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Governor declares state 'camera ready'
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The Camera Ready program was established four years ago to attract movie and film producers. - photo by Stock photo

Gov. Nathan Deal and the Georgia Film, Music and Digital Entertainment Office, a division of the Georgia Department of Economic Development, announced Monday that all 159 Georgia counties have been designated Camera Ready.
The state’s Camera Ready Community Program is the first of its kind in the nation in offering a community-based production-assistance program.
The program was established in 2010 to help develop and sustain the burgeoning film and television industry by offering production companies access to local resources and information. The program is a special designation given to participating Georgia communities interested in cultivating and attracting the entertainment industry. Camera Ready communities name liaisons who can assist film and television production companies on a local level.
“Not only does this industry employ more than 77,900 Georgians, but it creates a sustainable environment with new infrastructure, more business opportunities for existing Georgia businesses and new educational programs through our universities and technical colleges,” Deal said. “I congratulate every community in Georgia for taking part in this statewide program and making our state a more attractive place for film and television production.”  
The final 20 counties that received the Camera Ready designation include Long, Atkinson, Baker, Burke, Charlton, Echols, Effingham, Glascock, Heard, Irwin, Jefferson, Jones, Peach, Pierce, Treutlen, Twiggs, Ware, Wheeler, Wilcox and Worth.
“Georgia’s Camera Ready liaisons offer productions direct access to local resources and play an essential role in attracting movie and television projects to Georgia,” GDEcD Commissioner Chris Carr said. “This industry is already having a significant impact in communities across the state creating new jobs, investment opportunities, new tourism product and beyond. I am thrilled that every county in Georgia wants to be part of the action.”
GFMDE Office Project Manager Craig Dominey assisted each community with obtaining its designation.
“When we began this program four years ago, we had 16 communities certified as Camera Ready,” GFMDE Office Deputy Commissioner Lee Thomas said. “With every county prepared to assist the film industry, Georgia is better equipped to welcome and serve more productions statewide.”
More than 158 feature-film and television productions were shot in Georgia during fiscal year 2014, with a combined production spend of $1.4 billion. As a whole, the industry’s economic impact for FY14 hit $5.1 billion, up from $1.33 billion in FY10 when the program began.
To learn more about Georgia’s Camera Ready Community Program, go to www.georgia.org/cameraready.

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Record April boosts Savannah's container trade at port
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The Port of Savannah moved 356,700 20-foot equivalent container units in April, an increase of 7.1 percent. - photo by Provided

The Georgia Ports Authority's busiest April ever pushed its fiscal year-to-date totals to more than 3.4 million 20-foot equivalent container units (TEUs), an increase of 8.8 percent, or 280,000 TEUs, compared to the first 10 months of fiscal 2017.

"We're on track to move more than 300,000 TEUs in every month of the fiscal year, which will be a first for the authority," said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. "We're also anticipating this to be the first fiscal year for the Port of Savannah to handle more than 4 million TEUs."

April volumes reached 356,700 20-foot equivalent container units, up 7.1 percent or 23,700 units. As the fastest growing containerport in the nation, the Port of Savannah has achieved a compound annual growth rate of more than 5 percent a year over the past decade.

"As reported in the recent economic impact study by UGA's Terry College of Business, trade through Georgia's deepwater ports translates into jobs, higher incomes and greater productivity," said GPA Board Chairman Jimmy Allgood. "In every region of Georgia, employers rely on the ports of Savannah and Brunswick to help them become more competitive on the global stage."

To strengthen the Port of Savannah's ability to support the state's future economic growth, the GPA Board approved $66 million in terminal upgrades, including $24 million for the purchase of 10 additional rubber-tired gantry cranes.  

"The authority is committed to building additional capacity ahead of demand to ensure the Port of Savannah remains a trusted link in the supply chain serving Georgia and the Southeast," Lynch said.

The crane purchase will bring the fleet at Garden City Terminal to 156 RTGs. The new cranes will support three new container rows, which the board approved in March. The additional container rows will increase annual capacity at the Port of Savannah by 150,000 TEUs.

The RTGs will work over stacks that are five containers high and six deep, with a truck lane running alongside the stacks. Capable of running on electricity, the cranes will have a lift capacity of 50 metric tons.

The cranes will arrive in two batches of five in the first and second quarters of calendar year 2019.

 Also at Monday's meeting, the GPA Board elected its officers, with Jimmy Allgood as chairman, Will McKnight taking the position of vice chairman and Joel Wooten elected as the next secretary/treasurer.

For more information, visit gaports.com, or contact GPA Senior Director of Corporate Communications Robert Morris at (912) 964-3855 or rmorris@gaports.com.

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