photo by: Bremen Keasey

Liberty Hall, at 644 Massachusetts St. in downtown Lawrence, hosts a variety of film festivals that showcase local Kansas filmmakers. A new bill aims to add tax incentives to bring more productions to Kansas, with hope it can add a larger film industry presence.

She said “I’ve a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore,” but maybe Dorothy meant “we’re not in California.”

After all, no part of “The Wizard of Oz,” that iconic film that so many from outside of the state associate with Kansas, was shot here. It was done on a soundstage in Culver City, Calif. And it’s not alone.

Superman’s adoptive Kansas hometown of Smallville in the 1978 Christopher Reeve film was actually a couple of hamlets in Alberta, Canada. “Supernatural,” the TV show about two monster-hunting brothers from Lawrence, was shot in Vancouver.

To Evie Lazzarino with the Lawrence chamber of commerce, all of that sounds like a giant missed opportunity.

“I feel like if the script says ‘set in Kansas,’ why not shoot in Kansas?” Lazzarino said.

It turns out that there’s a sound economic reason why not: Nearly 40 U.S. states — including Oklahoma and Missouri — offer tax incentives for film productions, while Kansas does not.

That’s why Lazzarino is so excited about SB 52, a tax-break bill working its way through the Kansas Legislature that has the potential to bring more filmmaking, and thus more creative jobs and economic activity in general, to the state.

SB 52, which the Senate recently passed, would create a new incentive program for film productions that would be overseen by the Kansas Department of Commerce. It would allow film production companies to seek tax credits of up to $10 million per year, and it would require that at least 10% of the total tax credits go to Kansas-based production companies.

Additional tax credits could be earned if the production companies meet some extra requirements, such as if the production expenditures are for a multi-film deal or a television series; if the project “contributes to the film-related infrastructure or workforce development in Kansas”; or if over half of the crew or “above-the-line” personnel — main cast members, producers, screenwriters or directors — are Kansas residents.

Proponents say SB 52 wouldn’t just help filmmakers, it would help the state’s economy, too. But if lawmakers don’t get it done, they say millions and millions of dollars in projects will gravitate to the vibrant incentives packages that other states are already offering — with which sepia-toned Kansas won’t be able to compete.

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Lazzarino, the vice president of external affairs for the Lawrence Chamber, thinks Lawrence in particular could benefit from this program because of its young and creative population, and her organization has sent in letters and attended the hearings on the bill to show support.

Lawrence is full of artistic talent — after all, it hosts a full-fledged film festival, the Free State Festival, and is home to some notable creatives like Oscar-winner Kevin Willmott. But Lazzarino said many younger people who might want to stay here instead end up leaving for creative hubs like Los Angeles because there aren’t enough job opportunities in the arts in Kansas. Bringing more film production could make it easier to keep those people here, she said.

“This, down the road, we feel could provide a better job pool for young people,” Lazzarino said. She noted that productions don’t just need actors, directors and cinematographers, but also people to help with make-up, costumes, set design and technology behind the scenes.

Additionally, the mere presence of a big film production in town can lead to more economic activity in the area, even for those who aren’t in the filmmaking industry.

To illustrate this, Lazzarino talked about the shooting of the made-for-TV movie “The Day After,” which depicts the aftermath of a nuclear attack in Lawrence and the Kansas City area. This movie actually was shot on location in Lawrence in 1983, and the production crew brought about $1 million into the local economy — about $3.1 million in today’s money. That’s because the crew needed hotels to stay in, food to eat and many other miscellaneous things for the production, and all of that money went to local businesses.

Not only that, but hundreds of Lawrence residents were cast as extras.

“Every time a production comes anywhere … it’s a great boom for (those) communities,” Lazzarino said.

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It’s fitting that Lazzarino chose a movie about nuclear war to demonstrate these economic effects, because the competition over film tax credits is a sort of economic arms race.

Currently, 38 states, including Oklahoma and Missouri, offer some form of production tax incentive for movies. Kansas does have an independent film production scene — here in Lawrence, a suspense thriller was filmed at a 19th-century brick mansion on Tennessee Street last fall, and a Lawrence filmmaker’s Western revenge movie premiered last December — but such productions start at a disadvantage because the state doesn’t have a tax credit program for them.

photo by: University of Kansas

Deidre Backs, a Kansas native who is an independent film producer and professor at the University of Kansas.

Deidre Backs, an independent film producer and professor at the University of Kansas, told the Journal-World via email that for producers working to find funding for films, those tax incentives are a “mandatory part” of the financing plan.

“No serious investor will entertain a project shooting in a state without some sort of transferable tax credit or rebate,” Backs said.

Backs, who grew up in Lenexa and currently lives in Lawrence, said not having those incentives basically means that the film will automatically be 20% to 40% more expensive to make, and that is even harder for independent productions to absorb.

Recently, Backs was the lead producer for “Fancy Dance,” an independent movie that featured Oscar-nominated actress Lily Gladstone. It was shot in Tulsa and around the Cherokee Nation. Backs said that on top of the tax credits from the state of Oklahoma, Tulsa offers its own incentive program, which makes it “very attractive” for independent and studio productions. Kansas City, Mo., offers its own incentives for films, as well.

All of this makes it that much harder to justify shooting a film in Kansas, Backs said.

“I’d love to make a film in Kansas and tell stories of the people here,” she said, “but investors would understandably push to go to Missouri or Oklahoma instead.”

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This year’s bill has seen support in the Legislature so far — the Senate passed it last month 33-7, with two senators who represent the Lawrence area, Marci Francisco and Rick Kloos, both voting yes.

But tax incentive packages for film projects have a spotty history at the Statehouse.

The Kansas Legislature has been considering incentives for film projects since 2022, but it hasn’t been able to get them over the finish line. Last year, as Kansas Reflector reported, an incentive bill made it past the House and Senate, but was shot down by Gov. Laura Kelly as part of a blanket veto of multiple tax breaks.

But the bill’s backers say it’s not about giving anyone a handout — it’s about bringing more business into the state’s economy.

Lazzarino said nearby states have seen increases in revenue after they passed their incentive packages. According to data from the Missouri Department of Economic Development, in 2024, the state provided $12.4 million in production incentives for 39 projects, and those projects spent more than $33.5 million in the state that year.

And Backs said that in Oklahoma, from 2021 to 2023, film and TV projects brought $484 million in economic activity to the state, with 60% of that going to in-state wages and 40% to local goods and services.

For people who view tax incentives as only benefiting the production companies, “the numbers don’t align with that narrative,” Backs said.

The examples of neighboring states show that independent films can thrive, but more and more production is moving away from Hollywood even for some of the biggest blockbuster films.

In recent years, for example, huge tax credits in Georgia have created a booming film industry — Marvel movies have been shot in the Peach State, for instance, and more jobs in creative industries have sprung up there.

If those at the Statehouse are dedicated to it, Backs thinks that Kansas could get in on the action as well.

“With a little investment that comes right back into the state, we could create a new industry here,” she said.