City staff reported at the Jan. 10 Economic Development Advisory Board meeting that Fort Myers has joined Film Florida to better market local sites to producers and scouts.

The staff update said Film Florida provides site‑location tools and that a production inquiry from a national advertiser (DEWALT Tools) followed after the city joined the statewide group; staff said DEWALT contacted the city and that staff connected them with local contractors that have active construction sites. The update also said a California‑based studio operator has expressed interest in a smaller, modern studio footprint downtown and planned an in‑person site visit later in January.

Nut graf: The city is taking a low‑cost approach to cultivating film activity — membership in Film Florida and outreach to local contractors and property owners — while the communications team will correct a dead link on the Film Florida listing that the statewide group identified as a problem.

Staff asked the board to help by reviewing city pages and providing a single‑page entry that Film Florida can link to; staff said a civic website migration (new fortmyers.gov addresses and an upcoming ERP/Oracle conversion) requires coordination with IT and communications before new pages are posted. No financial incentives for film production were proposed during the meeting.

Ending: Staff said they will continue outreach to Film Florida and to production contacts; board members offered to help promote location tours and local production opportunities.