Columbus Video Production Pulse: Late-September Highlights
Columbus video production is surging into fall with fresh festivals, new incentives and studio developments that promise more cameras—and jobs—across central Ohio. Below is your 600-plus-word briefing on what matters most.
Inthrive Film Festival (Sep 24–25)
- Two-day showcase at Gateway Film Center spotlights shorts and features created by and about incarceration survivors, including two Columbus filmmakers
- Post-screening panels pair directors with reform advocates, offering producers a pipeline to authentic voices for future projects
- Festival partners with the city re-entry office, waiving location fees for crews that hire returning citizens—a first for Ohio festivals
Permitting & Incentive Deadlines
- Permit clock: Apply five days before any shoot, or 30 days with road closures, through the Special Events portal
- Real-time fee calculator now live, helping producers budget faster and avoid late fees
- Motion Picture Incentive: Fall round accepts applications until 30 Sep; rebates stack with Ohio’s 30 % state tax credit
Wexner First Thursday Premiere (Oct 2)
The Wexner Center’s First Thursday lineup on 2 Oct extends the festival energy with an artist talk, gallery mixers and an evening of curated short films—an easy scout for cinematographers seeking fresh collaborators. Although just inside the two-week window, crews can capture B-roll of the packed plaza without additional permits, as the event occurs on OSU property governed by campus media rules, not city parks.
Studio Watch: Fallback Progress
Dublin City Council’s economic-development pact with $40 million Fallback Studios remains active, requiring an occupancy permit by 1 May 2025 and full opening by June despite earlier lawsuit-related delays. Planning-and-zoning dockets from 19 Sep confirm amended site plans, signaling construction is back on track for the LED-volume soundstage that will double Columbus’ indoor shooting capacity. Producers anticipating year-round climate-controlled space should pencil December for soft-opening tours.
Student & Genre Spotlights Ahead
OSU’s DigiEYE 2025 student showcase (9 Oct) queues up emerging talent in the Film/Video Theater, offering recruiters an early look at local grads skilled in Unreal-engine workflows. A week later, the award-winning Nightmares Film Festival storms Gateway with its tenth-anniversary slate (16-19 Oct); badge sales are already brisk among horror distributors scouting Midwest premieres.
Closing Thoughts
With social-impact storytelling on screen, streamlined permits behind it and a game-changing studio rising in the suburbs, central Ohio’s film calendar proves the region is no longer fly-over country for creators. Keep submitting, keep scouting and—most importantly—keep those cameras rolling.
