Florida Statutes
Part I - General Provisions (Ss. 288.0001-288.1258)
288.1251 - Promotion and development of entertainment industry; Office of Film and Entertainment; creation; purpose; powers and duties.

(1) CREATION.—
(a) There is hereby created within the department the Office of Film and Entertainment for the purpose of developing, marketing, promoting, and providing services to the state’s entertainment industry.
(b) The department shall conduct a national search for a qualified person to fill the position of Commissioner of Film and Entertainment when the position is vacant. The Secretary of Economic Opportunity has the responsibility to hire the film commissioner. Qualifications for the film commissioner include, but are not limited to, the following:
1. A working knowledge of the equipment, personnel, financial, and day-to-day production operations of the industries to be served by the Office of Film and Entertainment;
2. Marketing and promotion experience related to the film and entertainment industries to be served;
3. Experience working with a variety of individuals representing large and small entertainment-related businesses, industry associations, local community entertainment industry liaisons, and labor organizations; and
4. Experience working with a variety of state and local governmental agencies.


(2) POWERS AND DUTIES.—
(a) The Office of Film and Entertainment, in performance of its duties, shall:
1. In consultation with the Florida Film and Entertainment Advisory Council, update the strategic plan every 5 years to guide the activities of the Office of Film and Entertainment in the areas of entertainment industry development, marketing, promotion, liaison services, field office administration, and information. The plan shall:
a. Be annual in construction and ongoing in nature.
b. Include recommendations relating to the organizational structure of the office.
c. Include an annual budget projection for the office for each year of the plan.
d. Include an operational model for the office to use in implementing programs for rural and urban areas designed to:
(I) Develop and promote the state’s entertainment industry.
(II) Have the office serve as a liaison between the entertainment industry and other state and local governmental agencies, local film commissions, and labor organizations.
(III) Gather statistical information related to the state’s entertainment industry.
(IV) Provide information and service to businesses, communities, organizations, and individuals engaged in entertainment industry activities.
(V) Administer field offices outside the state and coordinate with regional offices maintained by counties and regions of the state, as described in sub-sub-subparagraph (II), as necessary.

e. Include performance standards and measurable outcomes for the programs to be implemented by the office.
f. Include an assessment of, and make recommendations on, the feasibility of creating an alternative public-private partnership for the purpose of contracting with such a partnership for the administration of the state’s entertainment industry promotion, development, marketing, and service programs.

2. Develop, market, and facilitate a working relationship between state agencies and local governments in cooperation with local film commission offices for out-of-state and indigenous entertainment industry production entities.
3. Implement a structured methodology prescribed for coordinating activities of local offices with each other and the commissioner’s office.
4. Represent the state’s indigenous entertainment industry to key decisionmakers within the national and international entertainment industry, and to state and local officials.
5. Prepare an inventory and analysis of the state’s entertainment industry, including, but not limited to, information on crew, related businesses, support services, job creation, talent, and economic impact and coordinate with local offices to develop an information tool for common use.
6. Identify, solicit, and recruit entertainment production opportunities for the state.
7. Assist rural communities and other small communities in the state in developing the expertise and capacity necessary for such communities to develop, market, promote, and provide services to the state’s entertainment industry.

(b) The Office of Film and Entertainment, in the performance of its duties, may:
1. Conduct or contract for specific promotion and marketing functions, including, but not limited to, production of a statewide directory, production and maintenance of an Internet website, establishment and maintenance of a toll-free number, organization of trade show participation, and appropriate cooperative marketing opportunities.
2. Conduct its affairs, carry on its operations, establish offices, and exercise the powers granted by this act in any state, territory, district, or possession of the United States.
3. Carry out any program of information, special events, or publicity designed to attract entertainment industry to Florida.
4. Develop relationships and leverage resources with other public and private organizations or groups in their efforts to publicize to the entertainment industry in this state, other states, and other countries the depth of Florida’s entertainment industry talent, crew, production companies, production equipment resources, related businesses, and support services, including the establishment of and expenditure for a program of cooperative advertising with these public and private organizations and groups in accordance with the provisions of chapter 120.
5. Provide and arrange for reasonable and necessary promotional items and services for such persons as the office deems proper in connection with the performance of the promotional and other duties of the office.
6. Prepare an annual economic impact analysis on entertainment industry-related activities in the state.
7. Request or accept any grant, payment, or gift of funds or property made by this state, the United States, or any department or agency thereof, or by any individual, firm, corporation, municipality, county, or organization, for any or all of the purposes of the Office of Film and Entertainment’s 5-year strategic plan or those permitted activities enumerated in this paragraph. Such funds shall be deposited in the Grants and Donations Trust Fund of the Executive Office of the Governor for use by the Office of Film and Entertainment in carrying out its responsibilities and duties as delineated in law. The office may expend such funds in accordance with the terms and conditions of any such grant, payment, or gift in the pursuit of its administration or in support of fulfilling its duties and responsibilities. The office shall separately account for the public funds and the private funds deposited into the trust fund.


History.—s. 3, ch. 99-251; s. 5, ch. 2001-106; s. 25, ch. 2010-147; s. 167, ch. 2011-142; s. 26, ch. 2021-25.

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