The Hollywood Of The East In Devens?
Courtesy photo
Filming at New England Studios in Devens is expected to begin in January. Located on a 1.5.7 acre parcel, the studios feature four sound stages featuring state-of-the-art technology.
Massachusetts has come to be known as the Hollywood of the East, but it’s been lacking one crucial element: a professional film studio where crews can shoot indoor scenes with all the necessary equipment on hand.
That changed this fall when New England Studios finally launched in Devens. A project six years in the making, New England Studios may be the key to acheiving what Massachusetts economic development leaders hoped for when they designed film tax credits to lure the industry here: a new destination for the film industry.
Hollywood Film Pro Behind Project
“I don’t think you can fully grasp what the possibilities are yet,” said Chris Byers, director of marketing and studio operations at New England Studios.
Byers has an impressive film production resume working as the key grip behind the cameras in a plethora of Hollywood movies and television shows. He’s worked with legendary directors and actors, such as Francis Ford Coppola, James Cameron, Clint Eastwood and Anthony Hopkins.
These connections make New England Studios a winning prospect, said Byers, who confirmed a longstanding truism about Hollywood: “It's a very inside clique,” he said.
Byers, a Lowell native, secured private financing for New England Studios, at a time when he said banks “wouldn’t touch the project with a ten-foot pole,” according to Byers. But he’s optimistic that his West Coast connections will pay off.
In three years, Byers said it is highly possible that locals won’t recognize the area surrounding New England Studios' 15.7-acre parcel at 100 Studio Way. It includes four, 18,000 square-foot sound stages today, but Byers said more will be built, with the next phase of the studio build out about 18 months away. This will also spur new business development to support the studios, according to Byers, who said there are already deals in the works.
Filming Expected To Begin In January
The existing studios feature state-of-the-art filming technology, Byers said, making them far more advanced than many Hollywood studios. He said New England Studios is now in talks with directors looking to use the studios, with the first production expected to begin in January.
A number of other film studio locations throughout Massachusetts have been floated but failed to get off the ground. However, Devens offers expedited permitting and infrastructure to help businesses to locate there with ease.
The natural aesthetics offered by the landscape and architecture in New England make the region a “film maker’s dream,” Byers said. And having a film studio as a nearby resource is the icing on the cake.
“What we do is we give (directors) a possibility to shoot things here they couldn't before,” Byers said.
Read more
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments