HELENA, Mont. — After he couldn’t get his home state of Wyoming to develop a film incentive tax program, Sean Patrick Higgins headed to Montana to help that state grow as a hub for TV and film production.
Higgins postponed plans to build a studio in his hometown of Sheridan and started making trips to Helena.
That was three and a half years ago, and on Tuesday, Higgins wrapped up his lobbying efforts in Helena and caught a flight to New York City.
In New York, Higgins continues to audition for TV and film roles, while also working as a development producer for new projects.
By the time Higgins’ flight landed in New York, Senate Bill 326 was on its way toward final passage by the Montana Senate.
The bill represents both a victory and a compromise for the state's film industry. While it preserves the existing tax credit program through 2045, it doesn't expand the funding pool, and the incentives won't be available until around 2030.
That’s because the lion’s share of available tax credits was claimed all the way into 2029 by the production company run by noted film and tv series producer and director Taylor Sheridan, including the hit series “Yellowstone” and its spinoffs.
The revised program includes what Higgins calls "Montana-first sideboards" designed to prioritize local filmmakers and drive economic returns to the state.
"It is essentially protecting the industry for Montanans and it's making it sustainable moving forward," he explained.
The new legislation creates allocations that will eventually distribute credits to various sectors of the industry: 10% to any production company, 10% for independent film productions, 40% for productions using qualified Montana facilities, and 40% for companies domiciled in Montana.
For Higgins, the contrast between Wyoming's inaction and Montana's progress is stark, though he salutes efforts by film industry advocates in Casper and Cody.
"We were ready to make this investment in the state of Wyoming, and that was part of what Story House Village was going to be,” said Higgins, referring to a proposed development on property in Sheridan.
“We were going to center it around a 40-acre film production campus," he said. "We worked with the Wyoming Business Council for years and had conversations with Gov. Gordon and other folks. It’s an opportunity Wyoming missed.”
"It's a shame that Wyoming has not figured out how to bring this industry to the state, especially when you have the treasurer's office announcing $1.5 billion for manufacturing jobs,” said Higgins.
Cowboy State Daily reported April 24 on State Treasurer Curt Meier’s vision for investing up to $1.5 billion to bring more manufacturing to Wyoming.
“Maybe there's an opportunity there to imagine what Wyoming could do,” said Higgins.
Manufacturing Stories
The MEDIA in MEDIA Act stands for Montana Economic Development Industry Advancement Act.
During the current Montana legislative session, Higgins and others lobbying for the bill emphasized the “work boot-blue jeans” jobs available in the entertainment industry.
Electricians, set builders, lighting designers and other positions in the TV-film trade pull in solid wages, around $87,000 on average.
Higgins said making comparisons to jobs in other blue-collar industries was part of his lobbying strategy.
“We are manufacturing stories and that is the export. Stories are a cultural good,” said Higgins. “If steel is the framework of structures and bridges, then stories are the framework of the mind, and consequently of far greater value.”
Alongside Higgins pushing for the passage of the MEDIA Act was Lynn-Wood Fields, board president of the Montana Media Coalition.
Fields said she used financial data available through the Montana Department of Revenue to prove to lawmakers that the $12 million tax incentive program more than pays for itself.
This helped win support for the MEDIA Act, as receipts from past productions collected by the Montana Department of Revenue — specific documentation of crew wages and hotel expenses, for example — showed, "For every dollar out, we put $1.84 back in."
Neighbors Up North
Fields said the Montana Media Coalition was able to call on some of the estimated 1,300 Montanans working in the TV-film industry to show up in Helena and advocate for the MEDIA Act.
Standing with these Montana filmmakers was Higgins, who impressed Fields.
"I can't say enough about him," Fields said of Higgins. "Beyond impressed. I also just have to say this lift was huge. We had 200 members from the coalition that I represented, then we had over 100 businesses that helped support us."
“We had some miracle moments,” said Fields, recalling how Higgins and others helped swing momentum behind the bill back in the right direction when it looked like the legislation might die.
Like Higgins, Fields is happy to see Montana-specific requirements on the film incentive program so out-of-state productions like “Yellowstone” don’t swoop in and claim most of the tax credits.
"Moving forward, one big entity can't just take it all," Fields emphasized. "This will be spread out amongst indie productions and some studios and ways in which Montana can work full-time, but it really benefits Montanans.”
While acknowledging the significant time gap before new productions can access the incentives, Fields remains optimistic.
"That part is heartbreaking. That part is very upsetting,” she said. “Will we survive and bond together? I think so. Montana filmmakers will support each other."
Standing among the Montana filmmakers buoyed by news of the MEDIA Act’s passage will be Higgins and the Wyoming TV-film pros in his rolodex.
“Many of whom I went to school with at the University of Wyoming,” said Higgins, noting his Wyoming network is, “Sprinkled throughout the state. We will hire from Montana first, and I fully anticipate pulling a few of them up to Montana and working with them up there.”
David Madison can be reached at david@cowboystatedaily.com.
