Westward trip full of meetings with industry executives

RALEIGH—North Carolina Film Office officials are back to work in Raleigh after spending last Monday through Thursday in the greater Los Angeles area.  While out west, officials met with 55 individuals as part of 22 meetings with both television and motion picture producers and developers.

“It’s always good to get out and see people and remind them of what North Carolina has to offer,” said NC Film Office director Aaron Syrett.  “Our state’s talented crew base, established infrastructure and the industry’s smartest incentive seem to be keeping North Carolina at the top of the list for many of the decision makers in the industry.”

Meetings got underway on February 6 as soon as officials landed in California.  The itinerary for the week included time with both television and motion picture executives.  In addition to meeting with clients who have a long reputation with the state, such as Warner Brothers Television who recently wrapped the ninth and final season of the Wilmington-filmed television series One Tree Hill, state film officials made a point to also reach out to some new production companies and introduce themselves and North Carolina’s film industry.

“All in all, I would say we had an extremely productive week,” added Syrett.  “We continue to hear a lot of positives about North Carolina and the variety of projects-including Journey 2: The Mysterious Island, The Hunger Games, and the television series Homeland-that are being shot in our state.  The state is definitely well thought of.”

This is the second recruiting trip of the year for the NC Film Office.  Officials attended the Sundance Film Festival in January and will be part of the South By Southwest Film Festival in March.