AtPontchartrain
04-21-2008, 10:42 AM
New Orleans musicians figured their big payday had finally arrived.
In 2005 the Louisiana Legislature passed the Sound Recording Tax Credit Program that gave movie studios a 25 percent tax break for the use of local music in their films.
The incentive was figured to bring thousands in extra income to the jazz singers and guitarists whose livelihoods took a major hit after Hurricane Katrina.
More than $500 million in film production takes place in Louisiana each year, and many believed the new tax program would put $10 million into the local music industry annually, according to the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation.
Movie studios that license existing music or record new songs for their films can pay several thousand to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on the budget.
But after three years on the books, the SRTCP has had little to no impact, said Scott Aiges, director of marketing and communications for the foundation.
“When the movie industry came, a bunch of people stood up and said, ‘This is a real opportunity. They’re making all of these movies down here, and if they use our music that will mean significant paydays for our local artists,’” Aiges said. “These are people that have fingers on very large budgets that could and should be spent down here on music. But we’ve noticed over the years that it’s just not happening.”
Music education
Aiges said he thinks a lack of information and experience working with the Louisiana music industry is behind studio reluctance to take advantage of the tax breaks. So the Jazz and Heritage Festival Foundation, as part of its new Sync Up initiative, will bring 10 music supervisors who have worked on films shot in Louisiana to New Orleans during the Jazz and Heritage Festival.
They will be educated about the tax incentive program, introduced to all the major players in the local music industry, exposed to the diversity of Louisiana music and given tours of New Orleans recording facilities.
“We’re bringing them to town in the same way the oil industry would bring key executives from Exxon-Mobil and Shell to look at platforms in the Gulf,” Aiges said. “And at the end of this trip I fully expect that all of them will say, ‘We love this, this is fantastic, and we can’t wait to start using your music in all of our movies.’”
The Jazz and Heritage Foundation will also launch a Web site, www.talent.jazzandheritage.org, during Jazz Fest. It will provide a database of local music that studios can use to find and purchase the rights to songs for their movies. ....
more http://www.neworleanscitybusiness.com/viewStory.cfm?recID=30576
In 2005 the Louisiana Legislature passed the Sound Recording Tax Credit Program that gave movie studios a 25 percent tax break for the use of local music in their films.
The incentive was figured to bring thousands in extra income to the jazz singers and guitarists whose livelihoods took a major hit after Hurricane Katrina.
More than $500 million in film production takes place in Louisiana each year, and many believed the new tax program would put $10 million into the local music industry annually, according to the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation.
Movie studios that license existing music or record new songs for their films can pay several thousand to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on the budget.
But after three years on the books, the SRTCP has had little to no impact, said Scott Aiges, director of marketing and communications for the foundation.
“When the movie industry came, a bunch of people stood up and said, ‘This is a real opportunity. They’re making all of these movies down here, and if they use our music that will mean significant paydays for our local artists,’” Aiges said. “These are people that have fingers on very large budgets that could and should be spent down here on music. But we’ve noticed over the years that it’s just not happening.”
Music education
Aiges said he thinks a lack of information and experience working with the Louisiana music industry is behind studio reluctance to take advantage of the tax breaks. So the Jazz and Heritage Festival Foundation, as part of its new Sync Up initiative, will bring 10 music supervisors who have worked on films shot in Louisiana to New Orleans during the Jazz and Heritage Festival.
They will be educated about the tax incentive program, introduced to all the major players in the local music industry, exposed to the diversity of Louisiana music and given tours of New Orleans recording facilities.
“We’re bringing them to town in the same way the oil industry would bring key executives from Exxon-Mobil and Shell to look at platforms in the Gulf,” Aiges said. “And at the end of this trip I fully expect that all of them will say, ‘We love this, this is fantastic, and we can’t wait to start using your music in all of our movies.’”
The Jazz and Heritage Foundation will also launch a Web site, www.talent.jazzandheritage.org, during Jazz Fest. It will provide a database of local music that studios can use to find and purchase the rights to songs for their movies. ....
more http://www.neworleanscitybusiness.com/viewStory.cfm?recID=30576