With the fruitful efforts of Film Wisconsin, a non-profit, public-private partnership advocacy group which aims to boost film and media in the state, a new 25 percent tax incentive for film, TV and video producers went into effect at the start of 2008.
Tom Fletcher of Fletcher Chicago, a film and digital camera facility servicing production needs of commercial and motion picture clients, calls it "the nation's most aggressive film incentives."
That's why he plans to open a camera rental branch in Wisconsin's only studio complex. The Third Coast Studios, a $5-6 million project that developer and co-owner Darrick Dysland estimates will be completed June 1, are underway in St. Francis.
The complex has a total of 27,000 sq. ft. and consists of two unconnected buildings a quarter of a block apart at 2525 E. Crawford Ave. and 3770 S. Pennsylvania Ave.
Dubbing it a "production hub," Dysland says Third Coast will be a catalyst for synergy between Illinois and Wisconsin.
In addition to the new Fletcher branch, the complex will house RD Image, a digital commercial photography studio; a 5,500-sq. ft., clear span sound stage; Lightning Rod Studios, an indie film production company owned by filmmaker Drew Maxwell and entertainment attorney Dan Kattman; and Ken Krei's Third Ward Records, a recording and audio post-production facility.
OnMilwaukee.com staff writer Julie Lawrence grew up in Wauwatosa and has lived her whole life in the Milwaukee area.
As any “word nerd” can attest, you never know when inspiration will strike, so from a very early age Julie has rarely been seen sans pen and little notebook. At the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee it seemed only natural that she major in journalism. When OnMilwaukee.com offered her an avenue to combine her writing and the city she knows and loves in late 2004, she knew it was meant to be. Around the office, she answers to a plethora of nicknames, including “Lar,” (short for “Larry,” which is short for “Lawrence”) as well as the mysteriously-sourced “Bill Murray.”
