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Fayetteville Council To Provide Funding For Possible TV Series

FAYETTEVILLE (KFSM) — A network television series could be set in Northwest Arkansas, and Fayetteville could be used as the backdrop. The council voted fi...

FAYETTEVILLE (KFSM) -- A network television series could be set in Northwest Arkansas, and Fayetteville could be used as the backdrop.

The council voted five to zero for an incentive package that could provide up to $500,000 to lure the show to Arkansas. The amount would be split in half and dispersed in 2017 and 2018.

Few details have been released about the series, other than it will consist of eight episodes and will be filmed over a nine month period.

Producers for the undisclosed show have narrowed down their search to Fayetteville and another location in another state.

Several state and local agencies have thrown their support behind the project, including Governor Asa Hutchinson, the Arkansas Economic Development Commission (AEDC) and the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce.

"We were contacted by the Arkansas State Film Commission," said Chung Tan, chief economic development officer for the chamber. "The idea is to bring this series to Arkansas, and we very very excited that the producers were looking at Northwest Arkansas."

The move by city councilors essentially provides another line item in the city's letter offer to the producer of the television series. The money would come from the city's general improvement fund and would only go to the studio if Fayetteville becomes the location for the show.

According to Tan, a location selection is expected to be made in a short time. Production could start as soon as later this year or early 2018.

A survey conducted by the AEDC estimated that the show would provide more than $177,000,000 in economic impact on the region.

"If you look at the whole scheme of things, $500,000 compared to 70 million and 179-million net impact, it's not a whole lot of money," said Tan.

Filming in Northwest Arkansas is nothing new. Fayetteville served as a backdrop for the move "Greater" that was based on the life of former Razorback Brandon Burlsworth.

Several local extras and production work were used for the movie. The same is expected if this project comes through.

 

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