Early in the new year, Texas lawmakers will begin discussing how much support they want to grant to the state’s film incentive program. This decision could impact the attractiveness of filming in locations like Dallas.
In 2023, the program was supported to the tune of $200 million. However, this number fluctuates yearly, leaving television and film producers little insight into how much state help they can garner.
At its lowest, the grant for the initiative, known as the Texas Moving Image Industry Incentive Program (TMIIIP), was $32 million. Famed writer, director, and actor Taylor Sheridan says the extent of the funding determines how many major movies and television shows film in the Lone Star State.
“The budget on ‘1883’ was $169 million, ‘1923’ was over $250 million. ‘Landman’ was $150-something-million, and I think on ‘Lioness’ it was almost $170 million… Someone asked which of those would still have filmed here had there not been an incentive? And the answer is none — not one of them,” Sheridan told the Texas Senate Committee on Finance in October 2024, per the Fort Worth Report.
As previously reported in The Dallas Express, some states provide generous subsidies to attract films and TV series. In New Mexico, the state covers 30% of a production’s budget to incentivize the likes of Sheridan and others. Sheridan’s film Hell or High Water, which he described as a “love poem” to Texas, was actually filmed in New Mexico because of the rebate.
Base incentive rates vary widely in Texas from 5% to 20%.
The amount a production receives depends on several factors, like the total budget, the amount spent within the state, and the percentage of the crew made up of local hires. Further rebates are also available for factors like hiring veterans or filming in areas the state deems economically distressed.
“Projects have generated $2.52 billion of in-state spending since the start of the program, created more than 189,000 direct Texas jobs and had a return on investment of 469%… Otherwise, for every dollar of grant spent, (another) $4.69 has been spent in Texas,” Adriana Cruz, the executive director of the Texas Economic Development and Tourism division of Gov. Greg Abbott’s office, told members of the Senate finance committee, per FWR.
In November, The Dallas Express reported that Sheridan’s Yellowstone spinoff was shooting in Dallas-Fort Worth and looking for extras. The new series, ‘The Madison,’ used Downtown Dallas as a stand-in for New York City. The series will expand on the Dutton family dynasty and introduce new characters while welcoming back familiar faces.