"There is a lot of extreme disappointment, here and in Hollywood," said Dawson.

"There were a lot of projects waiting and watching to see what would happen. I'm not sure what the impact will be and how we'll go forward. This could mean that those projects now go elsewhere and we'd be up a creek."

The legislation would have increased the existing 4 percent production tax credit to 15 percent on O'ahu and 20 percent on the Neighbor Islands.

Dawson and others in local industry have been pushing for bigger film incentives for years, arguing that Hawai'i needs to be more competitive with other filming destinations.

After a year that saw an unprecedented three network television series (ABC's "Lost," Fox's "North Shore" and NBC's "Hawaii") as well as several film and national commercial projects filming in the state, support for the measure was broad throughout the community, even from Hawai'i-based filmmakers who feel that more emphasis needs to be given to helping local projects get funded.

"This was our year, and it didn't happen," Dawson said. "Now we have to re-evaluate and see how we can best work within the confines of what we already have. We have to take a look at the incentives we have in place and somehow make them work better. We can't afford to wait and hope for something to happen next session."

A big concern will be finding ways to keep "Lost" in the fold. Barry Jossen, senior vice president of production for Touchstone Television, has said previously that the show will remain in Hawai'i through at least next season, regardless of what happened with the film-incentive legislation. However, Jossen acknowledged that the overall cost of filming in Hawai'i is an ongoing concern for the show.

"We have to do something," Dawson said. "I just don't want to go from our best year in 2004 to our worst in 2005."

The Land Has Eyes ... and legs

Filmmakers Vilsoni Hereniko and Jeannette Paulson Hereniko are in Freidburg, Germany, this week for the opening of their acclaimed "The Land Has Eyes" at a festival of new films from Oceania, Africa and South America.

Before that, the two filmmakers were in Hanoi, Vietnam, where the film played to packed crowds at a commercial theater.

Next up is a stop in New York, where the film will screen at the Museum of Modern Art, then Washington, D.C., where it plays at the Smithsonian's new National Museum of Native Indians as part of the museum's First Nations/First Features series.

You can still catch "The Land Has Eyes" at Signature Theatres' Windward Stadium 10 and Regal Theaters' Keauhou Stadium 7 on the Big Island.

Visiting AJA Filmmakers

Director and co-writer Chris Tashima is an umpire in "Day of Independence," about Japanese-American internments, airing tonight on PBS. Shane Sato

The 30-minute film highlights the experiences of Americans of Japanese ancestry sent to internment camps during World War II and was inspired, in part, by Toyama's grandparents, who returned to Japan on the prisoner exchange ship Gripsholm.

Tashima and Toyama are already raising money for a prequel titled "Memorial Day," a tribute to the 100th Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team.

Simply in limbo

Our bad for rehashing a wire story last week about "The Simple Life" filming on Maui this month.

According to a spokesperson for Fox, no plans for the show's next incarnation have been confirmed yet, though USA Today and the Associated Press quoted Paris Hilton as naming Maui as the show's site. In fact, the network has not yet officially given the go-ahead for a fourth season. A decision is expected in the next few weeks.

The spokesperson said star Paris Hilton's public opining about where the show should be shot (Maui) and who her next co-star should be (Kimberly Stewart) have taken on lives of their own.

'Down' with the fest

A trio of local actors from the new Discovery Kids adventure series "29 Down" will co-host this year's Hawaii Student Film Festival on May 28.

Tani Lynn Fujimoto, Blade Rogers and B.K. Cannon will present film and video awards and talk about their experiences working on "29 Down," which filmed 13 episodes on the North Shore. Former "American Idol" finalist Jordan Segundo will be on hand to present and award.