At press time, SHOOT was awaiting word from several film commissioners relative to the impact of Katrina on their areas. One who responded was Ward Emling, director of the Mississippi Film Office. He reported that electrical power had just been restored in much of the state, a major breakthrough. Emling noted that Mississippi was in the process of courting several feature film projects before Katrina and still remained in the running for all of them except for one in which a coastal setting was integral to the story.
Emling was in New York when the hurricane hit. A neighbor phoned to inform him that a tree fell against his house but did minimal damage. It took about a week before power was fully restored to his neighborhood and outlying areas. Emling said that workers did yeoman duty to get power up and running again.
Though the recovery continues, Emling is optimistic about filming prospects in the state, noting that such areas as Natchez, the Mississippi Delta and the northwest part of the state were not heavily impacted and are now able to host lensing. A prime logistical problem–which will improve over time, he said–is the current lack of available hotel rooms for visiting filmmakers and crew members. Evacuees from devastated areas are living in shelters or hotels, cutting down on guest accommodations.
Emling related that many Mississippi crew people were working on projects in Louisiana when Katrina rolled in; much of that filming has since moved to parts of Louisiana that were relatively unaffected or quick to recover such as Shreveport, Monroe and Baton Rouge. Emling added that to his knowledge, all Mississippi crew people were safe and accounted for. As SHOOT went to press, he was slated to get his first in-person look at the state’s hardest hit coastal areas.
