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Can you believe it's April already? Time is flying by as we move full speed ahead into a year that has already given us much to celebrate now, as well as the promise of exciting things ahead for Oklahoma’s film and music industries. Several Oklahoma films will be released this month starting with “The Girl Who Believes in Miracles” in theatres now, and “Golden Arm”, which can be seen exclusively in advance at deadCenter Film Festival’s schedule launch event at the end of the month. Additionally, filming is anticipated to start on both “Killers of the Flower Moon” as well as FX’s “Reservation Dogs”, marking the first scripted television series to film the entirety of its season in Oklahoma. We’re incredibly proud of what these accomplishments mean for our entire industry with more to come on the horizon soon, including the upcoming Oscars ceremony on April 25, where the Oklahoma-made movie “Minari” is up for six Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture! Way to shine Oklahoma! As live events begin to resume more standard activity, local music venues and related businesses are encouraged to read through the provided materials and links regarding grant eligibility and how to best prepare to apply for relief funds, which will be available through the Shuttered Venues Operators Grant opening on April 8.
Don’t forget to tune in to our Pivotal Work: Early Access Series as well as our OF+MO Film School Series - all available for FREE on our website and YouTube channel!
We appreciate you, and we look forward to staying connected with you through our social media platforms (@okfilmmusic) and press releases. See you soon!
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Click the image to watch the Oklahoma economic impact commercial!
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| Film Industry Economic Impact in Oklahoma: The Numbers Speak for Themselves
A single movie or tv series can create hundreds of jobs sending economic waves across numerous industries throughout the state. The numbers speak for themselves as the Oklahoma Film + Music Office (OF+MO) recruited 34 film and television projects that utilized the Oklahoma Film Enhancement Rebate Program in Fiscal Year 20 (July 1, 2019 – June 30, 2020), which employed 3,960 Oklahomans and contributed a direct fiscal impact of more than $32.8 million to the state’s economy. This impact does not include the 150+ productions outside the state’s incentive program, comprised of commercial projects, music videos, student films and more.
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| JOIN OF+MO AT THESE EVENTS
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Click the image to watch Pivotal Work: Early Access!
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| Watch Now! Pivotal Work: Early Access FREE Video Series
Watch all three episodes of our Pivotal Work: Early Access FREE video series! Join some of the state’s leading industry professionals for this free video series, which features discussions designed to educate and inspire audiences seeking to learn more about career opportunities within Oklahoma’s film and music industries.
“The Pivotal Work: Early Access Series” was safely recorded with social distancing measures in place at Del City’s Castle Row Studios with production company The Visual Brain.
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Click the image to watch the first four episodes of OF+MO Film School!
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| Watch Now! OF+MO Film School FREE Video Series
As we count down to the 2021 deadCenter Film Festival, OF+MO is excited to share our OF+MO Film School video series, which originally streamed at the 2020 festival. OF+MO Film School provides introductory courses on film topics from some of the state’s top working film professionals. The first four episodes have been released and stay tuned! New episodes will be released weekly leading up to this year’s deadCenter Film Festival June 10-20, including never-before-seen bonus episodes.
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Metro Technology Centers Offers COVID-19 Compliance Officer Safety Protocols Workshops
In response to the highly transmissible novel coronavirus, COVID-19, that has caused a global pandemic, a new department of health & safety team members and COVID Compliance Officers are necessary for film and television production to continue. Metro Technology Centers is offering a course designed to provide education on the virus and the most current health and safety information relevant to the community of filmmakers, producers, crew and industry professionals. This course is available virtually April 13 or May 11.
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Watch Now! Mercury Lounge's Mercury Rising Streaming Music Festival
OF+MO was proud to sponsor Mercury Rising Streaming Music Festival presented by Mercury Lounge in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which took place both virtually and in-person with limited capacity March 11-14, 2021. In celebration of their 16th birthday, Mercury Lounge, in partnership with Grand Casino, Kessler Presents and OF+MO, presented three days of music from nationally recognized headlining artists and regional favorites, which reached over 79,500 viewers. If you missed it, watch this and more streaming concerts from Mercury Lounge on their Facebook page.
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| | Voting Now Open for Cherokee Nation Film Office's OklaHomies Short Film Contest
The submissions are in, and voting is now open for short films received as part of the second OklaHomies Short Film Contest, hosted by the Cherokee Nation Film Office and sponsored by OF+MO. Last month, audiences were invited to participate in the short film challenge designed to promote film careers and skills while providing a much-needed break and entertainment for Oklahomans. Prizes will be awarded in the following categories: Short Film, Short Short Film, Indigenous Short Film and K-12 Short Film. Winners in all categories will be announced on April 9, and audiences will have until that same date at noon to vote for the Fan Favorite category.
