Nelson / Monday, September 9, 2024 / Categories: Fine and Applied Arts Link to Article: Parkland College, Flyover Film Studios Partner to Expand Film Industry in Area Parkland College will partner with Rantoul-based Flyover Film Studios and two Champaign-based film production companies to expand the film industry. Parkland College today announced a new partnership with Rantoul-based Flyover Film Studios and […]
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Overview:
FLYOVER FILM STUDIOS aims to revolutionize the filmmaking and entertainment industry in the Midwest. The company is establishing state-of-the-art sound stages and production facilities at the decommissioned Chanute Air Force Base in Rantoul, Illinois. By creating a hub for film, television, commercial and even live production, FLYOVER FILM STUDIOS seeks to provide unparalleled resources, support, and opportunities for filming in the heart of the Midwest.
“We are proud and excited to be the recipients of [this $1.1 million Illinois Soundstage Capital Grant] to help build Flyover Film Studios in central Illinois, furthering the reach of the film industry and its economic impact to our region.”
-Jennifer Shelby, President of Flyover Studios
www.wandtv.com
The company’s primary objective is to construct five (5) cutting-edge sound stages, spanning between 5,000 and 40,000 square feet, accompanied by over 100,000 square feet of dedicated support spaces for flex/insert stages, construction, art, props, wardrobe, and grip/electric departments, as well as post production facilities. These sound stages and support spaces will be among the largest facilities in the Midwest, offering filmmakers the necessary infrastructure to bring their creative visions to life.
Support Spaces
FLYOVER will provide dedicated areas for construction, art, props, wardrobe, and grip/electric departments, ensuring a seamless workflow for productions. We also offer a wide range of rentable in-house set dressing, props, and wardrobe options. This eliminates the need for productions to invest in building or purchasing these assets, saving time and resources.
Standing Sets
In addition to the sound stages, FLYOVER will establish a range of pre-built “standing” sets that will remain available for lease year-round on an hourly basis. These carefully designed sets will cater to various genres and production requirements, providing convenience and flexibility to filmmakers who need those hard-to-find sets! By offering ready-to-shoot sets, FLYOVER also aims to streamline production processes, reduce costs and waste, and enhance the overall Midwest market with often sought after environments for feature length films, to music videos and commercials.
Use of Proceeds:
Based on the maximum amount of $3,500,000 is raised.
70%
$2,450,000
Studio and Project Development
10%
$350,000
General & Administrative
20%
$700,000
Legal / Finance / Contingency
Why FLYOVER?
It is not often you find 275,000 sq feet under one roof. At FLYOVER, you will have the flexibility of the space: the ability to drive trucks of all sizes directly inside, ample outside parking, and ease of permitting throughout Rantoul and the greater Champaign County area. Pair that with the more than competitive pricing we can offer for not only stage rental, but also standing sets, flex, and mill/construction spaces, as well as other simple yet impactful benefits, such as free parking, you’ve got an attractive combination that will be hard to beat.
SPACE PRICING
Due to the vast size and versatility of the space, FLYOVER can stay price-competitive. We aim to maintain rental rates that are substantially lower than the costs incurred in major metro areas. By taking advantage of these inexpensive rates for daily, weekly and monthly stage options, productions with any sized budget will be able to stretch their finances further and end with a better story on screen.
UNIQUE OFFERINGS
FLYOVER’s selection of standing sets is one of its kind in the Midwest, and truly a primary calling card to our location. Filmmakers and clients will save time and resources by utilizing pre-built sets to shoot on instead of in traditionally hard to find and often difficult-to-film-in locations, all while meeting their production timeline demands and maintaining the quality and value they desire. In addition to these great assets for filmmakers, on-site parking, easy local travel and lodging, and ample electrical power availability – FLYOVER is a great spot for live events, exhibits, conferences, remote trainings, corporate summits, and several other opportunities outside of the film media industry.
