New Mexico went hog wild for movies and won "Wild Hogs" and 19 other film or TV projects for 2007 -- work on the next "Indiana Jones" movie also is reportedly being done there. Now, Pennsylvania is seeking to fight back for a larger slice of the production pie.

	Cliff Lipson, CBS Simon Baker starred as a young lawyer in "The Guardian," a CBS series shot in Pittsburgh that ran for three years. Click photo for larger image.

Two House bills that could head to the state Senate this week would boost incentives for TV and moviemakers, potentially luring $350 million to $500 million in new money for the state, said Dawn Keezer, director of the Pittsburgh Film Office.

"Over 30 states in this country have film incentive programs. We have one, but it hasn't stayed competitive," Keezer said in an interview last week. While other states are building their production business, Pennsylvania's is already established and could "explode" with the right enticements, she added.

That is what state Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, the bills' prime sponsor, would like to see.

"I represent the city of Lancaster, and we've had several films made in the city but also in Lancaster County, probably the most famous of which is 'Witness,' which was 25 years ago but we still talk about," Sturla said by phone last week.

He reeled off the reasons Hollywood should come calling, starting with the state's four distinct seasons. "It's easier to film on location in the snow than it is to build a soundstage that's got snow."

Add to that easy access to the East Coast, a ready pool of technical talent, natural wonders such as rivers, mountains and greenery, diverse cultures and historical settings that would cost millions to try to replicate.

He sees the measures as economic and image generators, promoting the state inside and beyond its borders. Moviegoers learned a little bit about Lancaster from "Witness" just as they did about Western Pennsylvania from "The Deer Hunter," "Wonder Boys" and TV's "The Guardian."

"One of the great things about attracting films, in particular, is this is all money that otherwise would not have been spent in this state," Sturla said.

The two bills, House Bills 1528 and 1539, are currently in the Commerce and Economic Development Committee.

The first would provide for a fully refundable 25 percent tax credit with no annual cap for all projects budgeted at $2 million or more. It targets major feature films, TV series and commercial production.

The second would improve what Pennsylvania already has: a 20 percent grant for production expenses incurred on projects spending at least 60 percent of their budget in the state. That pool of money, now capped at $10 million, would increase to $15 million and apply to projects budgeted under $2 million.

As a sign of how desperately change is needed, the $10 million that became available July 1, 2006, was claimed by July 22, the Pittsburgh and Greater Philadelphia film offices report.

Sturla said if all goes well, the bills could be voted on this week, approved by Thursday and sent to the Senate for consideration.

New Mexico, which reportedly will sub for Morocco for some of the fourth "Indiana Jones" movie, offers a 25 percent tax rebate on all production expenditures (including New Mexico labor) subject to taxation by the state. It's the centerpiece of one of the most aggressive and successful incentives in the country.