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Montana filmmakers say state film incentive and training funds are key to growing Missoula production
Summary
Speakers at the Missoula Filmmakers Collective reviewed the 2025 push to preserve the state's Media Act, described a 20-year pathway created for incentives, and said training funding tied to productions will be available when incentive dollars return.
Organizers and filmmakers at the Missoula Filmmakers Collective described statewide advocacy that reshaped Montana's film incentive and added training funding intended to support local workforce development.
Lynwood Fields, who helped start the Montana Media Coalition, said the 2019 Media Act brought an incentive program to Montana but that the incentive had been at risk of sunsetting. "In 2025 we had to fight to preserve it," she said, adding that coalition efforts produced a 20-year pathway and reserved funding buckets so independent projects are not forced to wait behind large productions. "We ended up creating a 20-year pathway now to the media act," Fields said.
Fields and other participants noted the incentive's role as a signal to producers: "What an incentive says is that we are open for business and it does bring in a lot of projects," a panelist said, adding that in a recent two-year period the state had 167 projects. The group explained that a 2025 provision requires productions to pay a percentage to the Department of Labor and Industry to fund trainings. That funding, panelists said, will only be available when incentive money is allocated to productions.
Speakers urged a unified statewide industry effort to lobby lawmakers ahead of the next legislative cycle in 2027 to secure more reliable funding and to expand the incentive in ways that sustain both large and indie projects. They recommended participation in the Montana Media Coalition and local organizing to maintain momentum.
Organizers also described practical steps for Missoula filmmakers: join statewide coalitions, engage in fundraising and public outreach, and prepare to advocate for incentive increases during the next legislative window. Lynwood encouraged attendees to "be a united force" and pointed to the coalition website as a resource for membership and updates.
The Collective plans further programming to pair training resources with production opportunities if incentive funds can be restored.