Management:
Jennifer Shelby - President
Jennifer Shelby comes to film making from the automotive industry. Beginning in 1993 she worked for a franchise dealership as a salesperson, moved into the position of Finance Director in 1998 and eventually bought the Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram store where she worked in 2008. In 2013 she accepted an offer to sell that dealership and turned around and bought another Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram store, as well as a Ford Dealership in a small town in East Central Illinois.
In 2013 after hearing a presentation about independent film production, she went to Brett Hays and Luke Boyce at Shatterglass Studios and from that meeting Shatterglass Films, LLC was born. Shelby worked behind the scenes with investors, locations, resources, etc.
After selling her last store in 2021 she has been able to turn all her attention to the film industry and has served as a location scout, producer, executive producer and more recently switched to line producing where she gets to put her business financial experience to work.
She is serving as president and CFO of Flyover Film Studios in her role as a managing member of the newly formed LLC. She is uniquely positioned to do this due to her over 28 years spent owning and operating her automotive companies. She is also a lifelong resident of Champaign Illinois and has invaluable connections to many of the resources needed for film, tv and commercial shooting.
In addition to a past filled with owning and operating auto dealership she also served on the Hoopeston Chamber of Commerce, Hoopeston Economic Development Committee, serves on the board of directors of the Champaign-Urbana Rotary Club, is the treasurer for Courtsiders Booster Group for the University of Illinois Women’s’ Basketball program and she has served 12 years as a trustee for Blackburn College in Carlinville, IL where she chairs the Enrollment and Retention Committee and co-chairs the current Capital Campaign for the Athletic Department.
Sarah Sharp - Managing Partner
Sarah found her passion for the entertainment industry after discovering that filmmaking is the ultimate team sport. Sarah met the love of her life on set in 2012, and in 2017 married her best friend and business partner Robert Stern. They established The Line Film Company, which has produced successful films, including critically acclaimed works such as “The Stylist” and 2023 Saturn award nominee “Brooklyn ’45” which made the Variety, USA today, and Rotten Tomatoes 2023 “Best Of” Lists. After producing 12 features films since 2019 Sarah has been a member of the Producers Guild of America (PGA) since 2020. She has been blessed to experience unique opportunities in her film career to escalate growth – opportunities that she intends to give others. She is very diligent about creating vision and ensuring others put themselves in the right place at the right time to create opportunities, and she intends for Flyover Film Studios to be a part of the opportunity creation.
This combination of worlds provided Sarah not only minimal sunburning from working outside, but a tremendously diverse experience in working, creating, and talking to people. Sarah graduated high school Salutatorian and passed on college after growing a successful after-school salon service. She opted to attend cosmetology school to formalize her training instead. This quickly grew into her traveling with various hair and makeup shows, public speaking, and training civilians to industry people on various techniques. Eventually this blossomed into Sarah’s move into the Film and Entertainment Industry.
Sarah found her passion for the entertainment industry after discovering that filmmaking is the ultimate team sport. Collaboration, problem solving, an ever-changing environment, and a lot of imagination are thriving points for Sarah’s task driven personality. She was promoted through the Vanity departments (Hair, Makeup, Wardrobe) to a Productions Designer and primarily as a Producer now since 2019. Sarah has been a member of the Producers Guild of America (PGA) since 2020. She has been blessed to experience unique opportunities in her film career to escalate growth – opportunities that she intends to give others.
Sarah met the love of her life on set in 2012, and in 2017 married her best friend and business partner Robert Stern. They established The Line Film Company, which has produced successful films, including critically acclaimed works such as “The Stylist” and 2023 Saturn award nominee “Brooklyn ‘45” which made the Variety, USA today, and Rotten Tomatoes 2023 “Best Of” Lists.-after producing 12 features films since 2019. Sarah is very diligent about creating vision and ensuring others put themselves in the right place at the right time to create opportunities, and she intends for Flyover Film Studios to be a part of the opportunity creation.
Brett Hays — Managing Partner
Brett Hays is an accomplished film and television producer who is an active member of the Directors Guild of America as a Unit Production Manager.
