Louisiana’s loss is Georgia’s gain with jobs in TV, film

Colin Lutke is living proof that Georgia’s tax breaks for film and TV production bring jobs to the state.

The set lighting technician moved here last year from Louisiana, which stopped giving tax breaks to film and TV productions. Shows and movies left, and workers fled – many for Georgia, where state tax breaks for the industry generate some $8 billion in economic impact.

“The entire industry in Louisiana tanked

As a set lighting technician, he brings lights to the set and adjusts them to the director of photography’s specifications.

His current project is “I, Tonya,” filming in Macon and around Atlanta. It’s about Tonya Harding, the disgraced ice skater, and stars A-lister Margot Robbie, of “The Wolf of Wall Street” and “Suicide Squad.”

Lutke has been in the industry for four years, starting as a production assistant. He’s worked on “Braxton Family Values,” “I Saw the Light,” “The Originals” and more.

He and his wife love living in Georgia and exploring Atlanta’s natural environment.

“The tax breaks are the reason (productions) shoot here,” he says. “Without them, we would probably be in Los Angeles or New York.”