Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/83745
BIG RETURN ON INVESTMENT Film companies are shooting in Sarasota County far more often than once in a blue moon. Photo by Norman Schimmel FOR EVERY $1 IN INCENTIVES FROM SARASOTA COUNTY, FILM COMPANIES ARE SPENDING ABOUT $22 IN THE COMMUNITY By Rachel Brown Hackney Editor Sarasota County has realized a return on investment of $21.80 for every dollar it has provided as incentive money for film pro- duction, Jeanne Corcoran, the director of the county's Film & Entertainment Office, told the County Commission last week. "So we've been very satisfied with how this project has worked out," Corcoran added during remarks before the commission on Sept. 11. Potentially the latest "feather in the cap" for her office, she reported, has been an expression of interest in the county by the president and CEO of Bollywood Holly- wood, "the leading producer and distributor of major Bollywood movies that are huge globally," Corcoran said. "Because of the incentive, he became inter- ested in what we had to sell," she pointed out. The commissioners voted unanimously on Sept. 11 to allocate an extra $178,590 to the incentive fund — replenishing it to the original amount of $250,000. The county has provided a total of $428,590 to the Sarasota County Film and Entertain- ment Industry Incentive Program since it was established on Sept. 15, 2010, Eliza-