Brett’s dedication to creating high-quality films that both entertain and inspire is evident in his impressive body of work. He has collaborated with some of the biggest studios in Hollywood and has ongoing relationships working for Disney+, 20th Television, Hulu, Disney Channel, Freeform, CBS/Viacom and Netflix. Recently, he served as the Unit Production Manager of a TV Show for CBS/Viacom where he not only managed the production but also helped the studio lease space and build two new sound stages in Chicago for the production.
Brett founded Shatterglass Studios in 2006 with Luke Boyce and the company’s exceptional work was recognized in 2012 when they received the Small Business of the Year award from the Champaign County Chamber of Commerce. A year later, Shatterglass was awarded a regional Emmy from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for their documentary about the 2013 Roger Ebert Film Festival.
Brett was also the co-founder and member of the board of directors for the CU Film Society, a 501c3 that was known for their Pens to Lens K-12 screenwriting competition & film festival that had produced over 100 short films written by K-12 students and produced by local filmmakers, which ran for seven consecutive years. The program provided K-12 students an opportunity to participate in the local filmmaking community by writing original screenplays for short films that were produced by local filmmakers. Over the seven-year period, more than a thousand scripts were submitted, and over one hundred short films were produced. The final films premiered theatrically each year at a red-carpet gala.
Luke Boyce
Luke Boyce is an acclaimed director, writer and producer, known for founding Shatterglass Films, a production house in Illinois that has helped produce or facilitate over 40 features, shorts, documentaries and series. Luke’s short film, THE POOKA, starring Chris Sullivan, garnered critical acclaim, winning awards at Palm Springs International Shortest and Sherman Oaks Film Festival. In 2022, his feature directorial debut, REVEALER, premiered as a Shudder Original Film and AMC+ exclusive, accompanied by a successful tie-in comic release.
In 2018, his short film, THE POOKA, starring NBC star Chris Sullivan, premiered at the Palm Springs International Shortfest, won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sherman Oaks Film Festival and landed at #5 on Film Shortage’s “Top 10 Shorts of 2018”. That year he also directed promo’s for the Chicago Bulls and the Chicago Blackhawks and produced the award-winning series, SEEDS, for Open Television, a Chicago-based streaming platform for diverse and intersectional storytelling.
In June 2022, Luke’s feature-film directorial debut, REVEALER, premiered as an exclusive Shudder Original Film on the popular streaming platform, as well as AMC+. A tie-in comic was also released that September and sold-out copies across the country.
Dustin Hoke
Growing up with a family construction business, Dustin Hoke has been honing his skillset for multiple decades. With a background in agricultural, residential, and commercial construction, Dustin has played a part in building up numerous farms. homes, and businesses all over central Illinois and beyond. He expanded on his real word experience by receiving an AAS degree in Construction Design and Management from Parkland College. Dustin has also shared his abilities by volunteering with humanitarian organizations, such as Habitat for Humanity, locally, nationally, and internationally. His time in the film industry utilizes his lengthy construction experience, from his hands-on knowledge in the field, to project estimating and management skills.
When he first received a call to work in the world of film, Dustin jumped at the opportunity and hasn’t looked back. From creating complete sets or smaller pieces from barely legible napkin sketches for an indie flick, to using full-sized crews to bring to life a world from detailed blueprints, he utilizes both his real world experience and his education to help get the story on screen in a safe and professional way. Drawing from his time working in the family business, Dustin accurately estimates labor and material to ensure projects move along on time and on budget.
Dustin and his wife, Jacqueline, have been foster parents for almost a decade and recently adopted their third child through the foster care system. His experiences in the foster and adoptive world have enhanced his focus on responsibility and empathy, both personally and professionally.
Robert Patrick Stern
Robert Patrick Stern is a seasoned cinematographer, independent producer, and avid cinephile with a lifelong passion for visual storytelling. Rooted in a family of photographers, he embarked on his filmmaking journey as a teenager, honing his craft through shooting short narrative films on Hi8. After graduating with a BA in Communications-Media concentration, he was hired to run a specific dealer location for John Deere where he could build out his sales and management background.
