Filming in Massachusetts featuring Meg Montagnino-Jarrett

Cameron Woodward (00:26)

Welcome back to On Production. I'm your host, Cameron Woodward. Today we're diving into Massachusetts, a state that has quietly built one of the more straightforward and cash-like incentive programs in the country.

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And to help us think clearly about this, I'm joined by Meg Montagnino-Jarrett, who's the director of the Massachusetts Film Office. Meg, welcome to the show.

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (00:47)

Thank you, Cameron. Thank you for having me here.

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Cameron Woodward (00:50)

So let's dig into sort of the economics of the film credit really quick. I wanna sort of understand with my producer's hat on, if I'm producing a 10 to $20 million feature and then comparing states, what's the cleanest way to think about Massachusetts economically? So when does it function like a 25 % state and then when does it function like a 50 % state?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (01:02)

Mm-hmm.

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It doesn't, well, it doesn't function as a 50 % state as much as it's a three prong of tax credit. So you're going to have 25 % of production credit, 25 % payroll credit, and a sales tax exemption on qualified production expenses. There's no annual cap, no per project cap, and no residency requirements. And the minimum qualified spend is 50,000.

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So if you have a salary, that's the important part for a big film or for an independent. If you have a project that the talent or director or above the line gets to a salary that is over $1 million, that goes over to a production expense, but you still have no cap on that salary. So we'll talk about that more later, how that works.

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Cameron Woodward (02:01)

That's awesome.

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (02:03)

You know, to qualify for the production credit, a project must meet the 75 % threshold, as you mentioned, or it's either 75 % of principal photography days or 75 % of the total production budget spent here. So that way it also includes post-production. And we have great post-production facilities so that, you know, you can expand the production if you wanted to do post here as well.

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And so both above the line and below the line costs qualify and they're of course subject to the statuary guidelines. And the credits are transferable as you mentioned and refundable with the 90 % cash out option, which makes them very practical for a financing perspective.

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Cameron Woodward (02:49)

That's awesome. So I'm curious Meg, from your view in having helped like advocate for and build out this program over the years, do you feel like Massachusetts is structurally designed to reward full relocations or more than split state production?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (03:07)

Full, I think full real locations.  You know, it's funny when the credits began, I was working in production then and on the departed, half of it started in New York and half of the, when incentives were starting to get competitive with states, but they applied for New York and Massachusetts at that time and received credit for both. Now we know states have gotten more competitive where we're competing with 40 other states, we're competing with Canada, with Europe. So I say,

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even though the structure of our credit has not changed much at all since those initial incentives, but it's stable. It's stable so that if you do do your full production here, you do gain the most benefits of being here and all the incentive.

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Cameron Woodward (03:51)

That's great. And

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so we've discussed this within the context of this 75 % threshold. Can you dig into that a little bit more for us? Like, where do producers most commonly misunderstand the 75 % requirement when building their budget? And how do you sort of explain this?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (04:11)

Sure. I think that you have to say when you're scheduling and budgeting to either qualify for that full 25 % production credit, again, they have to meet the 75 % of the filming days or the budget. So if you're going to film here and then you're going to make sure you have to allow for if you're going to New Hampshire or if the production's in Maine, which doesn't have competitive...

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incentives, but you still want to establish your shots in Maine, you just have to make sure that you're still meeting the 75 % of shooting schedule or budget here, even though you can still do a week or two in Maine. So it's just making sure that you're scheduling and budgeting in advance to cover to get the qualified spend.

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Cameron Woodward (04:56)

Okay, beautiful. So in terms of practical mechanics, you walk us through sort of that real compliance flow. So from pre-production registration to final credit certification, what needs to happen before cameras roll?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (05:00)

Mm-hmm.

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Yes. Yes.

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Right. And very great question because producers should understand that the incentive timing in Massachusetts is straightforward, but requires planning and documentation discipline. First, the step-by-step process is clearly outlined on our website and with the Department of Revenue and at massfilm.org. We always encourage producers and their finance teams to review the guidance and pre-production.

