Karla Murray has joined Film Detroit as LA Manager for the organization, a division of the non-profit Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau. Film Detroit provides free preliminary location scouting, hotel and office accommodation assistance, and 24/7 troubleshooting services to the film and television production community.
“As a Detroit native, I am thrilled to be representing my hometown in Hollywood,” said Murray. “There is a lot of excitement about shooting in Southeast Michigan, but this excitement comes with many questions about local services, crew depth and infrastructure. I look forward to providing a connection with Detroit and assisting in bringing more productions to town.”
Murray began her career working for fellow Detroit native director Sam Raimi. She followed that with stints with Detroiter Jerry Bruckheimer on “Days of Thunder,” at Scott Free where she developed or acquired projects including “Domino” and “Crimson Tide,” and DreamWorks-based Remote Control Productions, where she set up film and television projects with Academy-Award winning composer Hans Zimmer.
“Karla has an excellent production background and speaks the language of film,” said Film Detroit Senior Vice President Chris Baum. “She will be a perfect complement to Film Detroit’s National Manager, Xenia Castillo-Hunter, and our new Detroit Manager, who are both based in Detroit and will continue to travel to LA for annual events like our popular Film Detroit Panel Discussion & Networking Reception at the WGA West Theatre, AFCI Locations and the American Film Market. I’m pleased that the increased demand has necessitated having a permanent person in Los Angeles and Karla is the perfect fit.”
Continued Baum, “Michigan saw about $220 million in film and TV production activity in 2009 and should more than double that number in 2010. The vast majority of movies and series shot in the state head to Metro Detroit, where most of Michigan’s air lift, talent, equipment, sound stages, top hotels and varied locations- from factories to farms and the gritty to the pretty – can be found.”
Michigan is home to the country’s No.1 film incentive program, which offers up to a 40 percent cash rebate above and below the line. The City of Detroit is one of 100+ “Core Communities” that qualify for the top incentive level of 42 percent, as do many others in the Detroit metro area. Current and recent productions include Clint Eastwood’s “Gran Torino”, “Drew Barrymore’s “Whip It”, MGM’s remake of “Red Dawn”, DreamWorks’ Hugh Jackman starrer “Real Steel” and the new ABC TV series “Detroit 187”.
ABOUT FILM DETROIT
Film Detroit is a division of the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau, a private, not-for-profit sales and marketing organization that solicits film and television productions, meetings, conventions, sporting events and tourism for the Detroit metropolitan area, including all of Wayne, Oakland and Macomb Counties. Film Detroit provides free location scouting, assistance securing production office space and hotel accommodations for cast and crew, and 24/7 assistance with VIP requests, last minute requirements- and any other issues that may arise during a production- in order to ensure that every motion picture or TV show that shoots in “The D” leaves with a positive experience. Please visit www.filmdetroit.com for additional information.