If you’re wondering what will lure Hollywood to Savannah, Mitzi Hill can tell you.

Hill was the keynote speaker at the Tourism Leadership Council’s June luncheon, to tell TLC members how they can benefit from and negotiate Savannah’s burgeoning film industry. Hill is a partner at Atlanta law firm Taylor English Duma LLP, has a background in entertainment law and has worked with the film industry on Georgia projects.

“Think of the film industry like a nomad tent moving from city to city,” Hill told the group made up of attorneys, hoteliers, restauranteurs and others at the Doubletree Hotel on Bay Street. “You need to have a whole infrastructure for them. And they can be demanding. It’s important to be accommodating, but also know what you’re willing to do and not willing to do.”

In 2010, the film industry brought $4.6 million to Savannah; last year alone, the film industry brought $58 million to Savannah.

The discussion, Michael Owens, CEO of TLC, said, was to educate the group about the size and scope of the film industry, as it relates to them in Savannah and also at large. “I want our members to know that the film industry means potential for their businesses and that they can connect to this billion-dollar industry.”

TLC is the largest trade organization representing tourism in Savannah, a $2.5 billion industry. The group is a non-profit education and advocacy group for the tourism and hospitality industry.

“The film industry is the very definition of economic development,” Owens continued. “Why? It’s money coming from outside of the market into the market and every dollar represents new money into the economy that wouldn’t otherwise be here.”

Hill told the group that Georgia is one of the few states in the United States that has a production tax credit of up to 20 percent. “Additionally, if a film studio puts the state of Georgia’s logo at the end of the film’s credits, then the studio receives another ten percent. So, as a filmmaker or film studio, you can save 30 percent in tax offsets in the state of Georgia.”

The City of Savannah also offers a tax credit of up to to $150,000 through Savannah Economic Development Authority.

“The film industry is unique and there is a lot of money in this business; having the film industry come here helps the economy of our state. It also depends on the goodwill of local businesses,” said Hill.

“You basically have a large, captive, transient group of people in your city; the film crew and actors and actresses comprise a mini city of people who are camping out in Savannah,” Hill elaborated. “Most of them don’t know anything about the city. They need a place to live, someone to transport them, feed them, cut their hair, all of those things. So all of the things we do in our daily lives, they have to do on the road while they’re shooting a film.”

This is where TLC members and Savannah business owners come into play, she said.

“You have to be flexible. These film people have a lot of pressures on them — it’s about time, money, and ego — so knowing that this business is a little different than the people who bring you your paper towels every week, for example, is important.”

Hill said a film can cost around $100,000 per day to shoot.

“The burn rate is very high and very fast. So it is important that you know how to manage your interaction and risk with the movie business,” she said.

As an attorney, Hill has 20 years of experience in entertainment law and served as in-house counsel at Turner Broadcasting before becoming partner at the Atlanta firm.

“There are two easy ways to do this,” Hill said. “Make sure your point of contact for the film is local — meaning the person is a producer or assistant manager based out of Savannah, rather than in Burbank, Calif. You also have the City of Savannah Film Office. This is where the film industry gets its permits. The film office is the welcome arm of the city who is the public face of the city to the film industry. But it’s also a good resource for you.”

Hill explained that negotiating a contract with the film studio is crucial. Most studios have an in-house legal team which presents the contract to local business owners. “They expect you to ask questions, to push back, and to say the things that you can’t or won’t do,” said Hill. “If you say you won’t do something, the expectation is they need to give you more money.”

The contract is where business owners can say what is and what is not permissible.

“You can say weird things! They’re used to hearing this,” she said. “This is where you can talk about liability and risk allocation — do they have all the permits they need? You can ask to look at this documentation so that you don’t run into any issues. Legal and risk principles will be pretty much the same as any other contracts.”

Hill said that seeing the film production crew’s timetable is also vital.

“You need to know what happens when the shoot runs over time. Do you get paid more? What are you accountable for and what are your responsibilities as a business owner providing services to the film?” she said.

Georgia has one of the most generous tax rates, along with Louisiana, to shoot a film.

“Georgia has trade groups that lobby on behalf of this legislation to make sure we’re giving the film industry high tax credits,” explained Hill. “Some people may be upset when they hear ‘tax credit,’ thinking why is the government providing credits to an out-of-state industry? But the point is, giving these tax credits to the film industry has a bigger financial impact. There’s a lot of business and tourism dollars that aren’t being outsourced back to California. They’re being poured into our local economy.”

“This is a political creature — you can’t have it without the political system,” Hill added.

The combination of tax credits and accommodation appears to be working, she said: “There is so much film shooting going on down here, we’re getting to be known as “Y’all-ywood.”

Editor’s note: This story was updated to correct the speaker’s title and law firm.

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