State-by-state production incentives
Tennessee
| Tennessee | |
| Incentive Type | Rebate |
| Incentives Highlights | 17% rebate, 13% rebate of qualified TN spend, plus an additional 2% if 25% or more of the cast/crew are residents, and 2% more (maximum $100,000) if the production spends $20,000 on qualifying music, plus an additional 15% rebate (requires TN headquarters) – this program is administered by the TN Dept of Revenue. |
| Eligible Projects | Films, television pilots, and series |
| Minimum Spend | $500,000 per project/episode if project is headquartered outside of the state, $150,000 per project/episode if project is headquartered in-state; $1M local spend to qualify for TN headquarters rebate. |
| Production Cap or Annual Cap | Initial program fund of $20M |
| Application/Reporting Requirements | Productions must pre-qualify with the Film commission, and file appropriate paperwork with the film commission and Dept. of Revenue. Only resident wages qualify. |
| Loan-Out Reg Required? | No |
| CPA Audit? | No |
Tennessee Film Entertainment and Music Commission
Bob Raines, Interim Director
perry.gibson@tn.gov
t: (877) 818-FILM (3456)
t: (615) 741-3456
f: (615) 741-5554
www.tn.gov/film
The State of Tennessee has two incentive plans, which when combined, can possibly total a 32% rebate for qualified Tennessee spend, subject to the state’s discretion. Expenditures are considered “qualified expenses” only to the extent that the costs are clearly and demonstrably incurred in Tennessee in the pre-production, production or post-production phases of a qualified production. Incurred in the state means payments made for goods or services used in the state in connection with a qualified production and purchased from a local Tennessee vendor or paid to a Tennessee resident.
The first program, administered by the Tennessee Film, Entertainment and Music Commission provides a 17% rebate of total qualified production expenditures in the State of Tennessee. Live coverage of events, including news, sports, concerts and awards shows; music videos; industrials and corporate marketing or training videos; projects consisting primarily of stock footage and/or interviews; trailers promoting theatrical films, website development, and anything that is not original film or television content recorded in Tennessee, do not qualify for the incentive. Also, the post-production of a project that did not shoot in Tennessee will not qualify.
The rebate is calculated on the total qualified Tennessee spend with a $250,000 cap for Tennessee personnel. A production company headquartered outside the state must spend at least $500,000 per production/per episode, and a production company headquartered within the state must spend at least $150,000 per production/per episode, on qualified expenditures in Tennessee within 12 months after the Certificate of Conditional Eligibility is issued. Production companies should contact the TN Film Commission to discuss their project before applying. Currently $5 million is available.
The second program is administered by the Tennessee Department of Revenue, and provides a 15% rebate of total qualified productions expenditures and requires that a certified Tennessee Headquarters company spend at least $1 million on production in the state. There are no annual ceiling or salary caps for this program.