Santa Fe Studios Continues to Ignore Press Inquiries

Lance Hool

Santa Fe New Mexican - The $10 million state economic development grant has been spent, and the film-production facility it paid for can be seen in the distance on N.M. 14 south of Santa Fe. But the opening date of the private movie studio — which garnered millions in incentives from public sources with promises of job creation and economic development — has still not been made public.

Santa Fe County is administering the $10 million grant that Santa Fe Studios LLC received from the state, and the county has kicked in another $3.6 million worth of infrastructure improvements for the project. It also is guaranteeing $6.5 million worth of a $10 million loan the studio's principals secured from Los Alamos National Bank. But county spokesman Kristine Mihelcic said in a written statement Tuesday that "Santa Fe County at this time has not received current information in relation to the opening date of the studio, scheduled projects, job opportunities or [the studio's] board of directors."

Javier Gonzales

The website for Santa Fe Studios — which is owned primarily by father and son Lance and Jason Hool — previously said the facility was supposed to open in August. The site has since been amended to state that the project will open "in 2011." The Hools have not responded to repeated requests for interviews from The New Mexican, but they stated in a news release regarding a fundraiser for the Santa Fe Film Festival that the studio is slated to open next month. Ballentines PR and Marketing, the firm representing the studios, said it was working to get answers to that question and others submitted by The New Mexican on Sept. 14. Read full story here: News New Mexico

Santa Fe Studios Continues to Ignore Press Inquiries