Film Industry Shifts to Austin

April 26, 2008

austin becomes home to the film industry

With a great deal of work on behalf of the film community in Austin, our city has become the LA/NY alternative for the filming industry. There are countless reasons, but the most important have to do with the local film societies and the University of Texas’ efforts not only to compete head to head with famous film schools such as NYU and UCLA but to create alternatives to the UT program and bring film screenings and festivals to our city.

Although the Film/Act/Live Villa Muse development stalled in Austin due to the City Council’s red tape and heel-dragging (and despite local objections to the Council’s move), they are entertaining a move to a city as near Austin as possible. We will continue to see projects like Villa Muse come to fruition here because it would be insane NOT to capitalize on this shift from the east and west coasts to Austin as the popularity of filming here increases because:

  • Austin labor is less expensive than on the coasts.
  • There is no state income tax in Texas.
  • Austin isn’t dominated by unions like the coasts.
  • Rental space and costs for location shots are much lower.
  • The landscape here looks like California and is a great replacement for filming.
  • The talent pool is fresh here.
  • Austin is a hotbed for Indie filming as well as the Indie culture.

So, what does this mean to Austin real estate?

  • We should see a diversification in our workforce to include the film industry.
  • This means Austin has yet another reason that it is attractive for residential relocation.
  • I suspect Austin will eventually be the location of many film professionals’ “second home.”
  • This will likely create a trickling surge of demand for the condo high rise and Hyde Park homes in the higher price brackets.
  • Depending on where the most dense area becomes for filming, Austin will have an injection of Hollywood/New York culture… we should be seeing more Starbucks and Seattle’s Best coming to that area.
  • Despite the South Park episode where a city is torn apart by film festivals, I think Austin will become home to more and more prestigious festivals resembling Cannes Film Festival.

Austin is a diverse, growing city and it is no surprise that it is so attractive to the east and west coasters, especially for their businesses.

Creative Commons Photo Credit

Posted by Lani, Asset Director | Filed Under Austin News, Blog 

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