Pembroke Pines, Florida weighs bid to build film studio complex

Looking to boost job prospects in South Florida, Broward County is currently optomistic that two film production studios, Pas Media and The Studios Of The Americas plan to open up a facility in Pembroke Pines that will not boost the city's economy, but save them from a failed investment. The plan would rescue a white elephant from the city, City Center, a once envisioned downtown hub for the sprawling suburban community.

The companies, based in South Florida, will need an estimated $600 million to build their vision, in a proposal set to be reviewed in a planned workshop, in the city commission's chambers.

If the proposal works, it would help bail out Pembroke Pines from a $66 million dollar hole it dug for itself by investing in the 115 acres at the soutwest corner of Pines Boulevard and Palm Avenue.

Pas Media and Studios of the Americas are relatively recent arrivals to the Florida filmmaking industry.

Based in Pembroke Pines, Pas Media incorporated with the Florida Secretary of State's office in March 2008; Studios of the Americas incorporated this October.

Pas Media's Metz could not immediately name a TV or film project the group has produced and distributed widely.

If this works out it could be a boon to the South Florida economy, although just as optomistic as Pembroke Pine officials are, so am I.

In order to succeed, though, a major motion picture studio must rely on robust financial partnership from the state and local governments, said Elizabeth Wentworth, who recruits productions for the Broward Alliance, the county's economic development arm.

``The South Florida region could not support a studio at this time,'' she said, ``because the size of the studio they're talking about is for major features, and the state is not offering the level of incentives that's going to be attractive for major features to come here and film.''

Florida's film industry incentive program is budgeted this year to spend about $10.4 million in cash rebates for producers who use state crews and vendors, and meet other requirements.

That amount is less than the financial incentives offered by most of the 43 states that lure filmmakers with cash, said state Film Commissioner Lucia Fishburne.

``Incentives play a huge role now,'' Fishburne said. ``They are used to secure financing. They are used to keep down costs, and increase the profit margin.''

But Florida's program has a spotty history of funding, swinging from a low of $2.5 million at its inception in 2004-05, to a high of $25 million in 2007-08. Last year, Florida paid about $8.5 million in rebates to filmmakers working on 29 productions.


PAS Media, Inc. is a Feature Film and Television production company based in Pembroke Pines, Florida. The Executive Officers and Staff of PAS Media, Inc. take an aggressive stance on creating and producing quality projects. We wholeheartedly believe when a project is entrusted to us, we need to assure our clients they will receive the best quality project on-time and on-budget every time.