Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson in recent ‘The Expendables’ movie.
After years of sitting mostly quiet, lights, camera and action will soon be returning to the former Millennium Studios at 300 Douglas Street in downtown Shreveport. On Tuesday, December 12, the Shreveport City Council unanimously passed an ordinance approving a lease for Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson’s G-Unit (his TV and Film business). Beginning Jan. 1, 2024, G-Unit can begin moving in and making plans for film, sound, light, movie, television, broadcasting, and arts- all the uses outlined in the city lease.
The lease itself will run through Sept. 2032 with an automatic 22-year renewal. If at any point during the least the City gets an offer to sell the studio that it can’t refuse, G-Unit will be able to exercise a right of first refusal to purchase. Until that point, G-Unit will pay the City $2400 rent per year, but will also handle all taxes, interior and exterior maintenance, and insurance in a ‘Triple Net’ agreement. The City estimates that it will save an average of $160,000 per year in allowing G-Unit to handle the property’s maintenance, insurance and other costs.
Millennium Studios, 300 Douglas StreetAlso included in the lease are strong suggestions from the city to look to local underemployed or unemployed residents first when hiring or setting up internships, and to use “commercially reasonable” efforts to purchase goods and services from small, women-owned and/or minority business located within the City of Shreveport. In other words, the city asks G-Unit to hire & buy locally.
50 Cent has been posting the news of the new lease on his Instagram and Facebook account and if the thousands of comments are any indication, there are going to be a lot of people interested in both pitching ideas and finding work at the new studio.
Updates to come.
Article posted Feb 3, 2022
A room full of people at the former Millennium Studios soundstage downtown were told today that the local film industry is returning. “We are ready for a resurgence of the film industry,” Mayor Adrian Perkins told the assembled city, parish and state representatives. City Economic Development Director Drew Mouton promised that in six months, the facility in the 300 block of Douglas Street will be creating jobs again. A new-to-Shreveport digital animation business called Troubled Muse has promised to bring 200 jobs. The first 53 jobs at an average salary of $74,000 annually will happen in the first year…other positions will follow.
The facility will be home to not only Troubled Muse, but will also house a so-called ‘Maker’s Space’ that will be managed by the Shreveport Regional Arts Council as well as workforce development initiatives partnered by Southern University Shreveport. Mouton promises the facility will become ‘revenue positive’ once fully up and running.
Mouton says the thing holding the Shreveport-area back from more movies and productions from studios like Disney, Netflix and others are the staffing needed. The SUSLA workforce training will solve that issue, he says.
See the entire Press Conference here.
Press Release Released Feb. 3, 2023
