Tarantino and Telluride may be match made in film

Colorado’s Economic Development Commission has approved a $5 million carrot to bring famed director/filmmaker Quentin Tarantino here.

The $5 million incentives, approved last week, will go to help fund the making of “The Hateful Eight” in Telluride.

“What’s fabulous about this is everyone’s been saying Colorado is perfect for a Western, and this is a Western,” state film commissioner Donald Zuckerman told the EDC commissioners, as reported in Westword.

“The film’s budget is $44 million with an estimated $25 million of that to be spent in Colorado. The moviemakers would likely hire 168 crew members in Colorado, with an estimated payroll of $15.6 million, Zuckerman said. Filming would begin in December and is expected to take a total of 49 days, with a break for the holidays.

However, the specific location that Tarantino has chosen for the film – the Schmid Ranch just outside Telluride – is subject to a conservation easement, Zuckerman said, and the film’s backers are working to get permission from the San Miguel County commissioners to use the land. Zuckerman said that all of the structures that would be built on the land would be temporary and could be removed after filming. He said he’s hopeful the county commissioners will give Tarantino the green light.

Imdb.com describes the plot for “The Hateful Eight” like this: “In post-Civil War Wyoming, bounty hunters try to find shelter during a blizzard but get involved in a plot of betrayal and deception” – is the biggest movie to consider filming in Colorado since Zuckerman came on board as film commissioner in 2011. In 2012, state legislators approved a plan to attract more film projects to the state by increasing the cash rebate offered to moviemakers from 10 percent to 20 percent in order to bring it in line with competitors such as New Mexico and Utah. The legislature also created a program to back up to 20 percent of a producer’s bank loan.

According to the Westword story, “The official cast of ‘The Hateful Eight’ hasn’t been announced yet, but a script reading in April included Samuel L. Jackson, Tim Roth, Kurt Russell and Bruce Dern. The latest rumor is that Viggo Mortenson is also being considered for the film.”

For the rest of the story, go to www.blogs.westword.com/latestword/2014/09/quentin_tarantino_the_hateful_eight_film_in_colorado.php.