Hollywood Man Comes Home

A St. Charles man with ties to Hollywood hopes to bring movies here to be shot on location.

Eric Norwine, 34, has been talking with local leaders about his vision and scouting possible locations for different types of movies that could be shot here.

"Historically, St. Charles has been used as a set for Hallmark type movies, feel good movies like that," Norwine says. "I think we have the locations to tell stories from comedies to psychological thrillers, to horror films and everything in between."

Luring more films here is possible because of Missouri's new film incentive law, offering tax breaks of 20-42% for movies made in Missouri.

Norwine worked in Hollywood in the early 2010s as a production assistant and producer. His work includes five feature films, dozens of comedy web videos, a handful of commercials and the documentary "Walking Man," which won best documentary at the St. Louis International Film Festival.

"When I moved home in 2015, I thought my film-making career was over," he said.

And so it seemed: Married with two children, working as a high school teacher, a man with a mortgage, a backyard, and a lawnmower.

But then the film law passed, and he got to thinking.

He knows a lot of people-both here and in Hollywood. Why not bring them together?

"I gave swimming lessons to his father years ago," says County Executive Steve Ehlmann.

Norwine was sitting in the office of County Executive Ehlmann, pitching him his idea. It was like a scene from a movie. Ehlmann liked the idea and agreed to introduce him to some people who might help.

Since then, Norwine has met the creator of the Netflix series "Ozark." Bill Dubuque lives in an apartment overlooking the Missouri River in St. Charles.

"I don't blame anyone for going to Georgia," Dubuque says, "but I think 'Ozark' should've been made in the Ozarks."

Dubuque blames the state's film tax credit, now at $16 million a year, which he says is relatively low.

How we stack up to other state's film tax credits:

• New Jersey: $100 million
• New York state: $700 million
• Georgia: $1.35 billion

"I could easily put films here that are in development, as well as things that are ongoing, if we had a healthier tax credit," Dubuque says.

Norwine also met with Kelley Hiatt, director of the St. Louis Film Office. They went on a tour of New Town and other possible locations for shooting movies here.

She says there's a big potential for bringing production to Missouri.

"Having just left LA, working as a location manager for eight years, I can tell you firsthand that St. Louis, St. Louis County, and the surrounding areas have everything you need for location filming," Hiatt says.

"Places like St. Charles have what I call 'Anywhere USA,' meaning you can depict multiple areas of the country without all the hassle and price tag that comes with filming in major filming markets.

"Passing the tax incentive was the first step. Filmmakers like Eric, who have determination, talent and incredible creative vision will be the driving force in bringing big pictures to the likes of St. Charles and the state of Missouri as a whole."

Norwine says he's looking for partners who want to bring not just one movie here but bring Hollywood here. His company is called On Cloud Norwine Productions. You can find out more about his efforts at oncloudnorwine.com.

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