GUNNISON, Utah — In just over three years, 29 movies have been filmed or are currently being filmed in Utah's rural counties, creating an estimated $188 million in economic impact.
"It’s real money that’s really making a difference in those communities," explained Virginia Pearce with the Utah Film Commission.
The monetary impact follows the passing of the Rural Utah Film Incentive by the state legislature three years ago to help entice big movie-making to local small towns.
"The legislators thought that was a good way to help support what’s happening in rural Utah, but also spread the film love kind of across the state," Pearce added.
In Sanpete County, the Gunnison Reservoir recently played host to a new action movie titled "Whiskey Throttle," which is set to be released next fall.
Lights, camera, Utah! Film business once again thriving in the state:
"It’s such a fun project," said Pearce. "It uses Utah landscapes so well, and to see them shooting in Sanpete and Millard and Juab, some counties that maybe don’t see as much filming as others, was really exciting to us."
Utah is one of 36 states across the country to offer a kickback to movie productions if they meet certain requirements, giving up to 25 percent back on what they spend here.
"New Mexico was on the list and southern Arizona was on the list, and at the end of the day, we thought no, we can make it all work here in Utah," explained "Whiskey Throttle" producer Dave Hunter.
Hunter and his partner, Brigham Taylor, a creative executive at Disney behind pictures like "Pirates of the Caribbean," say that the incentive was the deciding factor to film in the Beehive State.
"The incentive is a little bit bigger in rural Utah, and the communities could really use it," he said. "We housed everybody in Manti. We housed everybody in Nephi. We housed everybody in Delta. We went to all the restaurants. We dropped as many dollars as we could in those communities."
Windee Harston runs the Manti Country Village Motel and Temple View Lodge, and saw a real boost in business.
"We saw about 26 rooms sold between our two properties, which was quite amazing," she shared. "Everyone here saw some sort of an impact from them being here. It was awesome for us."
Hunter's movie included the first backflip on a motorcycle ever done at the reservoir, something he orchestrated when working with Nitro Circus some 20 years ago, knowing it would make a great backdrop to his latest project.
"We have helicopter chases, bombs, machine guns," he explained. "It’s a ride for everyone!
The movie is also reminiscent of the old westerns that made Utah a movie-making destination for decades.
"Because we have these really long shots of the good guys being chased by the bad guys," he said. "But instead of on horseback, it’s on motorcycles!"
