In this book’s introduction, I told you about my fearless and crazy decision to move to the Detroit area and set up my film studio, make great movies, and become a rich and famous producer. The decision was especially clever and smart because the state of Michigan offered refundable tax credits of up to 42 percent to filmmakers. In effect, the state would be paying me to do what I wanted to do anyway—make movies.
Well, not so fast, Arthur Wylie. With most states under so much budget pressure, I guess it should have come as no surprise that Michigan would rethink its generous enticement for filmmakers. And that’s just what Governor Rick Snyder did. In spring 2011, he proposed capping the incentives at $25 million starting in 2012. This may sound like a lot of money, but scores of Michigan film projects each year apply for more than $100 million in credits. In fact, in 2009, the total was about $133 million; in 2010, it was about $198 million. So a $25 million cap would mean a very small pie for filmmakers to cut up.
Not only was the governor’s incentive cap gaining traction, the Michigan legislature was putting up little or no resistance, with some lawmakers even wanting to drop the incentives altogether. The handwriting was clearly on the wall—written in ink. The tax credits were important elements in our strategy and those of other Michigan filmmakers, potentially affecting everything from a project pro forma to a company business plan. So what should we do about the new playing field in Michigan?
Unfortunately and regrettably, we and just about every other filmmaker in Michigan had to find a new playing field. For us, that field was Louisiana. The tax credit in Louisiana is about 30 percent—low compared to Michigan’s 42 percent. But there is no overall cap in Louisiana, and there will not be one. The state appreciates the power and potential of the movie industry and is doing everything it can to foster that industry’s growth. Louisiana sees itself as “Hollywood East”—if not now, soon. So we packed up and headed to Cajun Country. And then the story got very interesting.
On a flight from the Dominican Republic one long travel day in the spring of 2011, I was dismayed when in the last few minutes before takeoff I was bumped from first class to coach. Oh well. It happens. I put myself in a zombie frame of mind, slipped on my sunglasses, fastened my seat belt, and decided to just get through it. Mindless and numb until touchdown. But after a few polite pleasantries with my seatmate, an unexpected thing happened. We struck up a conversation. A good one. So good, in fact, it may end up being the most important in-flight chat of my life.
He introduced himself as Scott Steele, and I learned that he’s the executive director of an organization called Cherokee Gives Back. It’s the philanthropic arm of Cherokee Investment Partners, a private equity investment firm focused on brownfield redevelopment and sustainable real estate investments. Brownfield means just what the word implies: abandoned or underused industrial or commercial sites available for reuse. That redevelopment or reuse may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant at the site. Cherokee takes what has been written off and writes it a brand-new story.
In fact, Cherokee is the leading private equity firm dedicating its capital and expertise to brownfield redevelopment. Cherokee has invested in more than 525 properties worldwide. The firm has nearly $2 billion under management and is currently investing its fourth fund. Not only does Cherokee reclaim, restore, and reuse those forgotten tracts of land and crumbling facilities, it does so always aware of environmental and sustainability issues. Cherokee is very green and very proud of it. In 2000, it created Cherokee Gives Back. The organization has helped nonprofit and community-based initiatives in the United States, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Romania, Russia, China, and India.
Steele told me all this and more as the jet’s engines hummed and the flight attendants made their way up and down the aisle. And he told me where Cherokee has been focusing so much of its efforts in the past few years: New Orleans. That’s right, Louisiana, my new filmmaking home. It makes sense for Cherokee; think of the brownfield opportunities and needs in and around the Crescent City in the wake of the 2005 Katrina nightmare.
I didn’t just listen to Scott Steele on that flight; I talked a bit too. I told him about myself, my investment career, and my filmmaking goals. As I talked and listened, I was thinking about how my Global Renaissance Entertainment enterprise and his enterprise—both the parent company and its Gives Back branch—might work together. I focused on what they might need that I could provide. As discussed in Chapter 6, I tried to see challenges and opportunities from their vantage point. I looked for ways I could help them meet their goals. It’s the most powerful and effective networking there is. It’s the opposite of selfish and self-centered. You find opportunities to help the other guys, and in doing so, you end up helping yourself.
Global Renaissance Entertainment Group and Cherokee are now working together in Louisiana to not only make movies but expand their brownfield work. I have developed a strong business relationship and friendship with Cherokee CEO Tom Darden. They will help me jump-start my own charitable foundation. With their real estate expertise, they will assist me as I pursue my dream of creating a film school in the state. With my wealth management expertise, I will help them invest and grow their assets. A true partnership has been born.
Much of the work we do will be green—eco-friendly, conservation-aware, sustainable, and responsible. In fact, since 2007, Steele’s Cherokee Gives Back has been partnering with Brad Pitt, GRAFT, and William McDonough + Partners as part of the Make It Right project to build 150 green, storm-resistant, affordable homes in New Orleans’s Lower 9th Ward, the neighborhood most damaged by Hurricane Katrina. You know who Brad Pitt is, of course. GRAFT is a Los Angeles–based architecture and design firm that goes far beyond the mere building of structures, “grafting” cross-cultural influences and interdisciplinary components onto everything they do. And Bill McDonough is one of the foremost green architects and community designers in the world. His book Cradle to Cradle is the definitive work on green architecture and planning.
So for yours truly, it’s almost showtime. We’ve got a couple of feature films in development; we’re working with the folks who produced the successful Final Destination movie series. We’re launching Omar Tyree’s Flyy Girl for television. I’m even doing some screenwriting myself.
Yes, Detroit, Michigan, was a fearless and crazy decision, and I ended up swinging and missing, just like we discuss in Chapter 8. But now I’m into something huge, something important, the opportunity of my young lifetime. If you’d like to monitor what I’m up to, visit www.arthurwylie.com. And to comment about these pages and this book, visit www.crazyandfearless.com.
Now, I know you’re thinking: Yeah, Arthur, you were just lucky. When I sit down next to someone on a plane, it’s either a gray-haired lady with pictures of her grandkids or a salesman from Peoria who wants to fight me for the armrest.
Well, sure, there was some luck involved. I certainly didn’t want to get bumped from first class. But remember, I know how to network effectively. I put myself in the other person’s shoes; I see the situation from the other person’s perspective. Then I look for ways I can help that person achieve his goals, meet his targets, or overcome his obstacles. I problem-solve for him, offering myself as his solution. I did it with Scott Steele that day. And you know what? He did it with me. We found the synergy, and now we’re running with it.
So is it all just too crazy? Maybe.
Is it fearless? You bet.