Consultant presents preliminary film production study showing $64.6 million gross economic impact; final report due in about two months

Consultants from Olsberg SPI presented a preliminary report to the House Education Committee on a study of Arkansas’s digital product and motion-picture incentive, saying incentivized production from fiscal 2014 through fiscal 2025 has delivered $64,600,000 in gross gross value added (GVA) for Arkansas and a gross return on investment of about $4.6.

Leon, a consultant with Olsberg SPI, told committee members the figure is a gross number that includes direct, indirect and induced effects and that the firm is conducting an “additionality” survey to remove economic deadweight and produce a net estimate. “We don't expect the numbers to change very much because incentives in this sector play a very key role in attracting production,” Leon said during a brief overview. The consultants also identified an outlier production that spent far more than typical projects; the report breaks out that production separately and provides impact calculations both including and excluding the outlier.

The consultants summarized four headline recommendations: reform the incentive design; link any incentive expansion to a broader industry development strategy; expand the film commission’s capacity; and improve data collection and publication. Leon said the firm interviewed more than 30 Arkansas stakeholders, including producers, business owners, supply-chain firms, training providers and legislators, and conducted follow-up investor interviews after the Arkansas visit.

Committee members asked questions about staffing and demand. Regent Laderman asked about the Arkansas Film Commission’s staffing compared to other states; Leon said the commission is under-resourced relative to competitors and noted that states with larger incentive budgets typically have larger commission staffs. President Hester asked whether there is sufficient demand in the market if neighboring states expand incentives; Leon said the sector is finite and the state should “calibrate” ambition to what is realistic given recent industry headwinds (pandemic and strikes).

The bureau’s Marty Garrity said the firm expects the second part of the study—removing deadweight and finalizing net impacts—to take about two months. The committee received the preliminary report for review; no formal committee action on the report was recorded in the transcript.

Quotes from the meeting are drawn from consultant remarks and committee questions recorded in the transcript. The consultants said the preliminary gross GVA is an interim finding and that the final report will present adjusted net figures after the additionality survey.

Ending: Committee members said they will review the preliminary findings and the bureau expects the final report in about two months.