...Pacifica Ventures says it will create a sprawling $75-million motion picture facility on 60 acres off Route 95, complete with eight sound stages that will cement the state’s status as a viable player in the film industry...Rhode Island Film & Television Office Director Steven Feinberg said the project would create 500 construction jobs followed by 2,200 long-term production-related jobs....

...Katersky said he has not yet secured money for the Hopkinton project, but plans to launch the studio here hinge on forthcoming legislation creating the Rhode Island Motion Picture Studio Tax Credit, modeled on the state’s 2005 Motion Picture Production Tax Credit.

The way studio credits would work, the developer would get a 20-percent tax credit on construction costs associated with building the facility. So if it costs $75 million to build, Rhode Island will grant Pacifica Ventures $15 million in tax credits. It can then sell those credits at a discount to individuals who can use them to reduce their Rhode Island personal income taxes...

...If studio legislation passes the General Assembly this session, Katersky said, he would expect to open within a year. Issuing the tax credits at that point could add to the already huge projected deficit...

...“In addition, a film studio in Rhode Island would be able to access the existing [25-percent] film tax credit for productions it produces. That could add up to tens of millions of dollars per year in lost tax revenue. As a result, this proposal will need some very careful and thorough analysis to make sure that the cost to Rhode Island taxpayers doesn’t outweigh the benefits of having movies filmed in Rhode Island...

...Since 2005, the state has issued a total of $30.8 million in tax credits, and has promised an anticipated $21.3 million more, according to the state’s Film & Television Office.

Less clear is how much money and how many jobs the industry has brought to the state...

...Director Michael Corrente, a Providence native, said it takes more than tax credits to lure movie producers. The movie business is essentially a mobile industry that can pick up and go anywhere that has the resources. Rhode Island’s small size and diverse landscapes make it a director’s dream. You can shoot a scene in Providence in the morning and follow it with a beach scene in the afternoon, he said...

Full Story: Lights, camera, action in S. County? Source: Providence Journal, February 8th, 2008 Author: Cynthia Needham Added on February 8th, 2008 at 10:13 am, by Judy He