The movie and film industry might not be the first thing that comes to mind when discussing the various thriving industries that are currently shaping Huntsville. But in a city that is often defined by engineers and rocket scientists, a new wave of award winning filmmakers are ushering in a new era for the film industry.

For much of its history, most movies or films produced in Huntsville were either very small or educational in nature. Katherine Johnson, Executive Director of Sheepshed Entertainment, elaborated on this in a recent interview with the Huntsville Business Journal.

“In the North Alabama region, there are probably between a dozen and two dozen feature films produced a year. Almost all of them are in the horror genre because they’re financially cheaper to make,” Johnson explained. “There is a small amount of reality TV like House Hunters and we also have a lot of government training films that get made every year at the Redstone Arsenal.”

She also explained that the reason places like north Georgia, with similar terrain, can get more large film productions is because other states provide many more incentives for production companies.

“I’ve never worked on a feature film in Alabama ever since I lived here. Alabama does not have a good incentive program. The incentives, mostly tax breaks and kickbacks depending on the budget, are much more appealing in states like Georgia and Florida for larger productions,” she informed.

Despite the lack of incentives, Sheepshed Entertainment films around 3-4 narrative projects a year in Huntsville. Their biggest project to date is an unnamed spy sitcom that is currently in post-production. Johnson made eight, thirty minute episodes during the COVID pandemic that she plans to sell to a streaming platform as a platform original.

Johnson won “Best Director of a Short Film” at the 2021 International Christian Film Festival for her film Choice. Sheepshead Entertainment also won “Best Fantasy Film” at the 2022 Pensacon Short Film Festival for their project, “The Center of Physical Therapy for Questing Gentlefolk.”

Johnson and Sheepshed Entertainment are not the only Huntsville filmmakers to win awards for recent projects produced in the city. Johnson acknowledges this when expressing her optimism for the Huntsville feature film industry going forward.

“I think it’s already growing. The people who are making marketable feature films that are of high quality and are going to festivals and theatres are on the increase. And the more people we have locally that are able to work on either others projects, the stronger we all get as filmmakers and it benefits the industry as a whole,” Katherine explained.

Huntsville native Jurian Isabelle produced his sci-fi thriller, God of Dreams, in Huntsville and is now getting ready to showcase his project in Miami after being nominated for Best Narrative Feature at the American Black Film Festival. Isabelle can win up to $2,500 if the film wins in that category and is also eligible to compete for the John Singleton Award for Best First Feature presented by Netflix, which offers a $5,000 cash prize. God of Dreams is currently available for viewing on Amazon Prime.

In an interview with the HBJ, Isabelle explained why Huntsville’s tradition of innovation lends itself to independent filmmakers to grow and thrive.

“Huntsville is a hotbed of technology and the era of innovation is constantly around us. I have traveled to other, bigger cities to shoot if I really need the location but I love shooting in Huntsville and I’ve never felt the need to leave Huntsville in order to become a filmmaker.”

His words are backed up by the quality of his work. God of Dreams was received positively by prominent movie review websites such as FilmThreat.

In the websites review, they write, “God of Dreams is a low-budget science-fiction indie film worthy of our support as an alternative to the big studio schlock. Isabelle managed to build a world worthy of the genre with basically no money. Isabelle produces some pretty dark and stark images in the end. His messaging is also on point. As an emerging Black filmmaker, he hits on topics of race without ever having to bring it up directly.”

Another feature film that was shot and set in Huntsville, Dark Entities, is set to premier at Bridge Street’s Cinemark Theatres at the end of May. Directed by Brandon McLemore, Dark Entities is a supernatural thriller set in Huntsville, Alabama in 1977. It follows three siblings who, after a tragic accident, move into the mysterious home they inherited. They discover the house holds dark secrets that seek to threaten everything they hold dear. Tickets are on sale now for the premiere at Bridge Street on Saturday, May 28th.

The main character of Dark Entities is played by local actress Elena Ontiveros, who also played a role in Isabelle’s God of Dreams. She offered her insight on what it was like to shoot two feature films in Huntsville and her thoughts on the industry’s future in the city.

“My experiences filming both Dark Entities and God of Dreams were far more professional than one would ever expect coming from Huntsville, AL. Even though I was filming two films that were complicated in the sense that one was a horror film, and one was a dystopian sci-fi film, the atmosphere on both sets was well coordinated and safe, which was huge considering both were filmed during the pandemic,” Ontiveros explained.

She continued, “Dark Entities was a blast because it was all local actors that you’ve seen in local shows filming a horror film with all practical stunts. It was a small, well bonded cast, which is very important since the film centers around a family and their experiences in a haunted house.”

When asked her view on the film industry as a whole in Huntsville, Ontiveros echoed the same optimism that Katherine Johnson shared.

“The Huntsville film industry is always growing and evolving. Every single day, I discover a new group in Huntsville that is filming short films, series, or feature films. Huntsville is filled with ambitious creatives who are ready to put it on the map, and I believe we will.”

Images provided by Brandon McLemore, Dark Entities, and Jurian Isabelle, God of Dreams.