With the fruitful efforts of Film Wisconsin, a non-profit, public-private partnership advocacy group which aims to boost film and media in the state, a new 25 percent tax incentive for film, TV and video producers went into effect at the start of 2008.

Tom Fletcher of Fletcher Chicago, a film and digital camera facility servicing production needs of commercial and motion picture clients, calls it "the nation's most aggressive film incentives."

That's why he plans to open a camera rental branch in Wisconsin's only studio complex. The Third Coast Studios, a $5-6 million project that developer and co-owner Darrick Dysland estimates will be completed June 1, are underway in St. Francis.

The complex has a total of 27,000 sq. ft. and consists of two unconnected buildings a quarter of a block apart at 2525 E. Crawford Ave. and 3770 S. Pennsylvania Ave.

Dubbing it a "production hub," Dysland says Third Coast will be a catalyst for synergy between Illinois and Wisconsin.

In addition to the new Fletcher branch, the complex will house RD Image, a digital commercial photography studio; a 5,500-sq. ft., clear span sound stage; Lightning Rod Studios, an indie film production company owned by filmmaker Drew Maxwell and entertainment attorney Dan Kattman; and Ken Krei's Third Ward Records, a recording and audio post-production facility.