BYUtv series 'Extinct' among productions receiving state incentives

The first season of “Extinct” was among several productions to receive incentives or have earlier incentives increased by the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) board at its October meeting.

Utah has landed another television series, after a state board earlier had approved an incentive for its pilot episode.

The first season of “Extinct” was among several productions to receive incentives or have earlier incentives increased by the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) board at its October meeting.

The board in July had approved an incentive of $170,000 for the pilot for “Extinct,” based on the production company spending $850,000 in Utah. However, the incentive was increased to $2 million for the series’ first season, expected to result in $8 million in Utah spending by the production company, Extinct LLC.

The science fiction series is being made for BYUtv, making it BYUtv’s second scripted series. The first was “Granite Flats.” Written by Orson Scott Card (“Ender’s Game”) and with local director Ryan Little (“Saints and Soldiers,” “Forever Strong”), the series is set 400 years after the extinction of the human race. The producer is Adam Abel.

The production is expected to have 53 cast and crew, with principal photography scheduled through March 1 in Utah and Washington counties.

“Utah has long been a hot spot for feature films, but this year we’ve really become the place to produce new series,” said Virginia Pearce, director of the Utah Film Commission. “Whether it’s for the web or for HBO, our talented workforce and varied landscapes make it easy for these projects to come in and get to work, and Utah benefits economically.”

The board also approved an incentive of up to $375,000 for Worthwhile Life Movie LLC for “A Worthwhile Life,” a holiday cable TV feature expected to spend $1.5 million in Utah, primarily in and around Salt Lake City. Principal photography is scheduled through Nov. 4 and the production is expected to have 75 cast and crew.

The movie’s director is Kevin Connor. Producers are Stan Spry, Kathy Kloves and Risa Shapiro. It stars Andrian Grenier (“Entourage”) and Amy Smart (“Justified”).

The board approved a tax credit of up to $330,267 for Nevah LLC for “Play by Play,” a digital comedy series expected to spend $1.3 million in Utah. Principal shooting is scheduled for Nov. 13-Dec. 23 in Salt Lake County. The director is Charles Hood. Producers are Kevin Mann, Brendan Bragg and Jordana Mollick.

The GOED board also amended incentives for two other projects, like “Extinct,” that have decided to spend more money in Utah than originally planned. In August, MTT Enterprises Inc. was approved for an incentive of $146,148 based on spending of $730,839 for “Snatchers,” a digital science fiction/comedy series. The incentive was increased to $167,556 based on adjusted expected spending of $837,781 in Utah.

Camera 40 Productions LLC in July was approved for an incentive of $775,884 based on spending $3.1 million in Utah on the digital fantasy series “The Outpost, Season 1.” The adjusted incentive is $1.2 million, based on expected spending of more than $4.8 million in Utah. About 120 cast and crew will work on the series, with shooting in Washington, Utah and Millard counties.

So far in 2016, 21 production projects have been approved for incentives, with an estimated economic impact of $50.3 million in Utah. They include new productions from ABC Television, HBO Networks and Netflix. The Disney Channel also returned to Utah with a new TV series, “Andi Mack,” currently in production.