As people walked down a long red carpet, they were greeted by the bright lights of cameras, capturing their Hollywood-like experience forever. They were there to make connections with the film industry and watch a special behind-the-scenes screening of Taylor Sheridan's TV Western series “1883.”
This scene was not staged in Los Angeles. It was an event at the Northeast Campus of Tarrant County College in Hearst, hosted by the Fort Worth Film Collaborative. The collaborative is a partnership between 101 Studios and Tarrant County College to train their city's future filmmaking workforce without having to leave Fort Worth.
The area's film industry has grown since Fort Worth established its own film commission in 2015.
Tarrant County ranks fourth among the top 20 counties ranked by number of projects, according to the Texas Film Commission. Film industry professionals like David Glaser, CEO and co-founder of 101 Studios and the Fort Worth Film Commission, see expanding workforce capacity as the next step to boosting Fort Worth's film and television business.
Launched in the fall of 2023, the Fort Worth Film Collaborative has 10 graduates specializing in three certifications: hair and makeup, gaffer and grip, and light commercial construction. Now, they have 40 more students enrolled. Glaser said his company hopes to have more graduates.
“Anyone here right now looking for a job in the Texas film community at this moment…we need those jobs in whatever department you want, and we're going to start expanding the program,” he said.
The economic impact of the film industry on Fort Worth
The film industry has generated $655 million in economic impact and created more than 20,000 jobs since the Fort Worth Film Commission began in 2015, Fort Worth Film Commissioner Jessica Christopherson said.
Christopherson said the economic impact of film production extends to various sectors, from safety and security to business support and construction. While there has been a steady stream of independent commercial films and unscripted reality television shows in Fort Worth, Taylor Sheridan's shows and films have had the greatest impact.
“His projects have created the most impact and job opportunities on a consistent basis,” she said.
For example, Taylor Sheridan's “1883” resulted in 13,325 nights in a hotel room. “Lawmen: Bass Reeves” resulted in 20,108 sleepovers. She said workers associated with Landman benefited from 11 hotels in Fort Worth.
Other opportunities have developed along the way, such as “Dr. Phil” based in Fort Worth, the new Probouly Monsters video game studio, and the creation of the new Virtual Production Institute on the campus of Texas A&M University in Fort Worth.
“It will be fun to watch this development and see what kind of opportunities it presents,” Christopherson said.
19 years ago, there were only a few production companies in the city, said Red Sanders, founder and CEO of Red Productions and Backlot Studio, who helped found the Fort Worth Film Commission. Now, he can't count the number of production companies and independent producers in the city. He sees the difference when he goes to cinema-related events in the city.
“There are a lot of people working different jobs in this industry now that either haven't had those jobs for years or don't even live here,” he said.
The most significant change in the cinematic landscape comes from the state level. The Fort Worth Film Commission led advocacy efforts in the Texas Legislature, increasing its incentive program to attract films to the state from $45 million to $200 million last year.
When the program hit $45 million, the state ran out of stimulus money six months into a 24-month budget cycle, Sanders said. Sanders said he was in Austin every two weeks to speak with lawmakers. When groups come from out of state, they often ask about incentives and infrastructure for an on-site studio.
“Our message last session was to share the story of Fort Worth specifically with the Legislature there, and make sure they understand that this is not just something that benefits Austin,” Sanders said. These are state incentives. When big production comes to town, they hire from all over the state.
Sanders said Fort Worth is late to a big sound stage due to the amount of production that happens in the city.
Training workers in the field of cinema
While the 88th Texas Legislature approved the $200 million, the text stipulated that a majority of the group's workers must be Texas residents.
As program coordinator and faculty coordinator for TCC's film program, Shawn Foshee said the program is fast-track. Many classes take four weeks, and students can be certified in as little as three months.
Texas A&M's new campus also hopes to play a role in the city's thriving film industry, by establishing a virtual production institute in Fort Worth.
The institute will be home to virtual production stages used by television, film and video game studios, said David Parrish, director of the School of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts at Texas A&M University. She has formed a partnership with video game studio Probouy Monsters and will share space with the company, teaching out of the building that doubles as a game creation facility. Parrish said 101 Studios and Red Productions have expressed interest in the institute.
“They're very concerned about supplying the workforce…and they're having a hard time finding enough people in Texas to work on their productions,” Parrish said. “They are dedicated to working in Texas and growing our industry here.”
A passion for storytelling attracted Landry Brazile, a graduate of the Class of 2022, to the TCC event. He studied 3D animation but said he also saw himself in the television industry as an editor.
Brazile said he was particularly excited as someone who grew up in Fort Worth and anticipates the film's future there as well.
“Even if I end up going to other studios to further my career, I know I can come back to Fort Worth,” Brazile said. “Or to the DFW area and still have places where I can work on that kind of stuff and get a job.”
Seth Bowden is the business and economic development reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at seth.bodine@fortworthreport.org or follow @sbodine120.
Ola Mokhtar is a Fort Worth reporting fellow. You can contact her at olla.mokhtar@fortworthreport.org.
Related
Non-commercial entities may republish our articles for free by following our guidelines. To obtain a commercial license, please email hello@fortworthreport.org.
