As my son and I sat in the movie theater watching Mud, I thought about the many places I recognized in southeast Arkansas. There were the Big Banjo Pizza and the Piggly Wiggly along U.S. 65 in Dumas and the old motel by the U.S. 165 bridge over the Arkansas River. The movie, with its big budget and stars, also served as a reminder that we’re perhaps entering a golden era for the state’s film sector.

Last month’s Little Rock Film Festival, which moved from a commercial theater in the city’s Riverdale area to venues in downtown Little Rock and North Little Rock, was a major success, with more than 25,000 people turning out to watch almost 80 films. The festival used the Arkansas Repertory Theatre in downtown Little Rock and the Argenta Community Theater in downtown North Little Rock for screenings. Festival organizers will have another venue next spring with the addition of a 325-seat theater in the new Arcade Building in the River Market district.

The festival was founded by Little Rock natives Brent and Craig Renaud. The brothers have become nationally recognized documentary filmmakers who brought immediate credibility to the event. That credibility has been enhanced by the involvement of film producer Courtney Pledger, who was named last year as the director of the Arkansas Motion Picture Institute. The nonprofit organization was established to enhance the state’s film culture, and also serves as an umbrella organization for the Little Rock Film Festival, the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival and the Ozark Foothills FilmFest at Batesville.

Add to these developments the fact that the state’s film commissioner, Christopher Crane, is widely recognized as one of the best in the country at what he does. Crane’s office is part of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission. Next, throw in last year’s creation of the Arkansas Production Alliance, which is yet another effort to keep the industry growing in the state.

The initial partners were the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Northwest Arkansas Council and the Economic Development Commission. The Greater Eureka Springs Chamber of Commerce has since joined the effort to market potential production locations. The alliance also gives the state’s growing crew base and support industries a platform from which to market their skills, goods and services to productions shooting in Arkansas. The alliance works with Reel-Scout, the industry’s leading content management provider. Ed Henegar, the Reel-Scout president, said the establishment of the alliance allowed the state to “jump into a select group of leading film commissions in the nation, putting Arkansas well on its way to becoming a major destination for film and digital content development.”

Gary Newton of Little Rock, who has long been involved in advancing the state’s film industry, says Arkansas has talent as never before: “Just like the Little Rock Film Festival is uniquely relevant because it’s produced by filmmakers, so too are the efforts of the Arkansas Motion Picture Institute because it has an active producer at its helm in Courtney Pledger. In a talent-driven industry, talent is driving Arkansas’ burgeoning role in that industry. That brings respect, credibility and results because our professionals like Courtney have lived and worked in the world’s major production center but are now choosing to do what they love in a place they love. Our intent is to export content, not content producers.”

Pledger was born in Little Rock but grew up in Jackson, Miss. Her mother was from El Dorado, and her father was from Fordyce. Pledger first wanted to be an actress, spending time in Los Angeles and New York. She was even the resident photographer at one point for a Jane Fonda speaking tour. Pledger produced her first television program in 1982. She moved back to Little Rock after a career spent in Los Angeles and London.

Last year, Pledger signed on as the interim director of the Hot Springs Documentary Film Institute, inheriting an organization that was hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt and had been wracked by infighting. Pledger saw to it that the festival continued last fall, and she will be involved again this year in North America’s oldest documentary festival. She says her mission is to “win people’s confidence back” in the festival and feels she’s well on her way to achieving that goal. It’s another reason she’s happy to be in Arkansas, a place that has never been considered a film industry hotbed.

“My goal is to help build an industry here so the people who work in it can stay in Arkansas,” Pledger says. “That’s about to happen. We really are at the tipping point. I’m busier here now than I ever was in California. There’s just so much potential. There’s so much energy. You can feel it. For one thing, we have the best film commission in the country.”

She describes her position at the Motion Picture Institute as that of “a facilitator” who works for a “passionate board made up of everything from business leaders to film professionals. Our job is to build alliances and recognize where the potential is in the state. A lot of people would have liked to have helped grow the film industry in the past, but they were never asked. The success of Mud could really be a catalyst for things taking off in Arkansas.”

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Freelance columnist Rex Nelson is the president of Arkansas’ Independent Colleges and Universities. He’s also the author of the Southern Fried blog at rexnelsonsouthernfried.com.

Editorial, Pages 17 on 06/19/2013