Recap of the Seattle, Spokane, and Bellingham Post-Legislative Session Events

Washington Filmworks Executive Director Amy Lillard and Board Chair Don Jensen.

This summer, Washington Filmworks recently hosted three Post-Legislative Session Events in Seattle, Spokane, and Bellingham.

Jim Hedrick and Emily Murphy, two of the lobbyists working on behalf of the statewide film industry during the 2015 legislative session, joined the Seattle debrief to give us an update about what happened the last weeks of session, yet their points were stressed and echoed at all three events. Discussed was the challenging legislative climate in Olympia, and how the only tax preferences included in the final budget were those that were soon to expire. Also emphasized was that SB 6027 was still seriously being considered until the last hours of the legislative session, largely because of the impressive grassroots efforts made by the community. The campaign raised our profile in Olympia and beyond, with:

2,040 Petition Signees
300+ Attendees at Film Day
270 Business Letter of Support Signees
84 Legislative Meetings
44 Blog Posts
40 Email Blasts
9 Town Hall Events

Filmworks Executive Director Amy Lillard, along with Board members and staff, attended all three events and talked about our legislative awareness campaign. There was much discussion about the importance of pursuing legislative action again soon, but also reflection on our collective statewide efforts from this past session. Also highlighted were the specific campaign tools that were extremely effective – including our call-in day, Dial for Dollars – as well as how important and involved the film community was during our push until the very end.

Washington Filmworks extends a special thank you to St. John’s Bar & Eatery in Seattle, The Bing Crosby Theatre in Spokane, and Pickford Film Center in Bellingham for hosting the events!