Austin rises as a filming destination under a pandemic-fueled influx

Is Austin said to be the next Hollywood enclave? The Texas Capital has seen a pandemic-rooted shift that seems set to recreate the entertainment landscape and possibly reposition Austin as a filming destination of choice for indie and mainstream projects alike. Entertainment attorney Brandon Blake lays out the facts you need to know to help your own projects thrive.

A tech-led boom

While Austin has always been a friendly film destination, the current spike in entertainment-related demand can be traced back to a flood of tech companies moving into the area. We’ve seen both Samsung and Oracle establish a market presence here over the last months, and Elon Musk’s Tesla is moving in too. Likewise, it’s become a destination of choice for ‘remote-transplants’, a pandemic-borne class of workers looking for a lifestyle upgrade in the face of shifting pandemic work demands. Among these ‘pandemic refugees’ have been some notable Hollywood faces, including Matthew McConaughey, Adrianne Palicki, Adrian Grenier, James Van Der Beek, and Zachary Levi, who has announced plans to build a studio on his new property. This will join Austin Studios and Troublemaker Studios as anchor filming destinations in the area. Many cite more freedom and less image consciousness in Austin vs their L.Homes.

Of course, Austin has never really been an unpopular destination, even for filming, and it’s been used for away shoots and studio filming since the 90s. Indeed, the indie film Slacker has long been credited with launching the town’s indie movie scene. Again, this early influx was mostly credited to the expansion of Silicon Valley into the area due to tempting tax incentives. Teamed with art- and festival scene that’s continued to thrive, there’s little surprise that many views it as a booming metropolis with the right ‘vibe’ for entertainment.

New productions move in

Film and TV production for the area has thrived too. Both Walker and Queer Eye filmed their newest seasons here, and HBO’s new Love and Death is in preproduction. While the Austin Film Commission would naturally like to see even more interest in their town, the working crew base for the area is said to be employed and fully earning. What incentives is Austin putting on the table for filmmakers? Alongside state-wide tax incentives and some drawcards like no fees for right-of-way permits and waiving of rental fees on city property, there’s also a dedicated staff on hand to assist with negotiating the filming process, seasoned crews, and other key incentives on offer. In 2016, it was actually nominated as one of the best places in Northern America to film by MovieMakers, and it’s managed to maintain a spot on the list through the five years since, scoring 3rd in 2021. Dallas holds the fort at number 12, and San Antonio at 22.

How is COVID affecting this? For Austin, positively. While the long-term effects of the strict shutdowns seen in L.A and N.Y.C will likely benefit the cities and the entertainment industry as a whole, in the short term filmmakers are forced to think outside the traditional box and find new destinations in less-trafficked areas to keep their productions on schedule. Austin offers a versatile range of location shooting, from urban to rural, across a range of climates and moods, so, understandably, it has caught the eye of the entertainment industry.

Austin has always suffered a little in the popular press as a ‘lackadaisical’ city with a laid-back vibe, but it seems set for bigger things, at least through the short-term crisis of filming around the unpredictability of Corona. For indie producers, in particular, it offers a good blend of affordability yet familiarity with the intricacies of the industry and easy access to extras and crew.

While Austin may never see its name in lights quite the way New York and Los Angeles do, it’s certainly proving to be an interesting filming destination to place on the radar, especially as the industry navigates the difficulties of keeping filming schedules rolling through the last of the pandemic period.