The Official Newspaper for Foster County
The Official Newspaper for Foster County
You probably know by now there’s a new movie coming out in late January called “Trapped,” that was filmed in North Dakota. It’s about sex trafficking and happened to be filmed in Linton.
There have been several news reports about this movie and the director was recently interviewed on TV, but the segment didn’t specify whether the trafficking was happening in Linton or whether this was a starting point for the film.
Regardless, it’s most likely going to be a good movie to watch and bring awareness to something that is happening more often than we like to think. There’s also an updated book coming out in January about the disappearance of Jacob Wetterling. The more attention to this, the better.
But this is about the film industry in North Dakota, which seems to be moving at a snail’s pace.
Many of us thought that “Wooly Boys” (2004) would be the spark to ignite the movie industry in North Dakota. It had high profile actors in Peter Fonda, Kris Kristofferson and Keith Carradine.
If you don’t remember, it was about two ranchers from North Dakota who find adventure in Minneapolis after one goes to visit his only daughter. The ranchers were from the Badlands and the movie was filmed in Medora, Belfield, Fryburg and Beach, as well as in Minneapolis and Woodbury, Minn.
“Wooly Boys” had a great marketing plan and was seen by a lot of people, but didn’t transform the film industry in North Dakota like many thought it would.
In 1996, the movie “Fargo” was supposed to do the same, but didn’t.
Likewise with “End of the Rope,” a 2023 film based in the 1930s about a family from Schafer (McKenzie County) that disappears. The movie is based on the true story of the infamous Charles Bannon case from 1931. This movie included some local actors and extras.
There are several other lesser known movies and documentaries filmed here including “American Honey,” “Buick Riviera,” “Flight of the Red Trail,” “How to Blow up a Pipeline,” “Jesus Camp,” “Northern Lights,” “The Overnighters,” “Tankhouse,” “Valley of Bones,” “Welcome to Leith” and “White Earth.”
Movies about North Dakota go back to 1932 with “The Purchase Price,” about a nightclub singer (Barbara Stanwyck) who marries a North Dakota farmer during the Great Depression.
TV shows filmed here are even more obscure. The first one that comes to mind is “Blood & Oil,” a 2015 series on ABC starring Don Johnson of “Miami Vice” fame. It’s about a young couple that moves to North Dakota after the biggest oil discovery in American history.
There’s also “Up the River,” a PBS Kids show about Buster, who goes on a canoe trip with the Stenslie family in Bismarck and Mandan.
Despite these successful productions, the movie industry in North Dakota faces some challenges that include issues with grant awards, lack of transparency and the fact that North Dakota doesn’t offer incentives for film productions.
As an example “End of the Rope” was partially funded with private donations that helped get it into movie theaters.
North Dakota Tourism offers assistance with location scouting, permitting and finding talent, but it’s not enough.
Montana offers numerous tax credits; Minnesota offers a film production tax credit and a talent pool; Saskatchewan offers a grant of up to 30% of expenditures made in the province, gives a 5% bonus for projects filmed in rural areas and a 10% bonus for frequent filming; and Manitoba provides up to 65% of tax credit for salaries and up to 38% of expenditures in the province. South Dakota’s program virtually mirrors ours.
Kentucky is the cheapest state for filmmakers providing up to 35% tax break on spending.
Maybe North Dakota should do something similar. There’s a lot here that Hollywood likes such as rugged scenery, wide open spaces and locations especially for historical dramas. Some critics say that if North Dakota had incentives, the flood gates would open.
