Youngstown council approves loan to LA company for film to be made in Valley

YOUNGSTOWN

City council agreed to lend up to $2 million to a Los Angeles production company to film a movie in Youngstown and the surrounding area.

The proposal to lend the money still needs approval from the city’s board of control made up of the mayor, finance director and law director.

The loan requires the filmmakers of “Them That Follow,” the working title of the movie, to guarantee the loan with an irrevocable letter of credit from an accredited bank, said T. Sharon Woodberry, the city’s director of community planning and economic development. The loan includes 0.25 percent interest and must be repaid in 18 months.

The loan won’t be approved until the letter of credit is finalized, she said.

G-Base Entertainment and Amasia Entertainment LLC, film production companies based in Los Angeles, formed Them That Follow LLC to oversee the movie, which is a coming-of-age dramatic thriller set in Appalachia.

Filming would start in the falls, Woodberry said.

A proposal from the company states Mill Creek Park would serve as one of the primary locations, and filming would attract more films to shoot in Youngstown.

The company plans to hire 221 state residents in the production office and crew, acting talent and extras, and post-production staff, according to the application.

“They’ve agreed to give Youngstown companies and residents preferential treatment,” Woodberry said. “Also, it will generate income tax for the city.”

Read more about the proposal in Friday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.