Most movie watchers probably know the Motion Picture Association best for its rating system. But it does more than give out Gs and Rs. It calls itself “the leading advocate of the film, television and streaming industry around the world.”
Recently, some of its focus has been on Texas.
John Gibson, the association’s vice president of public affairs and industry relations, said part of that push started at last year’s SXSW Film Festival.
“Our CEO visited the governor’s mansion and had incredible conversations with the governor and first lady about all that is happening in Texas regarding the industry,” Gibson said.
Then, he said, Texas First Lady Cecilia Abbott pulled the CEO aside to emphasize that there are many Texas organizations beyond SXSW worth getting to know.
“And so I was in Austin to solidify partnerships with the Austin Film Festival and the ATX TV Festival,” Gibson said.
These festivals do more than offer a glimpse at celebrities during events each year.
“They are incubators for pipeline development programs,” Gibson said. “If you want to be a writer, how do you pitch yourself? And both ATX and Austin have really great programming about learning the art of the pitch. Or you have the Young Filmmakers program that the Austin Film Festival sponsors for young people who want to get in this industry but they don’t have a roadmap.”
Gibson sees his work as an extension of what he did previously at MPA – leading a diversity initiative.
John Gibson. (Image by Phil Moore)
“That’s what my goal is, just making sure that we’re supporting our member studios and providing an industry workforce that looks like the global audience that supports it,” Gibson said.
Texas has long described itself as Hollywood’s third coast.
For decades, it’s been not just home, but primary production location for independent filmmakers such as Richard Linklater and Robert Rodriguez. And TV’s new western king, Taylor Sheridan, has created an empire that employs most of the available crew in North Texas.
Texans have also invested in new studio space and other technology, including in smaller central Texas cities like San Marcos and Bastrop. Then add on renewed filmmaking incentives.
Gibson says he’s setting his sights on all parts of the state.
“As industry organizations land on my radar, I’m going to investigate and reach out and making sure that people understand that this is an industry they can be a part of,” Gibson said.
The big battle in Hollywood right now is over AI. It has some people feeling uncertain about the future for those careers. But Gibson said he thinks consumer demand for media means there’s still plenty of opportunity.
“We just consume content as such a very quick and fast pace, that’s like, you gotta constantly feed the beast, if you will,” Gibson said. “So, your own phone gives you an opportunity to create your content. There are so many folks that are being discovered via social media platforms — YouTube and TikTok and Instagram and other platforms. So the traditional system, yes, why everybody might want to be a part of the traditional Hollywood system, the media landscape, there’s room for everyone.”
Editor’s note: In the audio version of this story, Gibson said 2.4 million people work in the industry. Gibson’s spokesperson clarified the number is actually just over 2 million.
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