Filming in Shreveport (New Orleans, Natchitoches, Mansfield: for sale by owner, leasing, mortgage)

[bbw57]

A friend of mine is going to be working on a movie in Shreveport. It's supposed to start in May, 2007. Denzel Washington is the director.
I live in Los Angeles, but I'm hoping to visit the set while they're filming.
Just wanted to give a heads up - in case some of you are background actors or interested in being an extra in the movie. I think you can register with the Shreveport-Bossier Film Office. I used to live in Shreveport and helped them get the film office started. But that was a long time ago. Hopefully, it's still in business.

[SBCmetroguy]

Originally Posted by bbw57

A friend of mine is going to be working on a movie in Shreveport. It's supposed to start in May, 2007. Denzel Washington is the director.
I live in Los Angeles, but I'm hoping to visit the set while they're filming.
Just wanted to give a heads up - in case some of you are background actors or interested in being an extra in the movie. I think you can register with the Shreveport-Bossier Film Office. I used to live in Shreveport and helped them get the film office started. But that was a long time ago. Hopefully, it's still in business.

It is, but it's under new management now. Thanks for the info. This is the movie called The Great Debaters, if I recall correctly, about a 1930s-era debate team from Wiley College in neighboring Marshall, TX. They couldn't have picked a mroe perfect location than the Shreveport-Bossier area to film a movie about a nearby city.

If you haven't been here in a few years, prepare to be impressed. I hope you will be, anyway. It's changed a LOT in the last 10 years.

[SBCmetroguy]

FYI... the movie industry hasn't shown any signs of slowing down in Shreveport-Bossier. If anything, it's getting hotter! I know of at least 5 major movies that are filming right now in Shreveport-Bossier, and they are:

The Great Debaters
The Better Man
Mad Money
For Sale By Owner
Stephen King's The Mist

[Kurt]

Hey, I am impressed by the cinema-making activity! These are some high-powered productions. Of course, they may not all make it out of the can and on to the screen. Is there any particular person or group that we can thank for this economic shot-in-the-arm? There must be some sort of artistic-personal link somewhere. I know Terry Bradshaw is from Shreve--and he is a much more powerful personage than many people know. He is well-respected in the celeb community.

I would think that Louisiana Downs and the horsey set would make for some great filming. Maybe Toledo Bend could be like Malibu or the Hamptons--dotted with trendy beach houses!

I think the story of the Mansfield Civil War battlesite and lignite mining would be another great story.

I have a little personal history with film, myself. I see myself producing a trilogy of bass fishing movies!

I am giving you a thumbs up on your research into the film industry in Shreveport.

[CiCi23]

I am so glad they have discovered this area. It is a growing city with a lot of neat things here. I hope the stars like this town..we have Tom-kate here so I heard on the news. I was afraid they would **** them off though bc wouldn't you want some privacy!!?? A friend of mine signed Queen Latifa up at the gym. He said she was very nice. And another friend said they saw Katie Cruise here in Target. Cool huh. Jessica Simpson was here not too long ago in Target too. Cool!!!

[SBCmetroguy]

Originally Posted by Kurt

Hey, I am impressed by the cinema-making activity! These are some high-powered productions. Of course, they may not all make it out of the can and on to the screen. Is there any particular person or group that we can thank for this economic shot-in-the-arm? There must be some sort of artistic-personal link somewhere. I know Terry Bradshaw is from Shreve--and he is a much more powerful personage than many people know. He is well-respected in the celeb community.

I would think that Louisiana Downs and the horsey set would make for some great filming. Maybe Toledo Bend could be like Malibu or the Hamptons--dotted with trendy beach houses!

I think the story of the Mansfield Civil War battlesite and lignite mining would be another great story.

I have a little personal history with film, myself. I see myself producing a trilogy of bass fishing movies!

I am giving you a thumbs up on your research into the film industry in Shreveport.

Actually one person is to thank: Katrina. Believe it or not, Hurricane Katrina was the driving force behind all this. But since the production companies found it cheaper and easier to film movies here, and a production studio was setup by a group of private investors including former NBA star Karl Malone, the industry has stuck with Shreveport-Bossier and continued to create 2-5 movies at a time, all year long. Over a dozen feature films were made here last year.

FYI all these films make the cut. Not a single movie filmed here thus far has been cut... that's an awesome thing to know.

[IloveNOLA]

Originally Posted by SBCmetroguy

Actually one person is to thank: Katrina. Believe it or not, Hurricane Katrina was the driving force behind all this. But since the production companies found it cheaper and easier to film movies here, and a production studio was setup by a group of private investors including former NBA star Karl Malone, the industry has stuck with Shreveport-Bossier and continued to create 2-5 movies at a time, all year long. Over a dozen feature films were made here last year.

FYI all these films make the cut. Not a single movie filmed here thus far has been cut... that's an awesome thing to know.

Everybody has been helped with filming being spread around the state. New Orleans couldn't handle it all even before Katrina. I was worried at first that filming wouldn't come back to New Orleans, but man was I wrong. There have been some HUGE productions done here lately, most recently a Brad Pitt film with a budget in excess of $125 million, and more are on the way. Things should get even better once the $350 million film studio and production facility in Treme is completed. We are all looking forward to that because it is slated to create hundreds of well-paying permanent jobs. There is also a big film studio planned for Robert, Louisiana. For once, Louisiana knew what it was doing when it created the film tax credits. California had better watch it!

[Kurt]

Originally Posted by IloveNOLA

Everybody has been helped with filming being spread around the state. New Orleans couldn't handle it all even before Katrina. I was worried at first that filming wouldn't come back to New Orleans, but man was I wrong. There have been some HUGE productions done here lately, most recently a Brad Pitt film with a budget in excess of $125 million, and more are on the way. Things should get even better once the $350 million film studio and production facility in Treme is completed. We are all looking forward to that because it is slated to create hundreds of well-paying permanent jobs. There is also a big film studio planned for Robert, Louisiana. For once, Louisiana knew what it was doing when it created the film tax credits. California had better watch it!

This is all really interesting. It used to be that film techs liked dry and sunny climates with less humidity for outdoor shots. Thus, the move to California. But with the new technology that is no longer a factor.

I would think that anything that required green and water would put Louisiana on the map. And the rebuilt New Orleans will be largely an historic district that will cater to the film crowd. From an artistic point-of-view, there is a certain light and shadow in wintertime Louisiana that cannot be beat for photography and film.

Those tax credits were a good idea!

[docon]

I'm moving to Natchitoches this summer and I need to sell my home in Shreveport. How would I talk to one of these production companies about selling or leasing my home to them?

[SBCmetroguy]

Originally Posted by docon

I'm moving to Natchitoches this summer and I need to sell my home in Shreveport. How would I talk to one of these production companies about selling or leasing my home to them?

Is it a large home priced at minimum $500,000 or on up into the millions? Not that I know for a fact, but I know when they put the stars up they only put them up in huge homes in exclusive neighborhoods. They likely won't purchase your home but would definitely rent it for major bucks. You'd make many times your monthly mortgage payment just in rent every month.

As far as how to go about contacting them, hopefully someone here can help you with that.