Oklahoma Film and Music Office promotes state at Texas festival

The film and music office will headquarter its Buffalo Lounge at Friends, 208 E Sixth. Jill Simpson, director of the Film and Music Office, said her office took inspiration for the Buffalo Lounge from the British Music Embassy, which maintains a constant hub of performers and events annually at its Sixth Street location. Consequently, the Buffalo Lounge will offer SXSW attendees information on Oklahoma commerce, opportunities for filmmakers in Oklahoma, and two nights of music performances.

“We've never had an ability to have our own venue like this, where we're there for a period of days. We're hoping to become a destination where people will come off the street on Sixth Street, use the Internet cafe, shop at the store and hang out,” Simpson said.

The Buffalo Lounge opens at 3 p.m. Monday with The Red Dirt Reel, a three-hour session devoted to showcasing the expanding opportunities for directors and film production companies that choose to shoot and exhibit movies in Oklahoma. Attendees include representatives of the deadCenter Film Festival, Tulsa's Circle Cinema and the Oklahoma City Museum of Art.

“What we love about this party is that this is a chance to show that Oklahoma has everything for the film industry,” said Abby Kurin, development coordinator for the Film and Music Office. “We have locations, a 37 percent cashback rebate, culture, film festivals — you name it, we have it all.”

“It's one-stop shopping, and that's the goal: to show them that everything's in one place,” Simpson said. “It's easy to do business here, it's cheap to do business here, and we're enthusiastic for you to come in. That's not true of a lot of places.”

At 8 p.m. Monday, a program called Open Beta 6 will be held. The event is sponsored by the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber, i2E and OKC CoCo (Coworking Collaborative). The networking and information event is aimed at showcasing business ideas and opportunities for people interested in creating Internet-based startup companies, and to promote Oklahoma's business resources to those looking for new locations.