Effects of economic incentives in the American film industry: an ecological approach
ABSTRACT
US states have offered billions of dollars in film industry incentives, but despite the popularity of these incentives, the effects of these investments are unclear. This study adopts an ecological framework and tests the hypothesis that film incentives are effective when they produce changes in the composition of organizational communities. The results of longitudinal linear mixed-effects models, centered around incentive introduction in each state, show that above the impact of their dollar value, the simple presence of economic incentives, organizational diversity and the presence of dominant organizational populations are associated with increases in filming, employment, and new establishments. Theoretical and policy implications are discussed.