Since transitioning to the film industry full-time in 2009, Robert has spent over 15 years capturing commercials, documentaries, and feature films for platforms like HBO, BET, and Amazon. In 2013, he co-founded The Line Film Company, producing over a dozen acclaimed feature films. Currently, he is a partner in the development of Flyover Film Studios in Rantoul, Illinois, which merges his diverse skill set to build a hub for visual storytelling.
From an early age, Robert found himself surrounded by a super-talented photography family. His uncles shoot professionally, but his grandmother showed everyone how to stage a photo the right way. As a child, he was kept busy building scenes via shoe box dioramas that were then interrupted by his obsession with sports cards. Shortly after, the era of a rogue teenager with a Hi8 camera began, which led to the making of many short narrative films that helped him cut his teeth from behind the camera. So much so that it carried over to college where he graduated from Northern Illinois University with a BA in Communications- Media concentration in 2004.
In his early 20s, Robert went into the workforce as a customer service representative for Edwards Hospital Health and Fitness until late 2006. Shortly after he became a salesman for John Deere, where he helped manage an independent warehouse for parts and construction service up until leaving for the film industry full-time in 2009.
Since then, Stern has dedicated his life to shooting professionally. The past 15 years has been spent photographing everything from commercials to docu-series (HBO, BET, Peacock, Tubi, Amazon) which has fueled his growing hunger for the visual medium. Translating multiple narratives into feature films in his early 30s launched Robert onto solid ground, but the chase for a lifelong career in the industry had just begun.
In 2013, Robert launched The Line Film Company with production designer Sarah Sharp. The partnership has produced over 12 feature films in the last 5 years, more recently John Pata’s ‘Black Mold’ Frightfest ‘23 as well as Ted Geoghegan’s ‘Brooklyn’45’ premiering at SXSW ‘23.
Currently, Robert is combining his sales and management skills from early in his working career with his Cinematography background to help build Flyover Film Studios in Rantoul, Illinois at the former Chanute Airforce base. An endeavor that seems to be the perfect fit for Robert in combining all of his skills and life experiences.
Partners:
Broker Dealer
Rialto Markets LLC
Transfer Agent
ClearTrust LLC
Escrow Agent
Wilmington Trust
Issuance Technology
Rialto Markets LLC
Updates:
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$1,000,000
Raised
0
Investors
Offering Terms
$3,500,000
Maximum Offering
$250
Target Offering
$250
Minimum Investment
$250.00
Unit Price
Not FDIC or SiPC insured.
Not sure if this is the appropriate space to ask this question. Is there a planned “Meet and Greet” of the six partners in Flyover Film Studios with potential Class B Preferred public investors?
Please keep me posted on a Champaign/Rantoul Area or Chicagoland “Meet and Greet”. Thank you.
Tom,
We will have a few Meet & Greet opportunities – both in person and via Zoom for our investors and potential investors. You are welcome to email us at flyoverfilmstudios@gmail.com to be put on our mailing list. That way we can keep you up to date on everything going on in Central Illinois!
Hi Jennifer,
I sent my email address to flyoverfilmstudios@gmail.com as you directed. Thank you for your response. Looking forward to first Meet & Greet opportunity.
Tom Stern
I will fit into the Non-Accredited Investor group. The purchased shares will go into my family trust. How liquid are these invested shares if the trust wishes to sell the shares? Is there a minimum holding period that an investor must keep the shares prior to selling. Thank you.
Tom, apologies for the delay in answering your question. I must tell you that these shares are highly illiquid at this time. Please refer bak to the Form C – page 30 Restriction of Transfers section, and then also take another look at our Operating Agreement – Section 5.04 (pages 82-82) in the Form C which lays out our internal Restriction of Transfers.
Please do not hesitate to ask any additional questions.
Jennifer Shelby
President
Flyover Film Studios
Jennifer, Thank you, I will look into Form C as you recommend.
Tom Stern