By John Saeger
Sharon Pinkenson has served as the Executive Director of the Greater Philadelphia Film Office for over 25 years. 2020 is a tough time for her organization. She describes the beginning of the year as a busy one for the film industry in Philadelphia. The second season of M. Night Shyamalan’s Servant and the first run of Kate Winslet’s Mare of Easttown were shooting in the Philadelphia area. Then, like so many other events in Philadelphia, those productions and other best laid plans came to a halt as the coronavirus spread through Southeastern Pennsylvania.
“We were looking forward to a good season,” Pinkenson said. “Lots of commercials and music videos and student films and documentaries. We do everything in Philadelphia so it was just a normal, busy time. Of course, we all got kicked in the butt in early March. Everything stopped.”
This work stoppage not only affected film sets, but also included the non-profit organization’s own operations. They have worked remotely ever since the shutdown. The Greater Philadelphia Film Office endured budget cuts due to cancelled fundraisers and the red lining of their grant from the city’s annual budget.
“We were caught in the middle of this maelstrom. The mayor’s budget looked like it was cutting out everything in the arts.”
Pinkenson said that Mayor Kenney’s budget wiped out all of their government funding. The office started a GoFundMe campaign to raise money. Their advocacy for productions in Philadelphia is now strained by reduced hours and fewer team members. When advocating for funds she noted that “every penny counts” as her office, and the creative industry in the city, try to survive.
She described her office as being “lucky” when local productions create art that people enjoy on a broad scale. In reality, the Greater Philadelphia Film Office promotes a tangible impact to Philadelphia and its suburban counties.
There is an economic benefit to productions set in the city. According to Pinkenson, the annual financial impact to the area is around $250 million. Film productions have spent over $6 billion in the Delaware Valley since 1992. She also described a trickle down effect from production income throughout the Philadelphia region that includes taxes, hotels, and small business.
“For every day they work in Philadelphia, they pay Philadelphia wage tax. That’s everybody, whether they are local or distant hires. That’s impacting the city. Those who live here or live in the suburbs, they’re all working on these shows. These productions are all spending millions and millions and millions of dollars. Everything from a corner grocery store to pick things up for craft services or supermarkets or fleets of cars.”
Movies also leave a cultural mark on the region. Scenes like Rocky Balboa running up the Museum of Art’s steps or Bradley Cooper eating cereal at the Llanerch Diner with Jennifer Lawrence are as much a part of Philadelphia iconography as Ben Franklin.
“Philadelphians love when there are famous people in town working on movies. It’s thrilling. The paparazzi are out. People are writing about it. They’re talking about it on social media. What it creates that is nearly impossible to try to create, but our industry creates, is civic pride. You can’t buy it. You can’t create it. It happens. When it happens, it is the best possible thing that you can do. Because Philadelphia was a city that did not have civic pride for many, many years. When the film industry came in and we became a movie town, that really is something that makes people feel really good about the place where they live.”
Since COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in Philadelphia, projects quickly resumed filming in the region. Adam Sandler began to shoot the Netflix film Hustle. Winslet and Shyamalan’s series resumed filming. The independent movie Keystone is also currently in production.
She described the COVID-19 protocols that production companies have put in place as “unbelievable.” The office received multiple calls with county departments of health for every set. Pinkenson likened the process to the bubble that isolated NBA players in Orlando, FL during the completion of the sport’s 2020-21 season.
The executive director also indicated that she engaged in three major calls about shows coming to Philadelphia in the 48 hours before our conversation. The burst of activity correlates with how well the Delaware Valley is set to handle the volume of work going forward.
“We have all the technology. Everything is accessible here. Philadelphia has lots and lots of companies that support the film industry. Everything from sound to picture to music. We have everything here, we have sound stages, we have equipment rental companies. We’re a real movie town.” Learn more about the Greater Philadelphia Film Office online.
About the Author: John Saeger is a music and film writer from Philadelphia. Since 2017 he has been writing his pop-culture blog Long After Dark, a site dedicated to the arts in the City of Brotherly Love.
Leave a Comment