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The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Saturday, September 11, 2004

State gets $160,000 to plan future as film site

By Sean Hao
Advertiser Staff Writer

State efforts to build a film and digital media center got a boost yesterday from a $160,000 federal grant to create a master plan for the Hawaii Film Studio at Diamond Head.

The grant from the U.S. Commerce Department's Economic Development Administration will be matched by the state, resulting in $320,000 for the Hawai'i Office of Planning to create a blueprint for expanding and renovating portions of the film studio.

Just how much such a project would cost or when it could be completed are expected to be addressed in the master plan, though there was no time frame given for when the planning process would be complete. Chris Lee, chairman of the Academy for Creative Media at the University of Hawai'i, and Hawai'i film commissioner Donne Dawson applied for the grant via the state planning office about a year ago.

This year, television and movie production spending in Hawai'i is projected to top $100 million.

Lee's vision is to broaden Hawai'i's role from a beautiful backdrop for the movie industry into a center for content creation for digital film, television, video-game production, computer animation and storytelling.

He said the grant is an important step in that direction.

"It's an endorsement for a vision of a different position for Hawai'i — one that could help keep our kids home," Lee said. "I think Hawai'i has an enormous role in the creative economy."

Dawson agreed.

"It's absolutely critical to us," she said. "It shows that the federal government is paying attention to this industry and knows it's important for the Hawai'i economy."

Plans for a digital center are separate from a $7.3 million renovation of the Hawaii Film Studio planned for next spring, which will include upgrading the sound stage originally used during production of "Hawaii Five-0" and the creation of new production offices.

Reach Sean Hao at 525-8093 or shao@honoluluadvertiser.com.