MACON, Ga. -- Over the last year and a half, filming in Macon saw new heights.

According to Visit Macon, the county made $4 to $6 million dollars from productions in 2019.

That money went directly to locally owned and small businesses like restaurants, hardware stores, or security companies.

Governor Kemp announced late last week that Georgia is now open for business to the television, film, and streaming industry.

With just 6 months left in the year, Aaron Buzza, the Vice President of Development at Visit Macon, says it’s hard to tell how much revenue the county could see in such a short time. However, he believes there will be business.

He says his phone has been ringing over the past few weeks from groups interested in coming to film here in Middle Georgia, "It seems like there is a lot of interest from the industry and as soon as everybody's ready with the new standards in place, everybody's ready to go."

The new standards are a 10-page guide, called the 'COVID-19: Georgia Best Practices for Film and Television,' which outlines how production companies should modify their operations before and after returning to the set.

The guide was released by the Georgia Film Office. It recommends new practices like reducing the number of background actors, scouting for locations virtually, eliminating open casting calls, and even quarantining costumes.

Buzza believes the reopening of Georgia to the film and television industry can be done safely and is a huge benefit to the local economy.

"We’re going to see productions come back into communities statewide and that’s going to support the local businesses. That’s going to generate hotel tax, that’s going to generate sales tax and that helps police and fire and schools."

He says the community shouldn't worry too much about the spread of infection because production crews are concerned for their safety just as much as the community is.

Buzza adds that seeing Macon back on the big screen doesn't just help the economy, it gives people a sense of pride.

https://wgxa.tv/news/local/georgia-back-open-for-film-and-television-productions