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Current Crew + Casting Calls
CREW
CASTING
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| BUSINESS + INFRASTRUCTURE
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Shuttered Venue Operators Grant: Appications Open April 8
OF+MO continues to monitor and supply up-to-date information on COVID-19 relief resources and programs designed to offer support for the Oklahoma film and music industries. As a result of collaborative efforts among Congress people, private sector music industry professionals that united to form the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA), and the 2.1 million emails constituents sent elected officials expressing their support for the Save Our Stages Act, independent venues and promoters have been included in the latest COVID-19 Relief Bill with the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant. Applications open on Thursday, April 8!
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FEATURED BUSINESS
Thunderbird Films
Thunderbird Films was founded in 2019 by two industry veterans, Randy Wayne and Talia Bella, who decided to partner their strengths and relocate from Los Angeles to Oklahoma and provide the local film industry with much needed production services and support to help in the growth of local infrastructure, equipment and qualified crew. Thunderbird Films hopes to bridge the gap and support filmmakers coming to Oklahoma to film.
“I’ve filmed in eight countries and half of the U.S. and there is no place I’d rather be making movies than Oklahoma,” said Wayne. “Being an Oklahoman myself, I have a lot of state pride. I want the state to succeed. Oklahoma is not only friendly, it’s also full of unknown talent.” He continues, “The state is gorgeous. The people are friendly. The talent is plentiful. Why film anywhere else?”
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| | Save-The-Date for Upcoming Oklahoma Film Friendly Community Program Meeting
OF+MO will virtually host its second quarterly Oklahoma Film Friendly Community Program meeting on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. CST. Additional information including our special guest speaker will be announced soon. In the interim, we invite our community representatives and local business owners to explore our website, which has additional information and resources on the program, including a direct link to upload photos to our online Oklahoma Locations Directory and a comprehensive handbook detailing the certification process and the overall climate of Oklahoma’s film industry from A to Z.
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OF+MO Creates Oklahoma Music Playlists on Spotify
Want to listen to music from around the state? OF+MO has made it easy to access by creating playlists on Spotify featuring Oklahoma musicians and bands. With 18 playlists so far, genres include Amereicana, blues, hip hop, indie, pop, Oklahoma music in film, and more, with artists such as Kaitlin Butts, Original Flow, Lincka, John Mooreland, Deerpeople, Red Dirt Rangers and many more. If you’re an Oklahoma artist who is registered in the Oklahoma Music Directory, we invite you to be featured on one of our playlists by updating your listing with your Spotify page.
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Nearly 260 acres of diverse terrain, including lakes, bluffs, rolling hills and this picturesque field.
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Barn constructed on-site at Meadow Lake Ranch for the filming of the Oklahoma-made film "Minari".
Courtesy of A24.
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FEATURED LOCATION
Meadow Lake Ranch
Located just fifteen minutes outside Tulsa, Oklahoma, in Sand Springs, Meadow Lake Ranch is one of Oklahoma’s premier bed & breakfast, wedding and corporate event venues with experiences for everyone to enjoy. The scenic ranch offers both B&B stays, as well as dude ranch-themed stays, with a variety of lodging options, including romantic lakeside log cabins, a family-oriented bluff-top cabin built on the first floor of the original ranch shop and authentic Native American teepees.
The film-friendly location features 260 acres of private hiking trails offering magnificent scenery, including rolling prairie meadows, spring-fed lakes, limestone bluffs, hardwood forests and babbling brooks laced with waterfalls. Most recently, Meadow Lake Ranch served as the hero location for the A24 feature film “Minari”, which recently received six Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture of the Year.
Utilizing the lush landscapes and open spaces within the ranch, the creative team of “Minari” created the world of the film by transporting a mobile home to a field on the property where they also constructed a barn to set the scene for the script’s central characters for much of the movie. Tulsa’s KOTV News 6 recently interviewed ranch co-owner Tom Warren who recounted his fantastic experience hosting the film production on-location, and looks forward to more opportunities in the future. Click here to watch this interview.
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| OKLAHOMA FILM + MUSIC SPOTLIGHTS
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RICHARD CORRELL | writer/director
AUSTYN JOHNSON | actor
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| The Oklahoma Film + Music Office (OF+MO)’s “Oklahoma Film + Music Spotlight” features various filmmakers, musicians and industry leaders who have experienced the positive benefits of making film and music in Oklahoma.
April's Spotlight features Richard Correll, the writer and director of the Oklahoma film "The Girl Who Believes in Miracles", alongside lead actor of the film Austyn Johnson, highlighting their time and experience filming in Oklahoma.
