Prop Til You Drop

Okay, it's not Sean Penn per se but the production unit shooting the latest made-in-Michigan movie, This Must Be The Place. Penn is the star. They still need that 25-foot bottle of whiskey. Normally the film's art department would contract a Hollywood prop shop to conjure up their request and have it trucked in from Los Angeles, but with fuel prices the way they are a local option would sure be preferable.

And then there's Michigan's aggressive film incentive. The more money the producers of This Must Be The Place spend in the Mitten on local businesses and talent, the better their tax rebate. Over the last two years the state has seen nearly $600 million in film-related business. Hollywood has come calling and they are hungry for resources and talent.

That's where Scenic Prop and Design(SPD) in Shelby Township comes in."In the last four months we've brought on 28 people because of the films we've worked on," says Jonathan Krueger, president and creative consultant at SPD.

The giant-sized whiskey bottle was just another day on the job for Krueger's design team. "We've created a giant church door for Black Sabbath, artificial coral for Sea World, giant bowling pins for the TV show Crash Course, and a 17-foot-tall football player for Lucas Oil Stadium (home of the Indianapolis Colts)," he explains. "We're not just craftsmen, we're artists. We can create whatever the client wants, whether it's a giant whiskey bottle or a brick wall."

In the last six months SPD has worked on eight feature films and a television series – all shot in Michigan. With a core staff of five, Krueger says he'll hire on as many 25 people for a project and he see lots of room for growth.

"Fifty-three percent of our business is film so far this year," he says. "But that could change in less than two months because auto show season and trade show season is upon us. We might do a lot of movies but when you get into trade shows, one project, say for an auto show, could dwarf anything we'd do for a film."

Krueger explains that the average film production typically brings in projects that range between $25-50,000, but with zoo installations or trade shows the work can easily top six and seven figures. "The issue I see with the film industry here is the infrastructure. Once studios get built I feel our services are going to be at their peak."

Despite Michigan's economic attractiveness, film studios are very selective about the work they're doing here, he says. "Since there are no soundstages they aren't going to do a movie like Pirates Of The Caribbean, which needs a huge sound stage. That can't just be put in some warehouse. You need 50-foot ceilings, clear spans, and then you need a full team of people who can fabricate all those elements - which is what we do."

But until Hollywood understands that Michigan companies can actually give them what they need and have a certain number of productions under their belt, they won't commit.

"It'll happen," Krueger says confidently. "And when it does we'll be working on a $50 million or $100 million movie, where 20 percent of the budget is devoted to what we do. That's a pretty significant stream of revenue."

Officially partnered with The Center For Film Studies in Madison Heights, Krueger draws many of his employees from the students he teaches at the film trade school, most of whom are retrained blue collar workers. The school's COO, Jack Grushko, describes the average CFS student as a 38-year-old craftsman looking to move into a new field of work, though interest from younger students is quickly growing.

"We noticed that as people graduated from the program Jon would hire some of them for project she was working on," says Grushko. "Then Jon reached out to us and said, 'hey, you're wired into the film industry, I'd like to get deeper into the film side.' So we decided to partner up and help him navigate the film waters. He had done the rocks at Sea World and miniature golf courses and product displays for companies like Mott's Apple Sauce but when you come right down to it: a prop's a prop."

Grushko describes it as a perfect partnership, where Krueger is able to work his creative magic while benefiting from CFS's connections and administrative prowess. Being able to train and give jobs to the school's graduates helps too.

"Since Jon's taught them [the students] a skill set it means he doesn't have to retrain them for a position,"Grushko explains. "It's a pretty perfect cycle. They get taught by someone who has a highly specialized skill, and they don't have to work for John if they don't want to, but the opportunity's there."The Center For Film Studies was started last year by Grushko and his partner Mort Meisner, a well-known Detroit-area entertainment agent. The two businessmen became friends a few years back while Grushko was running Emerald Food Service, an Oakland County meals-on-wheels company he started with his wife in 1987. When Meisner's nephew Andy (currently Oakland County's treasurer) helped pen Michigan's film incentive legislation, Grushko inquired into what kind of business opportunities there might be.

