Austin has been attracting film makers for almost one hundred years and is considered the film capital of Texas. Since 1910, Austin had made over 1, 000 films and 100, 000 commercials according to the Texas Film Commission. The geographic diversity that Austin provides, along with a large pool of properly trained and talented crew members make Austin appealing to film makers.

Texas has been providing the resources the state needs to maintain its infrastructure with local film programs and institutional training from University of Texas. Not only does Texas provide professional and experienced film crews but it hosts several nationally recognized film festivals. South by Southwest, which catered to 20, 000 tourists in 2005, the Austin Film Festival, and Cine Las Americas are only a few festivals that can be found in Austin.

To encourage economic development in Austin, the state is providing certain incentives such as sales tax exemptions,hotel occupany tax, and fuel use. The sales tax exemption applies to the entire amount of the state sales tax which is 6.25% as well as .25% of local sales tax. The Hotel Occupany Tax will credit you if you notify your hotel that you will be staying up to 30 consecutive days in your hotel. For complete details and official documentation please visit www.governor.state.tx.us/divisions/film