Cinema of Florida
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Florida is the 3rd largest state for film production in the United States (after California and New York, respectively) based on revenue generated (according to 2006 Florida Film Commission Data)[citation needed]. Production activity has been generally concentrated in 2 regions. The South Florida region is famous for large projects like Jerry Bruckheimer's Bad Boys film series and Neal Moritz' 2 Fast 2 Furious. The Central Florida area (Orlando and Tampa) have recently been featured in The Punisher starring John Travolta and Adam Sandler's The Waterboy.
The State of Florida has a long film history thanks to it year-round sunshine and moderate climate. Film Clasics were filmed throughout the state.Such as Moon Over Miami (1941) and Esther Williams' Easy to Love (1953) parts were filmed at Cypress Gardens In the early 1990s, Orlando experienced a great boom in film production. The construction of the Disney-MGM Studios and Universal Studios production facilities attracted many filmmakers to the area. Films like Ron Howard's Parenthood and syndicated televisions shows like The Adventures of Superboy lead the pack. Soon, the Steven Spielberg series Seaquest DSV and Tom Hank's From Earth to the Moon called Florida home. During this period, Orlando was nicknamed "Hollywood East" because of its surging film industry.
Just as film production appeared to be on the decline in Florida, the phenomenial success of 1998's Blair Witch Project has led to another boom. While Blair Witch was filmed in Maryland, its entire film crew and director were University of Central Florida Film School graduates. This cult independent film has led to a new wave of film production for the area.
Florida is also the home to a quite a few famous actors. Celebrity residents of Florida include Burt Reynolds, James Best, Michael Winslow, Scott "Carrot Top" Thompson and Sylvester Stallone. There are also quite a few prolific film directors located in the state including Daniel Myrick, Ed Sanchez, George A. Romero, Jonathan Figg, Michael Thomas Dunn, Ken Hastings and Todd Thompson.
[edit] Recent Feature Films Shot in South Florida (Miami region)
- Bloody 27 (2007)
- Hunted (2006)
- Transporter 2 (2005)
- Redeye (2005)
- Meet the Fockers (2004)
- Bad Boys II (2003)
- Out of Time (2003)
- 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003)
- Wild Things (1998)
- Bad Boys (1995)
- Fair Game (1995)
- Get Shorty (1995)
- The Specialist (1994)
- Drop Zone (1994)
- Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994)
- Scarface (1983)
[edit] Recent Feature Films Shot in Central Florida (Orlando/Tampa region)
- The Camel Wars (2008)
- Vixen (2007)
- Altered (2006)
- Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector (2006)
- Alone and Restless (2004)
- Monster (2003) - * Charlize Theron - Academy Award for Best Actress
- Florida City (film) (2003)
- The Punisher (2003)
- Ocean's Eleven (2001)
- Olive Juice (2001)
- Contact (2000)
- Held for Ransom (2000)
- Alligator Alley (2000)
- Walking Across Egypt (1999)
- Instinct (1999)
- Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo (1999)
- The Waterboy (1998)
- Apollo 13 (1997)
- Trekkies (1997)
- Lethal Weapon 3 (1992)
- Passenger 57 (1992)
- Problem Child 2 (1991)
- Quick Change (1990)
- Parenthood (1989)
- Ernest Saves Christmas (1989)
- D.A.R.Y.L (1985)
[edit] Florida Based Narrative TV Series
- CSI: Miami (2004-)
- Miami Vice (1984-1988)
- Mortal Kombat: Conquest (1998)
- The Adventures of Superboy (1988-1990)
- Seaquest DSV (1993-1995)
- SuperForce (1989-1990)
- Swamp Thing (1990)
[edit] Florida Based Documentary/Reality Shows and Independent Shorts
- The Brothers (1998/Independent short)
- Midnight Conflict (1998/Independent short)
- The Chad Effect (2001/Independent short)
- The Paper Route (1999/Independent short)
- Carpocolypse (2005/Sports Reality Show)
- Garriage: A Documentary in 4 Chapters and an Epilogue (2004/Documentary)
- Hogan Knows Best (2005-/Reality Show)
- Making The Band (2000/Reality Show)
- On Being Your Average Joe (2005/Independent short)
- WWF: Raw Is War (1997/Sports Show)
[edit] Film Festivals Hosted In Florida
- Florida Film Festival
- Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival
- Central Florida Film and Video Festival
- Hispanic Film festival of Miami
- Miami Film Festival
- Palm Beach International Film Fest
- Sarasota Film Festival
[edit] Film Commissions and Offices
- Metro Orlando Film Office
- Miami-Dade Film Office
- Florida Film Commission
- Polk County Film Office
- Space Coast Film Commission
[edit] Florida-Based Studio Facilities
Metro Orlando alone is home to more than 10 state-of-the-art soundstages, making it one of the largest working production facility centers outside of Los Angeles and New York. Complete studio and production services are available, including backlots that can double for just about any national or international locale, production office space and soundstages totaling more than 160,000 square feet.
Some of these Facilities include:
- Chapman Leonard Soundstage and Equipment (Orlando)
- Detour Studios (Haines City)
- Disney-MGM Studios (Orlando)
- Greenwich Studios (Miami)
- Horizon Pictures Studio (Orlando)
- MTD Studios (Clermont)
- Last Stage Out of Town (Polk City)
- Universal Studios (Orlando)
[edit] Film Schools
- Florida State University Film School (Tallahassee)
- University of Central Florida Film Program (Orlando)
- Palm Beach Film School (West Palm Beach)
- FullSail Film School (Winter Park)
- New York Film Academy (Disney-MGM Studios, Orlando)
- Valencia Community College Film School (Orlando)
- Miami-Dade College School of Film and Video (Miami)
[edit] Local Production Companies
- Adrenaline Films
- Haxan Films
- MTD Studios
- Reachfar Films
- Star's North Films
- Superville Productions (Miami)
- Xoom Entertainment