It Could Be Getting So Much Better All The Time #2: Keep Filmmaking Local

I got this comment from filmmaker and blogger Eric Escobar and felt it was right on.  When I started out there was much talk in indie circles about the regional film movement.  Traveling around film festivals and seeing movies from the community, that captures their authenticity, is a specific pleasure that can't be duplicated.  HUMPDAY for Seattle, MEDICINE FOR MELANCHOLY for San Francisco.  This is a list that can and should and will be expanded.  Thanks Eric, for this comment -- I just had to bump it to a post:

The suck of talent, hope and energy to the production centers of LA, NYC and Vancouver leads to boring filmmaking.

The promise of potential work on the assembly line of the filmmaking factory makes artists make bad movies in the hopes of proving their factory-worth.

Build incentives for filmmakers to stay local, like what the SFFS is starting to do in San Francisco with office space and direct cash grants.

Let the communities of actors, writers and filmmakers flourish, and have them artistically accountable to telling stories about who they are and where they're from.

LA has ruined so many imaginations in the pursuit of a decent monthly check. And I really don't want to see another movie about Brooklyn made by a filmmaker who moved there last week.

Ted adds: if you haven't read Eric's "Dear Indie Filmmaker" post, don't delay!