Click the image to watch this month's Spotlight video!
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| FEATURED FILM CAREER
Alisha East | 2nd assistant director
"My favorite thing about working in Oklahoma’s film and television industry is the family mentality here. People are very kind to each other, they work well together, and the stress level, compared to LA, is astronomically low. [...] A unique thing about the Oklahoma film industry is that you don’t have to just do one thing for work. If you don’t get a job as an electrician on a film, someone in the props department might hire you to help them out."
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FEATURED MUSIC CAREER
Desiree Yearby | talent rep/concert promoter
"All of the people in the music scene in Oklahoma City and Tulsa that write, shoot, help, nurture and work hard to developed music artists and events are the reason for me being here."
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NOW FILMING
OF+MO is pleased to announce three projects are filming this month utilizing Oklahoma Film Enhancement Rebate Program. Due to safety and public health concerns surrounding COVID-19, some productions have temporarily modified or suspended their production dates in Oklahoma.
Filming in April
- "Guardians of Time"
- "Reservation Dogs"
- "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Please note that these dates are subject to change pending the production’s compliance with the benchmarks and administrative rules for the rebate program. For a current listing of films in the rebate queue, please visit the Now Filming section of our website.
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THAT'S A WRAP
- "American Underdog"
- "Country Gold"
- "Enslaved by Ducks"
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deadCenter Film Festival Announces Schedule Launch Party with "Golden Arm" Drive-In Screening
Oklahoma City’s deadCenter Film Festival will celebrate the release of its 2021 festival schedule with a fundraising event and screening of the Oklahoma-made movie “Golden Arm” at the Winchester Drive-In (6930 S. Western Ave.) on Thursday, April 29, 2021, at 7:00 p.m. While the schedule release has been an annual tradition, this event is the first of its kind for deadCenter that promises a record number of feature-length movies at its upcoming festival to be held June 10-20, 2021, both virtually and with select in-person events. Tickets for the launch event are $75 per vehicle and include admission to the drive-in, complimentary beer or wine, popcorn and the opportunity to meet the local cast and crew of the film. Directed by Maureen Bharoocha (“Jimmy Kimmel Live!”), “Golden Arm” uses sports and humor to share the story of a tough lady trucker who trains her wimpy best friend to compete in the National Ladies Arm Wrestling Championship.
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“The Girl Who Believes in Miracles” in Theatres Now
The Oklahoma feature film “The Girl Who Believes in Miracles” is now in theatres. Written and directed by Rich Correll (“Hannah Montana”, “Fuller House”) and produced by Laurence Jaffe, “The Girl Who Believes in Miracles” tells the story of a young girl named Sara who takes God at His word and prays for people in her small town to be healed. “The Girl Who Believes in Miracles” was filmed in Oklahoma throughout the communities of Guthrie, Mustang, Bethany and Luther in September 2018. The film created 374 local jobs and a had direct impact of over $3 million in Oklahoma throughout the production process. Additionally, “The Girl Who Believes in Miracles” utilized the music incentive afforded by the Oklahoma Film Enhancement Rebate Program for productions that record or license music in Oklahoma, working with Castle Row Studios in Oklahoma City to record the film’s musical score.
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| | Start your new career in the Oklahoma film industry!
As the entertainment industry continues to flourish both globally and here in Oklahoma, the need for the continued development and expansion of our local film industry workforce and companies is critical. We invite you to explore resources to learn more about ways you can plug in to the industry and start your careers now!
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Start your new career in the Oklahoma music industry!
Home to some of the most renowned musical acts and venues in the world, there are more exciting opportunities in Oklahoma’s music industry than ever before. We invite you to explore our website’s resources to learn more about ways you can plug in to the industry and start your careers now!
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AT YOUR FINGERTIPS
Instantly access the Oklahoma Production, Locations and Music Directories with the OKLAHOMA FILM + MUSIC OFFICE APP to explore and connect with Oklahoma's talented crew, accommodating support services, diverse locations and legendary musicians. For more information, visit the iTunes Store.
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Stay Connected with Your Legislator
Connect with your local area state legislators at oklegislature.gov or by using the Oklahoma Legislative Guide for the 58th Legislature app, which provides current contact information and photos of each representative. This free app is provided by the Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives (OAEC). Find it in the app store.
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| About the Oklahoma Film + Music Office:
Created in 1979, the Oklahoma Film + Music Office strives to share all that Oklahoma has to offer by welcoming filmmakers and music professionals to the state and by creating a network of support to develop Oklahoma's film and music industries. For more information about the Oklahoma Film Enhancement Rebate Program or the Oklahoma Film + Music Office please visit okfilmmusic.org.
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SUPPORT • CONNECT • PROMOTE
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