"Andy said we should get involved with workforce development, getting people back to work," says Grushko. "Since Mort's an agent and I had a successful business we didn't really need outside money to get something started. We kind of did it for the right reasons. I mean, we want to make money, that goes without saying. But we didn't build it out of desperation but rather around the idea of getting Michigan people more work."

Last March CFS received its license from the state and has since attracted more than 300 students. Grushko is proud to point out that the school has had 71 percent job placement for students who have submitted their resumes. He says one or more of CFS's students have worked on nearly every film that's come to Michigan since the school opened its doors.

"I don't remember what movie stars are in what," says Grushko. "To be honest, I don't really care. I just want to get people work. And I'm seeing the on-the-ground game improving. Our placement this year is skyrocketing."

Since Hollywood productions first started hitting the state one of the film industry's main complaints has been Michigan's lack of crew depth. CFS seems to be filling in some of that gap."I think we have some bragging rights," says Grushko. "We get pros like John [Krueger]that have been doing this for a lifetime. They help write and teach the classes. We also really reached out, got in the trenches, and made relationships so that they were willing to take a risk with our people."

Krueger makes it clear that that reputation is every bit as important as the skills his scenic workers have developed as well. "You're only as good as your last project in this industry," he says.

When talk of ending the film incentive comes up, both men bristle. They take issue with gubernatorial candidate Rick Snyder's position on Michigan's generous incentives.

"They would be out of their minds to blow the energy we've got going. This is a positive thing for Michigan," Grushko says. "If he's a business guy, he should be really looking at the numbers, really dig in."

Grushko talks about the people that Scenic Prop and Design has hired and the paint they've purchased and the graphics people they've contracted with. He mentions the giant whiskey bottle and how the producers had to pay a local sign company $2,000 to transport it up to Bad Axe. "That's $2,000 injected into the local economy. And it goes on and on and on. If he thinks it's a dumb incentive he's not paying attention."

Krueger concurs. "I would tell him [Snyder], give the incentive a chance. We've just started. It may not be an immediate win for the state but it'll come... through income taxes, the unemployment you don't have to pay out, property taxes from people who keep their homes, etc., etc."

Grushko adds, "When they were nay-saying nine months into this thing I would say: What biz don't you invest in that takes time to see the results? How can you make a judgment call in a year or two? Any business, I don't care if it's an ice cream store, needs time to develop.""I get that it's a desperate time," he continues. "But good business means trying new things. You don't make decisions when you're emotional and under pressure. You make decisions on facts, all the facts, not just income taxes collected."

Ultimately, the partners feel bullish about both Michigan's film future and their own economic opportunities. It's why they've moved their manufacturing shop to Shelby Township and are now hunting for a space for a showroom, prop rental house, and finishing workshop. Though they're coy about where they'll locate these facilities –they're being courted by three different locations-- Krueger sees Scenic Prop and Design growing consistently over the next three years and Grushko talks of expanding CFS's classes into lucrative post-production work.

"I think this time next year we'll be at an entirely different level," says Krueger.

"We can't live in fear," Grushko adds. "We just keep on keeping on. There's a lot of activity. People are really energized by the possibilities."

Grushko finishes with a story, the kind of story that makes him excited about what he's doing.

"We had a student name Carly - we have lots of these stories - she was a student from Western Michigan and she came here to learn to be a PA and went through our production classes. She's now the personal assistant to Kate Bosworth on TheReasonable Bunch. She was going to move to Chicago. Which is the classic 'I gotta get out of here' story. Now, she's an assistant to the talent. Once you get that under your belt, you become known and other stars want you when they come here. Word travels quickly and the work is good. I could give you 15 names off the top of my head of people who would tell you similar stories - people who were going to leave the state, didn't necessarily want to, and found work here."

"Plus I'm having a blast," he can't help adding. "I told my wife I haven't had this much fun since 1986 when I was a stock broker."

All Photos by David Lewinski