Nevada's Tesla tax package could slash funds for state's film program

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-onlocation-nevada-tesla-20140910-story.html

Nevada's film program's funding is being cut due to a tax package for an automaker company named Tesla. The new Tesla battery factory is said to open up to 6,500 jobs and even offer more than a billion dollars in incentives but it's the film industry who's getting the short end of the stick here. This proposal just less than a year when the industry was just started to emerge in Nevada. The proposal is gonna make it harder to attract movies and TV shows to the state. This is important because its a drastic hit to this booming film program in Nevada. Randy Soltero, a lobbyist for Local 720 of the International Alliance of Theaterical Stage Employees, states "I totally support what Nevada is doing with the Tesla deal — it's a great way to diversify the economy. But I also believe the film program is an excellent way to diversify the film economy, and the program is working." It's also a blow to Vegas, as the casinos used movies and TV shows as a huge tool for marketing. This impacts me as a student because I learnt that the film industry is involved with so much including the government. A tax package for an automotive company deeply effected a film program, two completely different companies but still intertwined in some way. As a filmmaker, I learn about the conflicts that professional filmmakers and crew workers may have to go through. What does one do when your money is being cut almost 90% than the funding you've been getting for 4 years? It's insane to think what a substantial change one would have to adapt to. As a consumer, it makes me think about the films who do need to get filmed in Vegas. Will the cut in funds still let the film be made to the expectations it deserves? It's a lot to think about to everyone involved. A question that does arise is how does this affect other people of the film industry in say Hollywood? Is it a plus or a negative for them as well?