Why Georgia Is So Hot in the Film Industry

ATLANTA - Production on the feature film Slaw: The Movie ended this past week in Metro Atlanta.

In this current era of filmmaking in Georgia, a milestone has been reached.  Scripts are now born here, produced here.  And the Georgia talent pool for cast and crew to sustain so many movie projects at one time, while not close to Hollywood in size yet, is now considered to be the largest outside of California.

“The numbers are growing tremendously now. We have a lot of people moving in from out of state. We have a lot of people doing the training. We were short on crew for a while,” said Slaw producer and screenwriter Richard Tavernaro.

Slaw the movie is a parody of the Saw movies: A horror comedy.

“It’s basically two foode brothers that when someone ruins their dining experience they kidnap them,” said Tavernaro. “Everyone who is killed is killed I some way or fashion by Slaw.”

This small budget, independent film might not have been possible in Georgia just a few years, according to Tavernaro.  How could this project compete against big budget films for talented cast and crew who were so scarce here?

Matt Green is the Director of Slaw and told FOX 5 News: “Now because things are big in Georgia, everything comes out of the woodwork really easy.  When you put up a casting notice, you get a lot more people interested.  You still have to weed through but it’s a lot easier.”

Veteran actor GregAlan Williams agreed. Along with Slaw, he currently has recurring roles in three television series. Two are being shot right in Georgia.

 “What’s really exciting about this project, the Slaw project, is these are Georgia based filmmakers.  The writers, the actors, the producers and that’s what’s really exciting. I’ve been in Georgia for 20 years, raised my kids here and I commuted for years.  Now I get to stay home and work close to family.  And I think what is important is that the people working on the films are Georgians,” Williams said.

The movie has a tentative release date of Spring of 2016. Check them out at facebook.com/pages/SLAW-The-Movie