Recent Film, TV Production In San Marcos Benefits Local Businesses

Recent film projects in downtown San Marcos have increased tourism for businesses, benefiting the growing economy.

Filming of the sequel to the 1993 cult classic “Dazed and Confused” by director Richard Linklater began in October. Production of the film, titled “That’s What I’m Talking About,” has wrapped production on campus. However, the crew is still using the streets of downtown to portray the 1980s.

Linklater started shooting his film a few weeks after ABC Studios finished filming the TV series American Crime in San Marcos. Downtown businesses have felt the impact of back-to-back productions, said Debbie Dietz, facilities and events coordinator for the Parks and Recreation Department.

“The city has been very fortunate to be able host a production by ABC and now a film by Richard Linklater,” Dietz said. “I am now their point of contact, and although there have been a few issues like parking and stopping traffic for very short periods of time, for the most part, the City of San Marcos as well as its businesses have benefited from them being here.”

City council, the Main Street Program and the Parks and Recreation Department have worked together to make the city a desirable destination for filmmakers while providing economic growth to San Marcos, Dietz said.

The city requires production companies to fill out permits and speak to business owners who may be affected before filming, she said.

“Although we have had filming done in the past, we are still learning and adjusting as far as how much paperwork and permits we require,” Dietz said. “From coordinating with the police to working with traffic, we want to become a film-friendly city.”

The growth of filming in San Marcos has prompted city officials to employ an official to handle all aspects of production from start to finish, Dietz said.

“We want to be a city that can compete with Austin and accommodate any production that will benefit the citizens of San Marcos,” Dietz said.

Kayli Head, coordinator for the Main Street Program, said she has been working with the businesses and production companies to coordinate during filming.

“I think that both of the productions we have had here recently have done a very good job with communicating with all of our businesses,” Head said. “The process and execution may not be perfect, but as long as they can keep communication open and honest, people will be happy to have more filming done in our city.”

Closing streets was the biggest challenge for both productions, but all businesses remained open, Head said. Some were compensated depending on their use during filming.

“Not only is it really awesome to see San Marcos showcased, it’s amazing to see the economic effect on the downtown area,” Head said. “All these people are eating from our downtown restaurants and shopping at our stores. They are putting money into one of the most important assets San Marcos has: locally owned businesses.”

Filming of Linklater’s production has taken place primarily on weekdays during peak business hours for the downtown area, said Michaela Kovaric, owner of the Stellar Café on North LBJ Drive.

“We have definitely felt the positive effects from filming in downtown,” Kovaric said. “A lot of the guys working on the production come in here all the time, and that makes more customers come in because everyone wants to see Linklater or a movie star.”

Some problems may arise from filming, but positive effects outweigh any negatives, Kovaric said.

“Parking issues and blocking a road for five minutes is a small price to pay to receive so much attention,” Kovaric said.

Not every business has felt the positive influences of filming downtown, said Kim Moreland, manager of CCI Computer Service.

Moreland said CCI has not benefited from the filming because the business does not sell food or merchandise.

“We service computers and depend on our citizens to bring in their items to get repaired,” Moreland said. “With the parking issues we saw our business slow down dramatically.”

Moreland noticed the effort by the production companies to keep her informed and make the process as smooth as possible despite the inconvenience.

Moreland said filming will only lead to a positive outcome for the growing city.

Frank Campos is a news reporter with the University Star where this article originally published. It is r3eprinted here through a news partnership between the University Star and the San Marcos Corridor News.