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We have a great one page summary. can email us and receive that. If, I would say the things to make sure, you're going to apply for the sales tax exemption, you want to time that correctly because you want to start applying for that when you emailed DOR and submit. You want to put in for the full 12 months, even though you'd think your production is only going to be here six months. As we know,

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from COVID, the  industry strikes, put in for the full year. That way you're covered if you do have to do reshoots. So you want to make sure you apply for that sales tax incentive right before you start your spend. That way that starts the clock because we do have a 12 month spend table. So you want to put in for the full year. So start with that. Secondly, then you just start you.

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Prepare, get your budgets ready and start filming. You apply for the credit after you filming. However, working with your accounting departments, which is so important, you want to make sure that you are applying. If your company hasn't done work in Massachusetts, you want to register with the secretary of the Commonwealth to register as a business here. That's an important in advance. And then you want to make sure

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that all the loan out agreements are done and filled out and signed correctly in all the correct places. So you work with your accounting, you work with your incentives people, and you make sure the paperwork is done. It makes the process so much easier when you're done filming and ready to apply that everything is signed.

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properly in the right places and all the information, addresses, everything you could have is that information is ready. I think that that would be a common mistake that people make. So you wanna just make sure all that. Another planning is that when they do start spending that they keep those vendor lists very current with addresses, all the petty cash with even on P cards now, you wanna make sure.

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All of that is buttoned up tightly before you start the application process. That way everything goes very smoothly and you don't have to go back and forth afterwards. So I think that that prepping is very important. I think there's enough accounting teams out there that have worked in Massachusetts in the last decades that you could actually, know, we provide crew lists if they inquire of people who have worked here and it's very easy to adapt even if you haven't worked here. So just making sure.

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you're  familiar with all those steps really make the process. It's no longer fix it and post, you wanna create it and pre,

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Cameron Woodward (08:17)

Meg, what are the top three administrative mistakes that you've seen jeopardize credits?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (08:24)

I think that that timing, making sure the production is done within the 12 month time period and understanding that process. Again, identify and withholding,  you have to withhold allowances, making sure that's something in the prep that they should do. And we do have a surtax on income over the 5%.

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If over 1 million then they have to withhold for 9 % So just understanding that that that happens Otherwise, I think just you know really understanding If they haven't used incentives, which I don't know who hasn't you know of late so we say you're independent film I think making sure you have a good Accounting team on board or whoever you're gonna be processing those incentives with to get that information prior

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I think maybe it would be, it seems like our tax credit is most used by independent films in a way that they will see more on the screen than they would in other, comparatively in other states at the bottom line, but they have to make sure they know these steps and this process and familiarize. You know, today's world, a director has to be almost a producer as well, and the producer has to be the accountant. So it's making sure you're,

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familiarizing yourself with these incentives, with the process in Massachusetts. And I think we try to make it's an easy two page application at the end and online. And so I believe that we do, it's pretty simple and we're here to help. The film office is here to help and we have other, and we reached to the DOR and they can reach to the DOR directly as well to clarify any misunderstandings.

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Cameron Woodward (10:09)

That's great. Meg, I'm curious, how do you feel producers should think about the 90 % refund option versus transferring credits?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (10:19)

Yes, I think either works depending on, again, on a big film, they may have other tax obligations to the state. on a big studio or, and they may use it that way. So on an independent film, depending if they need the monies,

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if they are financing.

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know, bridge loans and things like that. I think getting their information in, turning over those incentives and that amount quickly, getting their applications in is very important depending on how they finance that film. So on independent films, they really should look at what's the most beneficial to sell that tax credit and know that you can sell it in the end, or can you wait for the DOR to process and then get the money then. So I think it's definitely project by project independent, whether you're considering.

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whether to just cash out or get a little bit better rate from selling those incentives.

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Cameron Woodward (11:14)

That's excellent. I want to pivot a little bit to eligible spend and maybe some edge cases. So where do eligibility questions most often arise for filmmakers? Is it above the line? You mentioned loanouts, post, out of state vendors.

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (11:27)

Yeah.

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Right. So we are, do not have to, residency is not required in Massachusetts and you can also rent a camera package in New York. The rental is a qualified spend. The shipping is not. So we also, so you can get props and wardrobes from out of state and that all qualifies. Basic, the basic principle to think is if you see it on the screen, it qualifies.

