On June 27, 1990, the Rochester Film Office was born. Few would argue that three decades of driving the economic impact of film production in our region of Upstate New York is something worth celebrating. However, 2020 was not the right time to gather for that celebration. And so we find ourselves two years wiser and looking forward to our belated 30th Anniversary Celebration in a few short weeks.
Almost exactly a year ago, we posted a blog entry detailing the founding and the early years of the Rochester/Finger Lakes Film Commission written by Film Office founder Jerry Stoeffhaas. Jerry’s account beautifully encapsulates several of the key events and recognizes several of the key individuals who have been crucial in building the foundation on which the Rochester/Finger Lakes Film Commission stands today.
In short, the Film Office was founded in order to meet a growing need for a centralized base of resources for filmmakers interested in shooting upstate, and just as significantly, to market the region and it’s locations and infrastructure to those who hadn’t yet considered shooting here. It was founded with the support of Monroe County with the goal of increasing production spending, and has succeeded in that goal by supporting hundreds of productions over these 32 years. These productions range from music videos to commercials, corporate training pieces to television series, local independent films to, yes, Hollywood features. A list of noteworthy productions from throughout the years can be found here.
On that list is Cheap Shots, a film co-written and co-directed by Jerry Stoeffhaas himself, alongside Jeff Ureles. Cheap Shots was shot in the Finger Lakes region and premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 1989. Jerry’s experiences producing Cheap Shots without the support of a regional film commission directly contributed to the foundation of the film office. Cheap Shots enjoyed a short life as a video store favorite, but has been unavailable for a number of years, with the few known prints in storage and in need of restoration.
However, with the support of the Rochester/Finger Lakes Film Commission, in 2022 a brand new scan and full digital restoration has been completed by Rochester’s own DeBergerac Productions. It is with great excitement that we will host the first theatrical screening of Cheap Shots in over 30 years as part of the celebration of the 30th Anniversary of the foundation of the Rochester/Finger Lakes Film Commission.
An important part of any anniversary celebration is reflection on the past; however, even more important is celebrating how powerfully the years push us into a bright future. And much as Cheap Shots contributed to the creation a Film Office that generates millions of dollars in economic impact on an annual basis, the Film Office has led the efforts that have given new life to the film – something we will look at right here, in an upcoming blog entry.
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