LANSING – The Pickle Recipe, a film created by former
Detroit advertising executives and produced by West Bloomfield natives, has
demonstrated the right formula to qualify for an incentive from the Michigan
Film Office.
The film is eligible to receive a maximum incentive of
$491,706 from the state based on an anticipated spend of $1,412,129. In
addition to private investment the production will direct to Michigan-based
vendors, the estimated spending includes plans to hire 127 cast and crew, 119
of whom will be Michigan residents and 301 extras, making for an equivalent of
12 full-time employees.
“From writing to directing to producing, this film showcases
the many talents of Michigan filmmakers,” said Jenell Leonard, commissioner of
Michigan Film Office. “We are excited about projects like this drawing
Michiganders home to tell their stories in their own backyard and invest in the
communities where they grew up.”
The story is about a down-on-his-luck party emcee, who is
desperate for cash and corrupted by his shameless uncle to steal his
grandmother’s top-secret pickle recipe. Production began shooting in May
throughout metro Detroit. Filming is expected through mid-June in Detroit, Hamtramck,
Royal Oak and West Bloomfield.
With a distinctive metro Detroit tone and feel, “The Pickle
Recipe” is based on the script by Sheldon Cohn and story by Gary Wolfson, both
of whom were former execs at Doner advertising agency of Southfield. The film
is produced by Jason Potash and Paul Finkel of West Bloomfield. Potash
and Finkel recently produced “Beside Still Waters” and “Dial a Prayer,”
starring Brittany Snow and William H. Macy, both Michigan-based productions.
West Coast transplant and Michigan resident Michael
Manasseri directs the film. Manasseri directed and produced Sucker, (2013) a
science-fiction story filmed in Pontiac. The film stars comedian Jon Dore, Lynn
Cohen and Academy Award nominee David Paymer.
The Pickle Recipe is the latest of approved incentive
projects from the Michigan Film Office. Recently announced projects include My
Soul to Keep, Swish Master, and Golem. Total approved incentives, including The
Pickle Recipe, amount to $1,809,683. Of that amount, a projected $5,177,776 is
estimated to be spent collectively in Michigan by the four productions with an
anticipated 218 workers to be hired and 32 full-time jobs created. Disbursement
of state funds by the Michigan Film Office is contingent on verified
documentation of spending submitted by the production company.
By its nature, the film and video production industry is
distinct from many of the industries that make up the Michigan economy. The
workforce consists of a range of self-employed and freelance workers in diverse
fields, including production designers, actors, sound engineers, graphic
designers, talent agents, equipment rental operators, extras, carpenters and
electricians along with other skilled-trades workers.
