State Representative Matt Dollar (R-Marietta), chairman of the House Working Group on Creative Arts & Entertainment, was recently named a 2020 Friend of Film award winner by the Georgia Screen Entertainment Coalition (GSEC) for his efforts to foster one of Georgia’s fastest growing industries.
“Georgia’s film industry is expected to create 40,000 jobs and bring more than $2 billion in investment to our state over the next year,” said Rep. Dollar. “Meanwhile, certain critics want to consider repealing the incentives that have helped create these much needed jobs. This shortsighted plan would be devastating to thousands of families and businesses in our district.”
The 2020 Friends of Film awards recognize a bipartisan group of state legislators for their support of legislation and policies important to Georgia’s $8.6 billion film, television and digital entertainment industry. The 2020 Friends of Film recipients were chosen based on their voting record on industry specific issues, leadership in protecting and advancing the industry and their support of policies and initiatives that recognize Georgia’s film industry as an important economic driver for the state. The GSEC announced the award recipients on October 1, 2020.
“This incredible honor reinforces my efforts to help bring back film industry jobs as Georgia continues to rebound from coronavirus and the resulting economic shutdown,” added Rep. Dollar. “I’m proud that we have created an industry here that means thousands of jobs and billions to our economy. Georgia has become a global leader in a very short time, touching nearly every corner and community in our state.”
Georgia’s film industry was impacted by the coronavirus pandemic and area experts have warned that repealing vital tax credits could permanently end thousands of jobs across the state. In June 2020, major motion production companies announced plans to bring back the film industry, which includes purchasing goods and services from more than 17,000 small businesses in the state. In 2018, the film industry accounted for more than $9.5 billion in economic impact in Georgia.
For more information about the GSEC’s 2020 Friends of Film awards, please click here.