The City of Oklahoma City and Greater Oklahoma City Chamber have established the Oklahoma City Office of Film and Creative Industries. The office will be housed and operated by the Chamber.
"This is an important step to growing this emerging industry," said Roy Williams, President and CEO, Greater Oklahoma City Chamber. "Oklahoma City has strong momentum for growth of employment and enterprises in this sector. The office will help to facilitate that growth and help coalesce the industry around crucial factors such as workforce development and advocacy.”
The office has several functions, including:
Marketing Oklahoma City as a location for film and television production
Supporting the implementation of the Oklahoma City Film Incentive Program
Providing location scouting assistance and support databases cataloging Oklahoma City crews, talent, locations, and production services
Serving as a one-stop concierge and ombudsman with the film industry
Serving as the local “voice” for existing film industry/film makers to connect our local resources, such as small businesses, minority, and disadvantaged businesses and BIPOC community members to industry opportunity
Serving as a hub and clearing house for film industry workforce training programs and apprenticeships for incoming productions and locally based companies
Providing outreach to local stakeholders, raising awareness of opportunities, and seeking financial investment for the Oklahoma City Film industry
The office will be led by Jill Simpson, former director of the Oklahoma Film and Music Office.
"Oklahoma City has so much momentum for the growth of this industry," said Simpson. "The increase of activity combined with new assets such as Prairie Surf Studios and Green Pastures, and the expanded State incentive have made Oklahoma City the new film destination to watch nationally. Our mission will include both recruitment and support of our existing local film community with an emphasis on economic development and jobs creation for the region.”
In fact, Oklahoma City has been recognized nationally as an up-and-coming film destination. MovieMaker magazine named the region #13 on its list of Best Places to Live and Work as a Moviemaker and named Oklahoma City Community College as one of the country’s 40 best film schools.
“This work fits into our organization for a couple of reasons,” Williams continued. “One of Oklahoma City’s longstanding goals is to diversify industries that contribute to our economy and support our workforce, and this industry helps us to meet those goals. The marketing work we will do to support this effort aligns closely to both our economic development and tourism work, allowing us to move quickly to market in a meaningful way.”
The official launch of the office is planned for later this year.
Oklahoma City Office of Film and Creative Industries
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks