Before filming in Thames, the production was sighted in Huntly in April, where they also shot part of A Minecraft Movie.<\/p>\n
For Thames-Coromandel District Mayor Peter Revell, the excitement generated by the production coming to the district this month was matched by the economic benefits it brought.<\/p>\n
\u201cFilming for a big production like this brings in tens of thousands of dollars in immediate economic impact,\u201d Revell said.<\/p>\n
He said spending by cast and crew flowed into accommodation, catering, transport and local businesses, while the film could also generate a longer-term tourism boost if it attracted visitors in the same way The Lord of the Rings did.<\/p>\n
Thames-Coromandel mayor Peter Revell.<\/p>\n
The star power of Black and Momoa proved a major draw for locals, many of whom gathered around the set in the hope of catching a glimpse of the actors, Revell said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been pretty exciting for Thames. Lots of people have lingered around Grahamstown to get selfies with the stars, who have been obliging and very generous with their time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Businesses affected by filming were compensated by the production company.<\/p>\n
Revell said he was \u201ctotally chuffed\u201d when he learned Thames had been selected to stand in for a fictional American town.<\/p>\n
The project began after location scouts approached the council\u2019s economic development team late last year.<\/p>\n
According to Revell, Thames\u2019 distinctive heritage character proved a major selling point.<\/p>\n
Revell said social media had lit up with images and stories from the shoot.<\/p>\n
He hopes the film\u2019s eventual release will help shift perceptions of Thames.<\/p>\n
\u201cThames has been considered a go-through town instead of a destination in its own right,\u201d Revell said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf this film becomes a big hit and helps to change that, it could make a big difference to the local economy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although among the largest productions to visit the district in recent years, Revell said film crews were no strangers to the Coromandel.<\/p>\n
Parts of the district have previously hosted productions including The Chronicles of Narnia, Hunt for the Wilderpeople and Chief of War.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019d be great to see more international productions choosing our district as a location,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Screen Waikato attraction and facilitation manager Erin Griffith said Thames was selected because its heritage streetscape closely resembled parts of Utah.<\/p>\n
She said Screen Waikato worked behind the scenes to help productions identify locations, make local connections and navigate permitting processes.<\/p>\n
She said the production\u2019s friendly approach had helped create excitement throughout the community.<\/p>\n
One highlight was watching Jack Black interact with locals.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was up and down the road in the car with the windows open and had such a blast with people,\u201d Griffith said.<\/p>\n
Griffith said the excitement surrounding the production highlighted why New Zealand continued to attract major international film projects.<\/p>\n
The government-backed international screen production rebate remained a major drawcard for overseas studios filming here, she said. <\/p>\n
Eligible productions can claim back 20% of qualifying New Zealand production costs, with some large projects eligible for an additional 5% uplift.<\/p>\n
Griffith said the scheme, which was reaffirmed by the Government in November, helped keep New Zealand competitive against other international filming destinations.<\/p>\n
Productions including Avatar: The Way of Water, Mulan and The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power have all filmed in New Zealand with support from the rebate scheme.<\/p>\n
The production also created opportunities for people interested in the screen industry.<\/p>\n
Griffith said some schoolchildren had been given the chance to experience the production up close, while Wintec students were also involved.<\/p>\n
She said Waikato remained an attractive destination for major international productions because of its crews\u2019 reputation.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the quality of the gear, the quality of the crew, and a really forward-thinking, can-do attitude,\u201d Griffith said.<\/p>\n
Tom Eley is a multimedia journalist at the Waikato Herald. Before he joined the Hamilton-based team, he worked for the Weekend Sun and Sunlive. He previously worked as a journalist at Black Press Media in Canada and won a fellowship with the Vancouver Sun.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Before filming in Thames, the production was sighted in Huntly in April, where they also shot part of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":449031,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[95,8834,7022,1038,26637,156,593,39644,228755,1861,4223,22259,4486,111,139,69,41637,14040,153086,1961,61,29038],"class_list":["post-449030","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-and","tag-big","tag-black","tag-brings","tag-buzz","tag-entertainment","tag-film","tag-glamour","tag-goldrush","tag-history","tag-hollywood","tag-jack","tag-month","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-shoot","tag-spend","tag-thames","tag-this","tag-to","tag-traded"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/449030","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=449030"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/449030\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/449031"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=449030"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=449030"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=449030"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}