turnaround if he or she accurately anticipates the improvement of a poorly performing company. of three to six business days. ``We receive upward of more than; above. See also: Upward 40,000 requests for information each year - sometimes as many as 150 calls per day,'' said Amy Lemisch, director of the California Film Commission. ``With an online system, film permit coordinators will spend less time physically processing permits and more time answering questions and assisting the public and industry professionals.'' Runaway production is a growing phenomenon that has seen numerous projects lured from Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, to foreign countries spanning the globe from Canada to Australia. Because of financial incentives, California's competition is increasingly domestic, with Louisiana, New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , Illinois and New Mexico New Mexico, state in the SW United States. At its northwestern corner are the so-called Four Corners, where Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah meet at right angles; New Mexico is also bordered by Oklahoma (NE), Texas (E, S), and Mexico (S). among states building up their film production infrastructures and aggressively courting producers. In August 2003, budget woes forced elimination of Film California First, a state incentive program that allocated $21 million in recent years in an attempt to keep more movie and television productions in California. The program had benefited 3,500 productions over a two-year period by rebating some production costs associated with filming on public property. But lately Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (German pronunciation (IPA): [ˈaɐ̯nɔlt ˈaloɪ̯s ˈʃvaɐ̯ʦənˌʔɛɡɐ] has made it clear that he is prepared to use his political clout and star power to get tax breaks that would keep more productions in California. Making the film-permitting process less cumbersome cum·ber·some adj. 1. Difficult to handle because of weight or bulk. See Synonyms at heavy. 2. Troublesome or onerous. cum is part of California's overall effort to keep filming in the state. In a further streamlining planned within the next 60 days, the new system will enable all relevant state agencies and departments to review film permits online. ``Fast turnaround of permits is critical to the commercial production industry, and we rely on an efficient film office when it comes to filming on state property,'' said Steve Caplan, executive vice president of the Association of Independent Commercial Producers. Since film permits often involve such things as road closures, stunt or pyrotechnic sequences and helicopter activity, they require a coordinated effort with state agencies and local governments. From 1997 to 2004, the California Film Commission processed 15,864 film permits that accounted for 31,471 shooting days on state-owned property. Filmmakers can access the new system at www.film.ca.gov by selecting ``On-line Permits.'' Greg Hernandez, (818) 713-3758 greg.hernandez(at)dailynews.com |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion