NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans East could be headed for a major growth spurt.
Some believe the stars are aligned for the area to be “Hollywood South” as production studios talk about building there.
And some major film stars are helping to drive the industry here.
New Orleans' own Anthony Mackie, who played the Falcon and now Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, is now the owner of a plot of land in New Orleans East. Just off of Read Boulevard and the I-10 Service Road. The NOCCA-trained actor plans to open a production studio. That has the area's councilman, Oliver Thomas, excited about the future.
“Years ago, we talked about us being Hollywood South. I think maybe we're finally in a position to make it happen, and for New Orleans East to be the foundation for that happening,” said New Orleans Councilman for District E, Oliver Thomas.
But he's even more optimistic about the future, because other studio players are calling. The investment group, Impact, he says is making offers on New Orleans East land and representatives from native New Orleanian Tyler Perry's office is talking to the Bayou Phoenix group and Six Flags about the possibility of a film studio as well.
“To have Captain America add his brand and his star power, I think it helps support all the other investments,” Thomas said.
“The amount of investment that we have had in the film industry over the last four or five years, has also been extraordinary,” Director of Film New Orleans Carroll Morton noted.
She says there are even more big studios talking about investing and expanding in the Crescent City. Right now, there are 20 film and TV productions from big studios including Netflix, Disney, Amazon, HBO, NBC and CBS, to name a few.
Morton says it's because the city has the infrastructure and local workforce already in place.
“The City of New Orleans has continued to invest in workforce training programs, in partnership with the unions, and in partnership with NOVAC, and we intend to invest a lot more,” Morton said.
And the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Economy says it’s the unique culture as well.
“We've been in several meetings with studios, and they are falling in love the minute they step into our city, the architecture, the hospitality that we provide, the charm, and the beauty of our culture,” said Lisa Alexis, Director of the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Economy.
And the 25-to-40 percent tax incentives help the productions' bottom lines, but it also helps the City's bottom line, returning more than $6 for every $1 the industry spends.
Last year, 2021, which was still a pandemic year, the film industry spent almost a billion dollars in the New Orleans region alone.
And those numbers are making the city the fourth largest production hub in the country.
The City is planning to meet with Anthony Mackie next week to talk about his studio plans.
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