The South Carolina Film Commission is embarking on a new program to help film and TV production in the state.
Described as a production entrepreneurship program for South Carolina producers, Long Lens is a production cohort led by seven industry professionals that seeks to help pre-production film and TV projects ahead of their launch.
The six-month program kicked off in November. Producers, directors, advisors and staff will collaborate with the creative team behind each project, helping them develop relationships within the TV and film industries. All projects will shoot in South Carolina, allowing them to use the state’s motion picture incentives. Those include 20-25% cash rebates on wages, 25-30% on supplies purchased in-state that total at least $1 million and a 25% cash rebate for in-state projects under $1 million that are produced by locals.
As for who’s part of the cohort, Michael Quiqley, co-founder and CEO of QVH Media, and Don Mandrik, partner at Hall Booth Smith, will head capital and financing strategies. Mark Rodriquez, head of global distribution at Relativity Media, will head distribution. Marketing and communications will be handled by Liza Burnett Fefferman, former EVP and head of communications for Paramount’s Showtime and MTV Entertainment Studios. Legal will be helmed by Ranfi Rivera, former senior vice president of business and legal affairs at Paramount Global. Finally, Cinetic Media executive Josh Foster as well as actor, writer and producer Jeff Howard will serve as the cohort’s general advisors.
Long Lens is working with seven projects in this first round: indie thriller “All the Names We Buried,” young adult thriller “Bound,” animated and family feature “Hi-5,” dark comedy “Maniac Ridge,” indie drama “No Wave,” screwball musical comedy “So Long Farewell” and sci-fi thriller “The Branch Manager.”
“This is a mechanism to help further activate the entrepreneurial drive and resources within the state’s exceptional production community,” said Matt Storm, director of the South Carolina Film Commission. “These are producers and filmmakers with track records of creating quality content and the cohort will allow them to work together as they drive forward, feeding off of each other’s energy, ideas and determination.”
