SB1922 SD2

PART I

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that in 2007, emerging creative media programs at the University of Hawaii academy for creative media, at Waianae high school, or within a broad range of multidisciplinary programs like Project EAST on the neighbor islands have now achieved a specific level of achievements to evaluate their performance in the context of what a globally-integrated economy requires. As pointed out by New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, in his recent op-ed commentary endorsing the National Center on Education and the Economy’s report: "We need to radically overhaul . . . an education system designed in the 1900’s for people to do 'routine work' and refocus it on producing people who can imagine things that have never been available before, who can create ingenious marketing and sales campaigns, write books, build furniture, make movies and design software that will capture people’s imaginations and become indispensable for millions" (December 13, 2006, New York Times).

Just as Waianae Searider Productions has demonstrated the transformational power of multi-media literacy to engage our most at-risk students, and Project EAST students have distinguished themselves in national competitions with their homegrown science-technology and multimedia skills, Hawaii has the opportunity to establish itself as a true "crossroads of the Pacific" for digital and musical education. It is time for Hawaii to take full advantage of its natural constituency with the countries of the Pacific rim and the rising tide of global popular culture in all its forms (including video games, animation, indigenous film, and music) leveraging Hawaii's inherent strengths.

The purpose of this Act is to provide financial incentives and appropriate funds for the growth of Hawaii's creative media.

PART II

SECTION 2. Since being approved by the University of Hawaii board of regents three years ago, the academy for creative media is the fastest growing program at the University of Hawaii. With two hundred seventy enrolled students (including forty-five majors) who fill two hundred fifty-three seats in twenty-nine courses in film production, screenwriting, indigenous filmmaking, computer animation, critical studies, and video game design. More than three hundred fifty original short films and video games have been written, directed, and produced by students that reflect their unique diversity and backgrounds. Over forty student films were screened at film festivals from Atlanta to Shanghai, including the Hawaii International Film Festival 2004-2006. Students are offered internship opportunities with major motion picture productions (Superman Returns) and television shows (LOST and local morning news shows), and have opportunities to showcase their work on local television, such as commercials for Toyota/Scion of Hawaii, which were entirely produced by students.

The school recently received a total of $795,600 that was privately raised or gifts from generous donors and supporters to build, expand, and install the school's animation render farm, a bank of over fifty computers that efficiently converts, assigns, and monitors animation projects, at Leeward community college. The animation render farm project will provide system-wide animation computing power, via the Internet, to digital media programs on all of the University of Hawaii campuses and Hawaii schools. Furthermore, a $500,000 federal grant was received for the school to produce an original documentary on statehood, which is currently in post-production.

The purpose of this part is to:

(1) Authorize the academy for creative media to utilize applicable tax credits for the financing, construction, and equipping of the academy for creative media at the University of Hawaii; and

(2) Appropriate funds for the planning, design, and construction for a permanent facility for the academy of creative media.

SECTION 3. Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, including any law that may either limit or disqualify the costs associated with the planning, design, and construction of a permanent facility for the academy for creative media at the University of Hawaii from utilizing the tax credits available under Act 221, Session Laws of Hawaii 2001, or any other tax credit provisions that may apply, any applicable tax credit relating to digital media, film, television, or new market development, or any combination of general funds and tax credits may be utilized for the financing of the construction and equipping of the academy for creative media at the University of Hawaii.

SECTION 4. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ , or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2007-2008, and the same sum, or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2008-2009, for the planning, design, and construction of a permanent facility for the academy for creative media at the University of Hawaii.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the University of Hawaii for the purposes of this Act.

PART III

SECTION 5. The legislature finds that as one of the fastest growing industries in Hawaii, the digital media industry requires a local incubator facility to provide a cohesive and integrated site for developing the infrastructure for film and television productions and interactive game development. This incubator would be a state-of-the-art mixed use facility that combines industry, government, and academic entities. In addition to providing a collaborative learning environment for students, faculty, and professionals in the field, the facility would serve as an incubator for digital media businesses and as a research and development lab for the creation of intellectual property.

