CINCINNATI — They may not have Hollywood’s iconic sign, but Cincinnati’s mythical seven hills continue to attract moviemakers from across the country.
Film Cincinnati announced Monday that production is set to wrap this week on “Monica,” which is filming in areas across southwest Ohio.
Directed by Andrea Pallaoro, “Monica” is an intimate portrait of a woman who returns home to the Midwest for the first time in 20 years to take care of her ailing mother.
It stars Emily Browning ("American Gods"), Oscar nominee Patricia Clarkson ("Sharp Objects"), Oscar nominee Adrianna Barraza ("Babel") and Trace Lysette ("Hustlers") as the title character. Pallaoro is a co-writer along with Orlando Tirado and Christina Dow.
Film Cincinnati says the crews have been filming for the past three weeks. They’ve been on-site in several neighborhoods, including Carthage, East Walnut Hills and Hyde Park, as well as Newtown, Ohio. Shooting is set to finish up this Thursday.
It’s the region's third major film project since mid-March when the state of Ohio started to roll back COVID-19-related public health mandates.
“On the heels of ‘Rebel Rebel’ and ‘Bones and All’ in Cincinnati this summer, Film Cincinnati is happy to welcome the cast and crew of ‘Monica’ to the area,” said Kristen Schlotman, the organization’s executive director. “Our office has been busy the last few months keeping in contact with production crews, like this one, so we would be ready to shoot in Cincinnati as soon as it was safe.”
Greater Cincinnati has a decorated big-screen history. Cinematic favorites co-starring the Queen City range from "Rain Main” to the 2017 arthouse flick “The Killing of a Sacred Deer.”
“Airborne,” a ridiculous ‘90s teen film, features Seth Green and Jack Black rollerblade-racing in and out of various local institutions, including old Riverfront Stadium.
The casting list for locally filmed movies is a Mount Rushmore of the silver screen: Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman (“Rain Main”); George Clooney and Ryan Gosling (“The Ides of March”); Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara (“Carol”); Don Cheadle (“Miles Ahead” and “Traffic”); Bruce Willis (“Marauders”) and Robert Redford (“The Old Man and the Gun”), to name a few.
There've been more than 50 movies filmed in Cincinnati since 1987. Half of those have happened since 2005.
"Major moviemakers keep coming back to Cincinnati: Since 2014, Emmett/Furla Oasis Films has filmed six movies in town — including the new Bruce Willis action movie 'Hard Kill.' Killer Films has filmed five movies in the Queen City, two by Todd Haynes," according to MovieMaker Magazine.
The publication has ranked Cincinnati on its annual list of the best places to live and work as a filmmaker each of the past four years. In January, the Queen City came in at No. 13 on the 2021 list, beating out places like Seattle, Washington, D.C., and Baltimore.
Films end up in the region in part because of the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit, which provides a refundable tax credit of 30% on production cast and crew wages plus other eligible in-state spending. To be considered, eligible TV, stage and film productions must spend a minimum of $300,000 in the state.
But the city also has other desirable assets, per MovieMaker Magazine. The rankings list the city's skyline, the unique neighborhoods and the variety of historic architecture.
Cincinnati also boasts a strong performing arts culture, the magazine said. The area has a wide-range of professional theaters and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM). The magazine also highlights the School of Creative and Performing Arts as having one of the country's most comprehensive K-12 curriculums for young filmmakers.
While seeing their hometown on the big screen might be fun for the audience, the films are also a big hit with local businesses.
Dozens, sometimes hundreds of cast and crew members are hired for a production. Money also goes toward equipment and location fees, as well as day-to-day expenses for things like lodging, food and entertainment.
A study by UC's Economic Center said the motion picture industry had an economic impact of $141.9 million from 2014 to 2018. That includes more than $30 million in added earnings from the more than 1,000 jobs created, according to the study.
UC said film productions in 2017 and 2018 alone had an economic impact of nearly $80 million.
The 11 projects in 2017 added 361 local jobs that injected $10.6 million in earnings into the economy, per the report. The data shows film jobs contributed $172,000 to city earnings tax revenues in 2018.
"Filmmaking has had a huge impact on the Cincinnati region’s economy over the years, from the dollars spent here to the talent sustained here, to the local pride it instills in Cincinnatians. To me, that’s as important as the economic impact,” said Anastasia Mileham, with Cincy Experience, which promotes the region.
Emilio Estevez, who filmed "The Public" at Cincinnati's downtown public library, called the city "the Paris of the Midwest" in an interview with Vanity Fair. Estavez owns a home in Cincinnati's Over-the-Rhine neighborhood.
Timothée Chalamet, who recently wrapped up filming "Bones and All," set social media abuzz when he showed up to an international red carpet wearing a Cincinnati Reds cap.
Following the production of "Dark Waters," Mark Ruffalo called Cincinnati a city with "great local talent, first-rate crews, and a wonderful place to make a movie."
"When producers, directors and actors from the film industry praise Cincinnati for its beauty, history, friendliness, it’s an external affirmation of our own brand,” Mileham said.