LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Las Vegas is a favorite spot for filmmakers but when the pandemic hit, production began to slow down everywhere.
It didn't stop Las Vegas from continuing to attract film crews.
The iconic Las Vegas Strip is the setting for scads of Hollywood movies through the years because it's immediately recognizable.
But it's not always the first location choice in Southern Nevada.
"We have a lot of diverse locations. I mean, you drive one hour, you're up at the mountains. You drive another hour, you're at the desert. You can you're right within driving distance to lake mead, we've got the accommodations right nearby so that the casting crew stay close by."
Danette is a coordinator at the Nevada Film Office. She helps find whatever the filmmakers need.
"We do three things. We market the state of Nevada as a film production destination. We assist with locations and permitting, and then we connect productions with local crew vendors and services that they'll need while they're filming here in the state," said Danette.
The pandemic shut down a lot of filming in the last year but some crews found a way to work through it.
"And then we had a number of reality shows that came and sort of took advantage of the shuttered hotels and use them to, you know, bubble and COVID compliant bubble and as a safe production location, which was unique for us."
But now, productions are ramping up again, and things are getting busy for filming in Nevada.
"There are some things in the pipeline and it's almost like the flood gates have opened," Danette said to 13 Action News. "There's a couple of things lined up that are pretty big, that are shooting in May."
Funded by hotel room taxes, the Nevada Film Office has been around 40 years.
Long enough to help with big movies like "Rain Man", "The Hangover" and many many more.
