Posted on 12/19/2013 8:33:18 AM PST by MichCapCon
For the second time, a TV drama set in Detroit that received Michigan taxpayer dollars was canceled after one season.
"Low Winter Sun," a police drama by AMC, ended after a short run.
The show is set to receive $7.5 million in subsidies for the one season and was projected to hire 245 Michigan workers with a full-time equivalent of 148 jobs, according to the Michigan Film Office.
"Detroit 1-8-7," an ABC police drama, was filmed in Detroit in 2010 and then canceled after one season. The producers of that show received $6 million from taxpayers in Michigan.
Like most film projects set in Michigan, "Low Winter Sun" received a lot of pre-broadcast publicity. The New York Times compared it to a "love story about the city" and suggested it was part of a counter narrative "of a Detroit rising and being rebuilt …"
MLive did a story on a local bar that had a scene shot in it hosting a party to celebrate.
But in the end, the series didn't make it to a second season.
Leon Drolet, chairman of the Michigan Taxpayers Alliance, said he thinks there is an inherent deficiency in films that get taxpayer subsidies. He believes movie investors are more likely to take chances on projects they wouldn't necessarily do if they didn't have a taxpayer safety net.
That's why Drolet said he isn't surprised some subsidized projects in Michigan don't meet a lot of commercial success. He wondered if some box office failures would ever be made if the moviemakers were on the hook for the entire budget.
"I don't think it is a complete coincidence that these shows get subsidies and fail," he said. "The only show that continues to go on is the subsidizing of the film industry."
Michigan taxpayers have spent several hundred million dollars on film incentives with no clear uptick in jobs. The Republican-dominated Legislature had a chance to end the subsidies, but the GOP this year teamed up with Democrats to extend the $50 million-per-year program.
But Robo Cop Lives
Actually the show was getting better but they relied too heavily on ruin porn.
I watched every episode of both shows.
I liked Detroit 1-8-7 better.
Both,especially Low Winter Sun, made Detroit look horrible.
The Detective offices look like they might be in some slum city in Africa.
Anthony Bourdain did a really good show in Detroit at the end of his season. FReepers have some serious misconceptions about Detroit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpF8eZ3bPqE
Actually the show gave the impression that the city was primarily white and Coptic.
At first I read “Another Cop Shot in Detriot” . . .
Leftist entertainment media evil rich loot leftist moron city government, women and minorities hardest hit (excepting taxpayers).
First, a confession: I liked “Low Winter Sun”
But I find it surprising that Detroit allowed it to be produced, let alone paid for it, with it’s main theme being “Detroit is horrible, corrupt, dirty, desperate and totally failed.”
I am so relieved that it is gone.
Is that guy kidding? How much money has been blown on Detroit over the last 40 years? Corrupt politicians/unions and an ignorant populous created Detroit. Let them deal with it.
Actually that wasn’t what he meant at all. In fact the recurring theme of the show was that Detroit has everything it needs to rebuild itself but it needs to be allowed to climb out from under the mismanagement and corruption.
Fortunately the GOP is getting to work digging because at least some are bright enough to understand that we can fix it or the democrats can continue to fix it as they’ve done for decades. Rand Paul introduced a bill yesterday that targets taxes and regulations as a means of letting Detroit and other cities bail themselves out.
Detroit 187 was ab excellent show.
Don’t understand why it died.
I don’t have cable or TV but what I gather that cable television has become, the show failed because it didn’t have enough homosexual content in it for it to be successful.
taxpayers should never be asked to fund private ventures
Bourdain is a lefty who hates America
Don’t care.
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