Utah approves 7 new productions projected to bring $12.6 million economic impact

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Utah approves seven film productions with a projected $12.6 million impact.
• Productions include "Salt and Honey" and an untitled Warner Bros. project.
• Over 600 jobs will be created across 11 counties, boosting Utah's film industry.

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah's growing reputation as an entertainment hub is set to expand further, as it will serve as the backdrop for seven upcoming film productions.

The Utah Film Commission announced Friday the Utah Board of Tourism Development has approved seven new productions for state film incentives.

Together, the seven upcoming productions are projected to carry an economic impact of $12.6 million and create more than 600 jobs across 11 counties, including Salt Lake, Utah, Wasatch, Davis, Washington and Summit, according to the Utah Film Commission.

Among the approved productions is "Salt and Honey," an independent feature co-directed by Amy Redford and Jennie Morris, which tells the story of a young girl chasing big dreams in a small Utah town.

The approved slate also features a second season of "Lulubug's Garden," and several independent films, including "One Beautiful Life," "Noah's Big Adventure" and "Creation: Rita Deanin Abbey," along with an untitled project from Warner Bros. Production.

"This slate of projects reflects the diversity of productions choosing Utah and highlights why we remain a top destination for filmmakers," said Virginia Pearce, director of the Utah Film Commission.

She continued, "Our creative workforce relies on a steady mix of productions of all sizes, and film incentives ensure that Utah can continue to attract those opportunities."

To fuel Utah's growing film industry, the 2026 Utah Legislature approved $3 million in ongoing funding for the Rural Film Incentive program.

Over the last four years, productions participating in this program have spent more than $200 million in 28 counties.

Moving into 2027, Utah is ready for film production on a statewide level as all 29 counties are prepared to support productions with location, local coordination and community support, the commission announced in January.

"We've cultivated a thriving ecosystem of talent, infrastructure and incentives that will continue to attract filmmakers and productions to our beautiful state," Pearce shared in a January statement.

Pearce added, "We remain focused on investing in a strong film industry, one that drives our creative economy and inspires the next generation of artists and audiences. We believe that Utah is a place full of innovation and creativity. We want to see that thrive and grow organically."

Utah's diverse landscape and neighborhoods have provided backdrop for thousands of movies and other film productions over the last century and continue to entice filmmakers.

High-profile films such as "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," "Thelma & Louise," "Footloose," "Forrest Gump" and Marvel's "Thunderbolts" were filmed in Utah, as well as dozens of Disney movies such as "High School Musical" and "The Luck of the Irish."

Since June, the Utah Film Commission announced 20 additional projects approved for state film incentives, including a spinoff series to "Yellowstone," a seventh season of "The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch," a final season of "The Chosen" and several independent feature films.

How do film incentives in Utah work?

Utah offers two main film incentive programs — the Motion Picture Incentive Program and the Community Film Incentive Program — that both help productions stretch their budget by giving tax credits or cash rebates for money spent in the state, per the Utah Film Commission.

• Applies to big movies, documentaries and TV shows.
• To qualify, 75% of cast and crew must be Utah residents and 75% of production days must occur in rural Utah.
• Productions that qualify can earn a fully refundable tax credit of up to 25% of in-state spend.
• Applies to smaller projects, particularly local filmmakers.
• To qualify, the director, writer or producer must be a Utah resident and 85% of cast and crew must be Utah residents.
• Productions that qualify can earn a cash rebate of up to 20%.

The incentive programs are not available for productions such as commercials or campaigns, infomercials, sporting events, news, live broadcasts or award shows.

Some of the other factors the Utah Film Commission considers before approving a production for an incentive program include: the number of jobs created in Utah, number of production days in Utah, local cast and crew wages, ability to highlight Utah as a tourist destination, whether the production reflects positively on Utah, and the production's projected economic impact on Utah.

The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.

Related topics

UtahBusinessEntertainment
Margaret Darby