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And so again, you can take advantage if you do your full project here on the full spend, you the fringe, it qualifies under a production expense. If you only do a partial, the fringe does not count. you know, again, we have a one page guide that will teach, will, will show you, but very easily that, know, indefinitely.

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That's the way you have to think about it, if it's used, but not having to have to use that being able to use outside of the state vendors is very, is a great advantage for us.

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Cameron Woodward (12:28)

Yeah, that is a huge advantage. I'm curious, are there any cost categories that are most commonly challenged or disallowed?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (12:29)

Mm-hmm.

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Well, travel does not count. So traveling in and out of the state does not count. So I would say if there was someone, know, if that was, you know, something that, that, but they're traveling in and out of the state, traveling within the state does count. So I think that that's the only one that I've really, really, that people, you know, ask about.

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Cameron Woodward (12:50)

I think right.

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That's

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great Meg. So I'm curious what kind of projects are in your view structurally strongest in Massachusetts right now? Is it indie features, prestige episodic, commercials?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (13:10)

I'm going to tell you, we have had one of everything this past year, which we've been so grateful for and so lucky. I will tell you, we have  Jason Tatum from the Boston Celtics only does his commercials in Massachusetts. What an advantage, especially when we were slow. Then we gained momentum. brought in Apple TV, brought in Widows Bay for 10 episodes. We brought The Walking Dead, Dead City, spin-off again came in for the next season here.

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We had Super Coopers 3, we had Apple brought a Mark Wahlberg film, cheesesteak, but it weekend warriors that came in. All of my 12 location managers were working this past year. It got down to if we were scouting for pipeline projects, I was taking them. I was taking people around. It was a great year to come off of a couple of slow years.

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Cameron Woodward (14:01)

That's fun.

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (14:07)

 you know, we also balance, we're lucky. We have a lot of talent from Massachusetts. We have writers that are from Massachusetts. We have producers that are from Massachusetts. We have actors that are from Massachusetts. It's, we even had partials that Boston blue, although they are filming in Toronto, they came for a partial this summer. you know, it's, it's hard to, again, we're competing with other countries, other states. So.

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We want to build infrastructure and work on, I would say one weakness is probably we have purpose-built stages out in Devons, Massachusetts, New England studios, but we're working on other options for stages. And we have a few other stages around the state, but we're looking at even more, having those warehouses, vacant warehouses ready to go in different areas of the state.

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then they can choose where to film. That would be most beneficial for them.  Yeah, so that, we really had a great year and we're looking forward to 26 being. So we've had everything.

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Cameron Woodward (15:03)

That's great.

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For Massachusetts Meg, where is the crew base deepest and where do productions still need to end?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (15:17)

Sure. think it's, we, as I mentioned, we probably were five crew deep this summer with additional smaller films filming and other partials with crews for them as well. I think we did very, very well. I was very impressed. Same thing as other, other States. Accounting. I could not, I did, I worked in accounting several times myself. I wish I could go in and I should go into the schools and colleges and say, become a production accountant.

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If I'd go to film schools and say, if you want to be a producer, become a production account, you know, work in accounting. I think that we could build on that. want, we have transferable skills. People have been, transferable skills have been something that's been great in Massachusetts for the past decade, at least, where people came out of other industries and to come to work in production since we were so busy. So I think we can still work on some of that.

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We actually have an accounting team that just loves the partials. They love coming in and working just on those partials. So building up, we're very heavy on location managers and ALMs, and then we do very well. They have great teams that work so well together. I wouldn't, I think right now we're still retaining people that we have. And of course we constantly have an influx of people from

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the film programs from Bridgewater State College, Fitchburg State College here, from Boston University, from Emerson College. So when they do go to college, it seems like they want to stay here because they are coming right into work coming out of these programs. So that has been for us to retain and build crew base.

