Pennsylvania’s elk herd is the usual headliner in Cameron County, a region of 6,000 in the middle of the Pennsylvania’s rural northern tier. But this fall, a new action flick with box-office mega-draw Denzel Washington will shoot in the region, as well as in Pittsburgh. “Unstoppable” will bring $91 million in jobs and revenues to the state, thanks to a 25 percent film tax credit offered to producer 20th Century Fox.
“Unstoppable” begins production August 31 for 77 shooting days. Washington stars as an engineer who jumps on to a runaway train with a toxic cargo. The freight rail lines that crisscross the state above I-80 provide plenty of venues for filming.
Directed by Tony Scott, “Unstoppable” will hire 90 full-time and 75 part-time employees. Those hires will be split between Pittsburgh and other film locations. Dave Morris, executive director of the Pennsylvania’s Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau, promoting Cameron, Clarion, Elk, Forest and Jefferson counties, says the region will scramble to accommodate the influx.
“We’ve got over 400 hotel rooms in the immediate vicinity, in Elk and Cameron counties,” he notes. “Normally we host folks who come to this area for the outdoor amenities–hunting, hiking, and viewing the [elk] herd. But we’re happy to have the additional demand.”
Pennsylvania’s film tax credit, capped at $75 million, offers a 25 percent credit on productions that spend 60 percent of their budgets in state. In June, an economic impact study said the program paid for itself in 2007-08, its first year of its existence, by generating $524.6 million in total statewide economic impact. The study estimated $17.9 million in state and local taxes, and 4,000 new jobs, with total wages of $146.4 million.
Source: Dawn Keezer, David Morris
Writer: Chris O’Toole
