ABC's 'Nashville' Is the Real Thing
The show's cast and crew began shooting 24 new episodes last month, with financial support from the city and the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development.
Fans of the ABC television show "Nashville" who are attending this month's 29th Annual VPPPA National Conference may be wondering whether they'll be able to catch a glimpse of Connie Britton, Hayden Panettiere, or another star from the show while in Nashville. If they do, they can thank the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development and the Nashville city government for keeping the production in town.
TECD announced June 24 that it had approved a $12.5 million reimbursable grant to support the local production, which was scheduled to begin principal photography in mid-July for 24 new episodes. In addition, the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp. and the Event Marketing Fund each contributed a cash grant of $125,000. TECD's grant is based on qualified expenditures made in Tennessee for goods and services; its announcement said the production is expected to generate more than $40 million in local spending.
The first episode of the show's second season will premiere Sept. 25.
"Small and large Nashville businesses have benefited greatly from the local filming of 'Nashville,' not only from the direct spending related to the show but also from the worldwide attention this show has generated for our city and our state. With beautiful scenic shots of our landscape and the portrayal of our unique music scene, more people, without a doubt, are visiting our city and spending their money here because they've seen this hour-long commercial for Music City that airs every week during prime time," Nashville Mayor Karl Dean said. "The city's investment in 'Nashville' this season is a recognition that this show benefits our local economy and is opening doors to further grow the film and television industry here."
Much of the show's musical scoring, recording, and publishing also will be done in Nashville, according to the TECD announcement.
To watch full episodes from season one online, visit http://beta.abc.go.com/shows/nashville.