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Published Saturday, October 25, 2008 in Local

Special

Co-producers Jason Winn, lower right, and Mike Buchanan of Tin Roof Films, a Coweta-based production company, take a look at a scene captured during filming of “Last Bullet,” a Vietnam War-era short film recently shot at Senoia’s Riverwood Studios. (Photo courtesy of Amy Sinclair)

Tin Roof Films productions may help local economy

By Megan Almon

The Times-Herald

Jason Winn "woke up one day and wanted to make movies."

Two weeks ago -- more than a decade after his epiphany -- he was literally up to his elbows doing just that, manually digging a foxhole on the grounds of Senoia's Riverwood Studios for a Vietnam-era-set short film, "Last Bullet." It is the latest project by Tin Roof Films, the Coweta-based production company Winn founded with pal and screenwriter Mike Buchanan and fellow-writer Diane Lang.

The trio created "Treasure of the Four Lions: The Lost Gold of the Confederacy" nearly two years ago, and filmed the trailer for the Goonies-style family film at Riverwood Studios. The film was envisioned with Riverwood's resources in mind, so when Winn and Buchanan found an investor for the movie they immediately invited him for a tour of the area.

But the investor had a further-reaching vision in mind.

Why stop at one film? Why not invest in an entity that can continue to make family-feature films for years to come. Tin Roof Films was conceived.

"I thought about the bigger picture," Winn said. "It was a win-win situation."

The timing of such an endeavor couldn't have been better.

In May, Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue signed the 2008 Georgia Entertainment Industry Investment Act, which grants a tax credit to qualified production and post-production expenditures for the gamut of entertainment industry facets -- feature films, television series, music videos, even animation and game development.

Winn projects a "huge economic growth in the next 10 to 20 years in [Georgia's] film industry."

"There are a lot of filmmakers who have a lot to say," he said.

With the Riverwood Studios located in Senoia and establishment of Tin Roof Films, Coweta may very well see a sizable chunk of that economic growth.

"Entertainment thrives even when the economy is in recession," Winn said.

"When the nation is in a depressed state of mind, still entertainment reigns," Buchanan echoed. "It provides an escape."

Coweta's natural attributes aside, Winn and Buchanan have enjoyed the sense of community the area has brought to their growing window of the industry. After all, it usually takes more than a couple of guys and a camera to make a feature film.

For "Last Bullet," a 15-minute short film about two friends and the decisions they make in the heat of battle to survive, Tin Roof coordinated with local businesses to provide food, advertising and other services -- including portable potties -- throughout the creation process. The finished product will be shown throughout the Southeast, with proceeds benefiting veterans' groups.

Tin Roof Film's original brainchild, "Treasure of the Four Lions," is partially funded, and a major Los Angeles talent agency is looking at names for casting. The plot centers around three kids and their search for a long-hidden stash of lost Confederate gold -- think Indiana Jones, but with Civil War history and younger explorers.

According to Winn, the much-anticipated production of "Four Lions" is slated to begin in the spring.

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