The surge in the digital entertainment market helped partially offset the decrease in the global box office caused by theater closures during the pandemic. The global theatrical and home/mobile entertainment market, in turn, reached $80.8 billion USD last year, representing an 18 percent decrease from 2019, further reflecting the pandemic’s impact on the industry.

Including three previously announced titles, there are 170 total works currently scheduled to play at ATLFF 2021’s virtual, drive-in and in-person screenings. There were a record-breaking 9,400 combined films and screenplays submitted to the 2021 festival.

The legislature reconvened Monday, March 22 for legislative day 36 and will work through Thursday, March 25 completing legislative day 38. Wednesday, March 31, will be Sine Die, which is the final day for a bill to be passed by both chambers before being sent to the governor’s desk for approval or veto.

The Columbus Film Commission is inviting those interested to attend the next Focus Film Columbus GA event. This virtual event will take place on March 24th at 2:00 PM and will be hosted via ZOOM.

The Georgia Film Critics Association (GAFCA) has announced their slate of nominees for the GAFCA Awards celebrating the 2020 year in film. Founded in 2011, this year marks the 10th anniversary of the awards program for the critics group. GAFCA is made up of 40 film critics from around the state, representing print, television, radio and online media.

The House passed a resolution for the legislature to reconvene, Monday, March 1, for legislative day 25 and work Wednesday and Friday completing legislative day 27 on March 5. Monday, March 8, will be Crossover Day, which is the deadline for a bill to pass out of either legislative chamber in order to be considered this session.

Stathopoulos has extensive experience practicing in the areas of state and local taxation and economic development incentives, with an emphasis in entertainment tax incentives. He helped draft a portion of the Georgia Entertainment Industry Investment Act of 2008, which has made Georgia one of the leading U.S. destinations for film, television and digital entertainment productions.

Barry Jenkins released another beautiful teaser, In Aeternum, for the upcoming The Underground Railroad series. In an online article from IndieWire.com, his motivation behind the unique perspective of this latest teaser is explained. A large portion of the production was filmed in the Savannah Region and in other parts of Georgia. The limited series will debut on Amazon Prime in 2021.

The legislature reconvened Monday for legislative day 20 and work through Friday, February 26 completing legislative day 24.  We are approaching Crossover Day, the deadline for a bill to pass out of either legislative chamber in order to be considered this session, which takes place on the 28th legislative day.