The purpose of this part is to establish and fund a digital media incubator facility.

SECTION 6. The department of business, economic development, and tourism, in coordination with the University of Hawaii, shall oversee the leasing, operating, and maintenance of a digital media incubator facility. The department may enter into contracts with other government agencies, the county economic development boards, other nonprofit organizations, or for-profit firms for the purpose of the program.

The facility shall be leased to a mix of anchor tenants, virtual tenants, and project-based tenants. For the purposes of this Act:

(1) Anchor tenants are digital media companies with a regular cash flow that need a fixed address and would benefit from sharing a common environment with other digital media companies;

(2) Virtual tenants may be less developed companies with uneven cash flow that are just starting out and may need a place to do business from time to time; and

(3) Project-based tenants are television and film production teams that need to lease space for a finite amount of time to complete a particular project.

The facility may contain a mix of workstations, conference rooms, private offices, a common lounge and kitchen area, a reception area, secure air-conditioned server rooms, and possibly a small soundstage for stop-motion animation, three dimensional modeling and printing center, and other more spatially dependent projects.

SECTION 7. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ , or so much thereof as may be necessary, for fiscal year 2007-2008 and the sum of $ , or so much thereof as may be necessary, for fiscal year 2008-2009, for the purpose of facility improvements, equipment purchase, leasing, operating, and maintaining a digital media incubator facility.

Of the sums appropriated, $ in fiscal year 2007‑2008, and $ in fiscal year 2008-2009, shall be expended by the department of business, economic development, and tourism for the purposes of this Act.

Of the sums appropriated, $ in fiscal year 2007‑2008, and $ in fiscal year 2008-2009, shall be expended by the University of Hawaii-Honolulu community college for the purposes of this Act.

PART IV

SECTION 8. The legislature further finds that Hawaii's music industry is an established segment of Hawaii's creative media industries sector, with a growing popularity reaching far beyond the shores of our island state. Full recognition of the merits of Hawaiian music came in 2005 when the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences announced the creation of a Hawaiian music category in its annual Grammy Awards, the world's most prestigious music awards program.

While Hawaii has an unusually high concentration of raw musical talent and industry professionals, it lacks the technical support infrastructure to assist individuals in the progression of their careers and businesses.

The University of Hawaii, Honolulu community college, has been working to build alliances with national and local members of the entertainment industry for the music and enterprise learning experience program. The music and enterprise learning experience (MELE) program combines short-term professional training workshops, songwriter seminars, an associate degree program in music business and production, and a transfer program that allows students to matriculate in Belmont University's music and entertainment management programs. Belmont University, located in Nashville, Tennessee, is one of the premier music and entertainment educational programs in the nation.

The purpose of this part is to establish a music and enterprise learning experience program at the University of Hawaii-Honolulu community college to develop the technical business skills required by Hawaii's music artists and music industry.

SECTION 9. There is established at the University of Hawaii-Honolulu community college campus the music and enterprise learning experience program to expand the existing industry capacity, and to create new technological, intercultural, and genre-bending forms of music through creativity and professional business expertise. The program will be developed around three primary components:

(1) Artist creativity;

(2) Entertainment business expertise; and

(3) Technical production skills.

The program will collaborate with Belmont University of Nashville, Tennessee, on the joint use of Belmont's curriculum, technical facilities and equipment specifications, training, dual credit course offerings, and will also offer internships in some of the most varied music environments in the world.

The program will be seeded through a title III Developing Institutions grant that has been awarded to Honolulu community college native Hawaiian center, and will provide for some basic program development of course offerings in coordination with Belmont University of Nashville, Tennessee.

SECTION 10. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ , or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2007-2008, and the sum of $ , or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2008-2009, to carry out the purposes of leasing, operating, and maintaining a music and entertainment business training center.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the University of Hawaii-Honolulu community college for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 11. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2007.

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	1922
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007		S.D. 2
STATE OF HAWAII