For Iron Man 3, Marvel Studios considered locations in Los Angeles, Michigan and New Mexico before deciding Wilmington, North Carolina had the right mix of space, talent, and taxpayer incentives:
North Carolina this year increased its tax breaks for movie and television productions to up to 25 percent. That means movie producers could write off up to 25 percent of their in-state spending — up to $20 million — from their state taxes. The tax break is refundable, which means a producer who qualified for a $20 million write-off but didn’t owe that much in North Carolina taxes could collect the difference with a multi-million-dollar check from taxpayers.
The incentive has helped make 2011 a big year for the state’s film industry. Twenty-nine productions had set up offices in North Carolina as of early September, spending more than $200 million and at least temporarily employing 3,000 crew members, Perdue’s office said. The year’s productions include the feature film “The Hunger Games” and the television series “Homeland,” “Eastbound and Down” and “One Tree Hill.”