Film studio debate over music lease

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Some in the local filmmaking community are upset with a lease at Austin Studios being negotiated with Soundcheck, a Nashville, Tenn. music company.

Some filmmakers are even accusing the Austin Film Society of betraying its promise to taxpayers by considering the lease.

The Austin Film Society has been working to get a five-year sublease from the company that would call itself Soundcheck Austin. The proposal would transform a 29,000-square-foot building into six sound-proof rehearsal studios, offices and showroom spaces for musicians.

The Austin Film Society held a public forum Monday - about 100 people attended. Those with the Austin Film Society believe only a small minority are in opposition to allowing Soundcheck Austin to sub-lease stage four.

Austin Studios has recently had budget woes of its own and those with the Austin Film Society believe bringing in an outside company could help.

"The last couple of years though, we actually have not even made our overhead," said Rebecca Campbell, Executive Director of Austin Film Society. "We've been drawing on our reserves. The great thing about Soundcheck is they would bring a build out and they would bring rental income. That would help stabilize and diversify our income stream."

While there were many at the forum that spoke up in support of  the sub-lease, there were others who believe it could cause problems.

Don Williams was one of the most outspoken in attendance asking Austin Film Society board member  "Give me a break, the deal is where is the cost benefit analysis?"

Just six months ago Austin film icons Robert Rodriguez and Richard Linklater helped celebrate the new renovation of Austin studios, paid for with a five million dollar bond taxpayers passed in 2006.

Now some say if the Austin City Council lets the Nashville company open "Sound Check Austin" and sub-lease stage four there will not be enough room for big film projects.  Williams said that means less work for locals.

"We take our money we spend it back in the community," said Don Williams. "We've gone through a hard two years."

However, Joe Cabela with Music Lab says the five-year sub-lease could push out long-standing local businesses.

"We just want a level playing field in order to make the same deal at least be heard to propose some sort of agreement with them," said Cabela.

Meanwhile, the Austin Film Society says Sound Check approached them and they are still in the negotiation process.

"November is the soonest they could move in," said Campbell.

The Austin Film Society is a nonprofit which operates 100,000 square feet of studio space at the Mueller Project, which is leased from the City of Austin.

Some of the attendees said they would prefer the Austin Film Society lease the space out to a local company instead. Another concern raised was that some of the concerts could disrupt film-shooting because of the loud music.

However, Austin Film Society executive director Rebecca Campbell and board members expressed that Sound Check Austin could bring infrastructure to Austin Studios that may not be obtainable otherwise.