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Cameron Woodward (16:59)

That's excellent. How should producers think about seasonality in Massachusetts?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (17:05)

We had more snow then this year. Well, you we compete for the same season. People want to be here. Spring, winter, spring, summer, fall and winter we have. It's funny if you look at the history of Massachusetts, there were a lot of winter shoots and projects. I think that with the options there are today of more stages and more states that people will go to winter work elsewhere, but we still have.

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films, you know, we still have projects filming now. And of course, looking forward to, we all look forward to the break of spring, because that's definitely when we are busiest is, is the two shoulder seasons and and summer and we have beautiful falls and beautiful light here.

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Cameron Woodward (17:48)

I love it. So if a project could float between Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, or Georgia, what variables usually tip the decision towards Massachusetts?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (18:02)

locations, if its location have, in, in, think about the literary works that have been here over the, over the decades. Jaws just celebrated their 50th anniversary of the movie. Okay. So that was a book written in 1972 and it still has a life today. In fact, they did very well. They celebrated much on Martha's Vineyard and all throughout the state, really. We, the project Shutter Island, all, all the

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projects that come from literary connections, Shutter Island, The Perfect Storm, you know, we continually get fed and they want to come to the real locations that these places were written about. So I think that that is, if we're talking about that, or if a script is specifically written for Boston, you really, it's hard to recreate. You can definitely watch a movie that has been, that's supposed to be about Boston that is as...

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been shot elsewhere and you can, if not just if you're from Massachusetts, I think you can tell about that. So I think that that is our advantage. You know, our advantage is locations.

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Cameron Woodward (19:07)

I'm a history nerd myself. I'm born and raised in Southern California. So when I had the chance to go to Boston and do the walk and then, you know, I'm a history nerd too. So I of course had to go to Lexington and Concord. And then of course I had to go to Walden Pond. Yeah, the locations are there. Yeah, that's awesome.

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (19:19)

Of course. Of course, right. Right.

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So interesting enough, we had, because we're celebrating the birth of the nation,  the 250th of Massachusetts this year, they did a recreation of the Battle of Bunker Hill in my hometown.

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They had schooners in the water landing, you know,  with dories on the beach. It was amazing. All I could think of that was the best film set I have seen forever. And they did the one in Lexington and Concord and all throughout the state. And I thought, wow, so we are gathering pictures. We are putting it out there. We're ready for history movie.

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Cameron Woodward (19:40)

Wow.

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That's

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (20:00)

We're definitely ready for an epic, uh-huh.

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Cameron Woodward (20:00)

right Meg. Meg, for producers that you speak to, what is something you see as like a systematic misunderstanding about Massachusetts as a filming option?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (20:13)

Maybe I would say that they don't think we have the infrastructure or stage, but just because we don't carry the stage spaces that other states do or that big campus, that we are deficit, but we are not. We have built, we have done...

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giant film, we've done the equalizer films, we did Don't Look Up, we did Spirited, I think that you have to lose the conception that you're going to come here and find a 10-studio campus. You're not going to do that. There's just too many areas of the state to cover to have one location of that. And I feel if it is needed, if it does come, we don't carry the same series that Chicago does, you know, but we could.

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We definitely could. And we're looking to build more onto that infrastructure, working with stakeholders to commit and to invest in our state in the film industry. Because I think it's been consistent enough, has proven consistent enough over the past few decades that it's sustainable.

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Cameron Woodward (21:22)

That's amazing. Meg, for any Massachusetts legislators listening, if you could change one parameter of the incentive program, what would it be?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (21:31)

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I would imagine we should change the 12 month restriction and have it be at 24 months or just so that we could get more series or longer. And maybe some people like to shoot back to back series of things and that would be a restriction that would come forward. I would say if that was that, that's all I'd ask for.

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Cameron Woodward (21:52)

That's great. So let me ask you a couple of really quick ones. So what do you

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think is the most underutilized season to shoot in Massachusetts?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (22:01)

winter. I do because it's beautiful. The streets of Boston are beautiful. It's funny, we have a production now that is just doing a partial in April, but they've been coming every other month to get some B-roll shots to cover. And so they did fall, they did Halloween and Beacon Hill and throughout this, you know, all along the Charles River. They were here when they did the 

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the head of the Charles and, you know, catching the Esplanade off season. In October, they said, we'll be back for snow. And I said, I hope it's still this winter. And funny enough, I said, well, you got your snow and they were just here this week and rooftops full of snow. And they came when it was decorated at Christmas. So I feel like...

