Long after the cameras stop rolling, iconic filming locations continue to draw tourists to Georgia Cities.
Now there is a statewide effort to help communities capitalize on this lasting opportunity. On Aug. 14, Georgia leaders held the first hearing of the Senate Study Committee on Making Georgia the No. 1 State for Tourism (SR 323). Realizing that dream includes activating untapped resources, such as thousands of TV and movie filming locations across the state.
“I literally tell people there’s gold laying on the ground everywhere, and all they have to do is lean over and pick it up,” said Lynda Lee Smith, founder of the Entertainment Tourism Alliance of Georgia (ETAG).
A typical movie or television episode filming on location spends $50,000-$250,000 per day in the local economy, according to ETAG’s website, entertainmenttourism.com. It is harder to define the ongoing impact of tourism generated by that filming, but it offers large and small cities the potential to generate long-term revenue.
On Sept. 9, ETAG launched a workshop series to educate communities about entertainment tourism opportunities. At the first workshop, participants explored Covington, known as “Hollywood of the South” and home to production locations for The Vampire Diaries, The Dukes of Hazzard, In the Heat of the Night, and many more TV series and movies since the 1950s.
GMA Governmental Relations Associate DJ Waller previously coordinated film permitting and tourism for the city of Covington. He witnessed the importance of film tourism on a small community during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“People weren’t going to Disney World. They weren’t going to Six Flags. They were going to smaller communities,” Waller said. “So many people were coming to Covington. I was like, why are so many people here? And it was because of film.”
In 2021, there were 2.8 million visits to Covington’s Historic Downtown Entertainment District, according to the city’s community development department. The downtown added a star-studded mural to complement its film museum and “Walk of Stars,” and visitor center traffic continued to grow. By 2023, visitor spending in Newton County totaled $130 million, with $118 million spent in Covington—a significant sum for a city of 15,000.
As filming resumed post-pandemic, local businesses welcomed tourists and production crews with open arms, Waller said. New hotels popped up. The city’s tourism team smoothed the way for new productions, and the city marketing team kept residents informed about road closures and other minor inconveniences. It was a flurry of activity, celebrating the old and welcoming the new.
“I tell people all the time: it was a lot of growth, a lot of numbers. A lot of people came to Covington, but it’s hard to put a tab on what exactly you did correctly to get those people there. It was just a combination of being welcomed, sharing your message with the world,” Waller said.
Fans already seek out their favorite filming locations; communities just need to connect the dots. That’s what the Cherokee Office of Economic Development did with the launch of its Filmed in Cherokee app in 2021. Cherokee County is home to filming locations ranging from thrilling television series like Ozark to historical drama movies like Hidden Figures.
Developed in partnership with Black Airplane, the award-winning interactive mobile app offers users a chance to embark on self-guided film tours, access behind-the-scenes content, connect with the local community, and visit their favorite on-screen places. As users explore the 30 fan-favorite productions highlighted in the app, they also learn about the community’s rich history, chef-inspired dining, boutique shopping, outdoor activities, and more.
“Film tourism continues to grow in Cherokee. With over 1,300 downloads and 17,000 interactions in the Filmed in Cherokee Mobile App over the last year, it is evident that Cherokee’s film industry continues to be an integral part of the economic vitality of the county,” said Heath Tippens, president of the Cherokee Office of Economic Development.
ETAG workshop attendees will learn about innovative ideas to attract tourists, but they will also find that it does not take a heavy instrument to attract movie and TV lovers, Smith said.
“Download movie posters off of Amazon. They’re already approved. Frame them and hang them on the walls of your business. Create a selfie opportunity. People get excited to be around something that they feel so close to, and we have so many of those series that have been shot in Georgia,” she said.
Smith believes that a collective effort to strengthen entertainment tourism across Georgia could be a differentiator for the state. “If we truly do want to make tourism the number one, make Georgia number one in the country, we need to roll out all the stops and create our own unique experience that complements our landscape, our beautiful beaches, our islands and our mountains,” Smith said.
Amanda Dyson-Thornton, executive director of the Georgia Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus, said she looks forward to the Senate Study Committee meeting in October, when she anticipates more discussion about activating Georgia’s film tourism assets.
“Film tourism is big business here in Georgia, and we are proud and excited to promote that as much as we can,” Dyson-Thornton said.
