There’s an excitement in the air, with the recent news that part of the latest Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles would be shot in Buffalo. The announcement is big news for the local film industry, and the city is expecting the green dudes to bring plenty of green cabbage along with them – to the tune of around $7 million.
It’s great to occasionally land one of the big whales in Buffalo, but how does it bode for the everyday film scene? Last week I met up with four members of the local film and animation crew at Chronos Productions, to discuss what it means to be in this particular industry in Buffalo. Dante D’Anthony is the silent leader of the pack, who speaks more with his animation prowess than actual words. I first met Dante through Facebook chat (around a year ago when he moved back to Buffalo), and ever since that time he has been sending me tantalizing clues as to what he is up to in his hometown.
Dante’s mission in Buffalo is to take the city by (galactic) storm. The guy is a genius when it comes to animation, and his productions managed to captured my imagination just enough, that I felt that it was time to have a face-to-face chitchat with the guy.
When I pulled up to one of the newest medical campus buildings (where the production crew is temporarily located), I was met by Scottpatrick J. Sellitto, who is not only a nano technology scientist, he’s also a guy who has been floating around the film production industry for years (a jack of all trades it turns out). His nano gig pays the bills, and the film gig is a passion play… for the moment. Scott met me street-side and led me through the building to a conference room where I met up with the other two key Chronos players, Suzanne Eberhardt (a set designer who recently moved back to Buffalo), and Katherine Cwiklinski (who works with Scott in the nano world, and has been bitten by the film bug in another world).
It was Scott who led the conversation, talking about Buffalo’s nice burst of film projects in the past (Savages, Buffalo 66, The Natural, etc.), as well as the continual ups and downs that the city faces in regards to the industry. Scott (speaking for the Chronos crew) stated that the film and animation industry is still the best bet when it comes to diversification of industries in Buffalo. He explained that Buffalo has the ‘people power’, the vistas and the architecture, the central proximity to other cities, a decent film history, and we’re located in a state that is pushing for film (and apparently now the city of Buffalo is too). Buffalo is an inexpensive place to shoot, as long as there is adequate access to production amenities, which we still lack at this juncture.
In order to take the local film industry seriously, there needs to be more educational opportunities for aspiring local students, and then there needs to be jobs available when they graduate. In order for more jobs, there should be places for them to work. Not just films to work on… Buffalo needs a professional sound stage. Along with a sound stage, industry people require accessible production equipment (something that the Ninja Turtles already know – they are investing money into local equipment rentals, trucks, generators, etc.) Every time a big film project pulls up to Buffalo, they leave behind more ammo that we can use to attract more films. Unfortunately, this equipment can become outdated relatively quickly, which is why there should be continual investments locally. A sound stage might only be used by the big guys every so often, but it can be used by regional production companies on an ongoing basis.
According to the Chronos team, Buffalo needs a strong collaborative in order to pool and grow the human and technology resources. That is something that we have been discussing on BRO for years, and there have been waves made in that regard. Monetary and tax credit incentives (New York State’s Film Production Tax Credit Program) also need to continue to flow through Buffalo. As we see with the Ninja Turtles, the payback usually far outweighs the investment.
“The Ninja Turtle movie will bring an economic boost to the City of Buffalo,” said Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown. “The (Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies) movie crew will be staying in our hotels, eating in our restaurants and hiring local people to be part of the production team. We look forward to seeing the Queen City highlighted in this sequel to the original blockbuster.”
Once the Turtles have come and gone, and the production lights have faded, where will Buffalo be? Yes, we will have another big film to show off on our resumé, but what will happen to those who work in the daily grind part of the industry. A lot of local players actually travel a good bit to land work – Scott told me that 99% of the film work that he has been involved with has been outside of Buffalo. Others are able to put food on the table thanks to the advantages of the internet, where they can virtually work from any city they desire. But there are others who are counting on the State and the City to deliver far beyond that. Scott says that there are plenty of local players who understand exactly what it will take to turn Buffalo into a film town. What would it cost to build a studio lot? Where could a studio lot be built? If Buffalo can become a self-sustaining film mecca, then major film makers will tend to roll up a lot more often.
So what does a film and animation crew such as Chronos do in the meantime? They build incredible projects on limited budgets on outdated equipment. They align themselves with people like Chuck Mosey, who has been providing auditorium production space and working with Dante on a proposed MOCAP (Animation Motion Capture Studio). Not to say that they can’t get by with the resources that they have at their disposal. Quite the opposite. These guys and girls have a fierce determination to produce the best visuals and sounds that they can, without being able to attract industry names to the table… just yet. They figure that if they can plow ahead, showing the world that we have what it takes to make top-notch animation videos (soon to be full length features), then they can be part of the building blocks of the local industry. Already Dante is bringing three professional animators to Buffalo, a city that he has been pitching as an affordable place filled with limitless opportunities. Dante is also tied in with a number of other animators throughout Europe and North America, who are already working on Chronos projects, such as this latest work, titled “The Derelict”.
In order to ramp up their recent production success, the Chronos group has set out to establish a series of Buffalo Film Town Hall meetings (see group on Facebook).
“If you are interested in what is happening in Buffalo and Western New York Regarding the Feature Film and Television Industries, please see the Mayor’s recent RFP. It was suggested to me that a “Town Hall” of concerned Film Industry Professionals in Western NY be organized for the purpose of addressing the issues raised in the RFP. An inclusive meeting, for the serious assessment of the region’s greater good, reflecting on what is needed and how we can work together for everyone’s best interest and for the industry in the region to build a solid foundation for ourselves and the future creatives in the region.” – Dante D’Anthony
It’s time to take film and animation production companies such as Chronos seriously. They know the industry. They are familiar with the payers. They know what it takes to get established as a film city. They have worked all over the world, and bring with them an expertise that is worth its weight in gold. Mayor Brown has asked that the local film community step up to the table, and the call to arms has been swift. Now let’s see what we can shake from the trees.
Here is Dante’s response to the Mayor’s RFP: 2-Response-to-the-Mayors-Film-RFP
To learn more about Chronos Productions, visit this website.
Following is another Chronos short titled “The Magnificent Raiders of Dimension War 1”:
Images in post: Chronos Productions
To get in contact with Chronos for further information, send an email to Dante D’Anthony: Chronosmedia AT RocketMail.com.
Lead image (L-R): Katherine, Suzanne, Scott, Dante