Tag: Bluff City Law

Bluff City Law to Film on Location in Memphis, Likely to Get Corporate Welfare

Chris Butler

  The NBC drama Bluff City Law will reportedly film on location in Memphis, and it’s also presumed Tennessee officials will hand out corporate welfare in exchange. This, according to Monday’s Memphis Commercial Appeal. The show stars Jimmy Smits. But Tennessee taxpayers may lose out, said Ron Shultis, policy coordinator for the Nashville-based Beacon Center of Tennessee, in an analysis on the group’s website. Beacon is a free-market think tank. “The reason Tennessee should continue to give little—or, even better, outright eliminate these programs—is because film incentives have been shown to be a terrible value. State film incentives became popular in the mid and late 2000s. By 2009, 44 states offered some kind of film incentive. What those in the industry won’t tell you is that since then, thirteen states have completely eliminated their programs and several more have reduced theirs because these programs have been shown to be a bad value for taxpayers,” Shultis wrote. “In fact, a recent study by Tennessee’s Dept. of Economic and Community Development (ECD) found that the $69.1 million given over the life of Tennessee’s program has resulted in $14.7 million in state tax collections, or a 21-cent return on the dollar. This estimate…

Read the full story

New NBC Drama Wants Tennessee to Hand Over Corporate Welfare

Chris Butler

  NBC has greenlit a new TV drama set in Memphis, and if certain people have their way Tennessee would give the show’s creators corporate welfare. As reported, Bluff City Law is the title, and producers want state incentives similar to what state officials gave the ABC and CMT drama Nashville. The show is about a father-daughter Memphis legal team who practice civil rights law. Jimmy Smits stars. Bluff City Law recently filmed its pilot in Memphis. The Memphis-based WMC Action News 5 reported the show will only continue to film on location if it gets those incentives. Producers have requested $10 million in incentives, the station reported. “But legislators wrapped up the budget session without earmarking specific funds for Bluff City Law, allocating only $4 million for statewide film and TV projects, despite support from Memphis lawmakers in both chambers,” according to the station. State Sen. Raumesh Akbrari, D-Memphis, reportedly told the station she wants the show filmed in Memphis for authenticity’s sake. A letter-writing and call-in campaign is planned to encourage Tennessee Republican Gov. Bill Lee to find $10 million in the state budget to have the show film on location, WMC Action News 5 reported. According to The Memphis…

Read the full story

New Memphis TV Show ‘Bluff City Law’ Wants Corporate Welfare

Chris Butler

Memphis officials want corporate welfare for a new fictionalized drama that could film regularly on location in the city and air on NBC, according to The Memphis Business Journal. The show’s working title — Bluff City Law. The website compares these potential incentives to what state officials gave the ABC and CMT drama Nashville. According to the Memphis-based WMC Action News 5, the show is about a father-daughter Memphis legal team who practice civil rights law. Jimmy Smits stars. Bluff City Law recently filmed its pilot in Memphis, but NBC has not yet committed to picking the show up, according to various news outlets. “City lobbyists and others hope to get up to $18 million in incentives included in the State of Tennessee’s proposed supplemental budget, which is scheduled to be released in the coming weeks. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee’s proposed budget that was released in March did not include any new money included for film and TV incentives,” The Memphis Business Journal reported. Linn Sitler, head of the Memphis & Shelby County Film and Television Commission, reportedly told the website the show could have “a powerful economic impact locally.” “However, there was no new state funding included in the…

Read the full story