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There is an essence because the city just glows and it changes constantly. So I really do love winter. I think that we would be  remiss not to have it shown the way it is. And although, you know, I still love the summer and fall is glowing. We have had since this summer, many evenings of the aurora borealis in Massachusetts.

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And I've been going online and there was no need to go to Iceland. It was amazing. So I can't guarantee it would happen while they were filming, but you do get a few days or weeks notice from, you know, I'm constantly online finding it. And it was amazing to me. you know, we have a lot of granite. I live in Cape Anne and there's been a lot of coastal. The light off the granite is just beautiful. And it shows that on film.

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amazingly so.

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Cameron Woodward (23:44)

That's great. Meg, what is in your opinion the most versatile film location region in the state?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (23:56)

really putting me on the spot on to. They all have lovely, beautiful areas. I love my area of Cape Anne. I think that you we've had Kota, Olive Kittridge, the perfect storm, Manchester by the sea. I think you can show I think in a lot of the coastal towns, you can show affluent areas of high end homes, and then you can get to the gritty waterfront. And so I think that is a very, as

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very advantageous in a little area. can have rural of the small towns of Essex and Ipswich and we have castles, have Hammond Castle, we have the crane estate in Ipswich. So where in a less than 30 mile radius can you find castles, small towns, farmland, beachfront mansions, coastline, know, a coastline of the Cape, you know. So.

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I love our area, Cape Van, they're really going to get me. But Western Mass is beautiful too. Turner Falls, in the judge, the way that was shown, and the Berkshires, and the Cape and the Islands have their own, and the city of Boston. I just feel like we don't have mountain ranges. well, we do have mountain ranges. We have smaller mountain ranges, but we don't have desert, but everything else I think you can find from, you know, from.

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across the state, is great, which makes it versatile. And I think that's why so many people write about the area.

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Cameron Woodward (25:26)

That's excellent. Meg, what is one document every producer should read before calling the film office?

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (25:34)

Oh, they should go on our website and look through the step-by-step guide, look at the frequently asked questions, the FAQs, and then just have a conversation with us. We're not into, you know, we want you to make your project in the best place to make your project that makes the most sense for the look and feel and your budget. So we're just open to conversation. I always like to just...

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put it out there that we'll put a scout on for a few days. Let's put together a look book. Let's just give you some images. I love reading scripts. I love picturing in my head where this could happen. You know, we do very well with period pieces. to live by night with Ben Affleck. I think that you, and when I see prop cars and from it, it's very exciting and you can source that all here. So I think that looking at the history, looking at what

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Massachusetts has done in the past, finding your genre to your film, but also then again, you have breakout films, the coda, American fiction. They just went into small towns and filmed their movie and became wonderful projects to put out there, the sound of metal. mean, sometimes when we're so focused on the big projects being filmed here, you don't even realize these smaller ones that carried through the award seasons.

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come out of nowhere. The Holdovers, amazing, right? And so we love for people, and that was a period piece, and it showed we found still areas of Boston that could show 70s Boston. So I think that we really go by what our crews have done in the past, who has worked here, the wardrobe that they've worked. We have stylists and wardrobe. 

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 keys that do an amazing job, capture all of the essence of the time and period that you're going to film for Massachusetts.

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Cameron Woodward (27:32)

That's awesome. So Massachusetts is, you know, to me, a very clear example of a state that rewards commitment. The percentages are straightforward, but the real advantage comes from understanding the behavioral design of the program and its compliance mechanisms, and then how to structure a project to hit the 75 % threshold intelligently.

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Meg, thank you so much for walking us through not just what the incentive is, but how it actually functions in practice for a production. If you're considering Massachusetts for your next project, the Massachusetts Film Office website has detailed guides and registration steps to help you start early and stay compliant. Meg, thanks again.

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Meg Montagnino-Jarrett (28:18)

Thank you, Cameron. Thank you for having me. Thank you, Wrapbook.