Why We Don’t Need Hollywood

Building the Twin Cities Film Future Together

We often hear: you have to move to L.A. or New York if you want your film to matter. I believe that’s changing and that the Twin Cities are fertile ground for a new wave of filmmaking, rooted in community, authenticity, and shared effort.

Historically, regional film scenes have been under-resourced and often ignored by the larger system. But that doesn’t mean we’re waiting. Minnesota is already making strides: Explore Minnesota Film recently launched to provide incentives, resources, and infrastructure to local filmmakers. Meanwhile, state tax incentive programs have made our region more competitive for production dollars.

Still, capital and visibility don’t always trickle down. That’s where community-driven effort matters most.

“When you focus on your own backyard, you realize there’s so much richness right there waiting to be told.”

Chloé Zhao

You don’t need a big name or executive backing to begin. You need peers, trust, feedback, and a place to try things.

Here’s what building a local film ecosystem looks like:

Peer Collaboration: Writers, directors, producers, editors all working in proximity and sharing resources.
Mentorship & Learning: Elders and newer voices exchanging insight.
Shared Resources: Lending gear, co-producing, swapping crew hours.
Local Investment: Using local venues, hiring local crew, supporting local infrastructure.
Story Sovereignty: Telling Minnesota stories by Minnesotans, with nuance, authenticity, and power.

We don’t have to wait for Hollywood to say yes. We can build our own system, our own community, our own standards of excellence. The Crewsaide is intended to be a platform for doing exactly that. A place where the next chapter of Minnesota filmmaking is written by those who live here.