Following an increase in Florida's minimum wage that went into effect on Jan. 1, the state now has the highest minimum wage requirement of any state in the South, according to data provided through the Department of Labor. 

With year-round sunshine, a college with a nationally recognized film program and a community of filmmakers anxious to project their visions on the big screen, Sarasota for years has seemed on the brink of becoming a major film hub. What will it take to reach the next level? SRQ Media Group hosted a panel of experts on the topic at the most recent installment of its SB2 symposium series, this one on Regional Film Development, hosted last week at the Powel Crosley Estate. 

Larry Thompson, president of Ringling College of Art and Design, said great efforts in the last four years have gone toward developing strong relationships between the school’s filmmaking program and Hollywood talent from actors to producers. “We want to get them engaged with us and have them learn what we are doing and what our film program is all about,” he said. He noted the creation of a new soundstage, which will be available for student and commercial projects.

Debbie Meihls, executive manager and film commissioner for the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, said tax incentives at the local level are available for minor and major productions, and that local political leadership is behind growth in the film industry. “We have a great Board of County Commissioners that has got vision and sees how this can stimulate the economy,” she said. The incentive program in Manatee County is still in its early stages, but Jeanne Corcoran, director for the Sarasota County Film and Entertainment Office, noted a successful local incentive program for films in Saraosta County has been in place for years.

But that program has limits. “You have to be fiscally responsible with taxpayer money or you will destroy the whole program,” Corcoran said. County officials, in awarding incentives, cannot discriminate and must follow strict guidelines. A big question mark right now, though, is whether Florida lawmakers in session this year will restore state incentives for film.

Filmmaker Tony Stopperan, who recently wrapped shooting for Paradise, FL, said there already exists some solid cooperation between the film commissions and the various providers of infrastructure in the region, including the facilities at Ringling College. “I’ve benefited from this total synergy so far,” he said.

And Joe Restaino, who is working with the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau to launch the Skyway Film Festival, said the mindset about film in this area is more attractive in many ways than the environment in Los Angeles. It’s important for filmmakers, he said, to have a solid foundation and trustworthy partners who want to ensure a film gets completed. “If you say something is going to cost this much to film, it has to cost that or less because you have a budget,” he said. Film officials in this region provide a reliability that can prove important to major or minor film productions, Restaino said. 

The next SB2 panel, on "How to Create a Thriving Sarasota Bayfront," is scheduled for March 19.

SRQ SB2

The Ringling College of Art and Design’s film department has earned numerous headlines in the last few years bringing high-caliber talent to teach classes. While the school’s arts reputation helps in that, the intricate involvement of Semkhor Partners has ensured a steady flow of top-level talent to the Digital Filmmaking Studio Lab. We spoke with Semkhor co-founder David Shapiro about the relationship between the studio and school and what it could mean for the film industry locally.

How has the relationship between Semkhor Partners and Ringling College of Art and Design helped grow the filmmaking infrastructure here? The Ringling soundstage is an outgrowth of the collaboration with Semkhor; we are the developers on that. For the past four years, Larry Thomspon (Ringling College president) and I have been focused on trying to develop the sort of infrastructure that would allow all of this to be sustainable and not just some one-shot things. We had a test run with [actress] Anna [Paquin]’s movie, Free Ride, but now we have become more organized and are providing financial and infrastructural support for [director] Tim Sutton’s new film. 

How do you attract the talent to the Gulf Coast?  Sarasota is off the beaten part for an L.A. or a New York production but we are getting people to see a lot of the advantages here, Ringling College being a big one. The people here are interesting and helpful. We have a lot of commercial development work coming up, including with some recognized celebrities. [Actor] Dylan McDermott is going to be be shooting something here. We have people who are getting involved in projects either to be a part of them or simply to invest in them and provide the framework. 

Mote Marine Laboratory leaders announced new plans for the expansion of research facilities on Summerland Key during a celebration of the organization’s 60^th Anniversary Thursday at the Galleon Resort & Marina in Key West. The expansion is a priority of Mote’s newly announced comprehensive campaign: Oceans of Opportunity: The Campaign for Mote Marine Laboratory. The $50-million campaign is designed to secure Mote’s future and allow it to continue to benefit the world’s oceans for generations to come. The campaign’s success will allow Mote’s scientists to continue to address threats to our oceans, expand the frontiers of science, provide the intellectual fuel that drives the region’s economy and improve the quality of life in and around our oceans. 

Mote Marine Laboratory

Fitch Ratings announced Sarasota County's revenue bonds were given an AA+ rating. The rating for the $32.6-million in infrastructure sales surtax bonds is based on several factors, including the county's credit profile. Sarasota County's strong financial standing also played a role in the bond rating, based on careful management of financial policy, conservative budgeting practices and healthy reserve fund levels. 

Sarasota County

The new Pure Barre Bradenton studio, located in the Fresh Market plaza on Manatee Avenue West, held a Grand Opening ribbon-cutting ceremony this weekend.  Veteran Pure Barre owners Elle and Lauren McComb, who currently own studios in Clearwater and Tampa, are opening Pure Barre Bradenton. The pair are the wife and daughter of the local founder of the IMG Academy's Sports Medicine, Dr. Bill McComb. The McComb family is actively involved in the Sarasota- Bradenton community, having lived in the area for over 20 years. Both women are dedicated to fitness and the benefits of the Pure Barre workout, which combines elements of ballet, pilates and yoga to lift your seat, tone your arms and thighs, and sculpt your core. The 55-minute full body workout focuses on creating long and lean muscles through small isometric movements around the ballet barre. 

Pure Barre Bradenton