Texas Film Incentives: How to Get Money Back on Your Houston Production

What Is the Texas Moving Image Industry Incentive Program?

The Texas Moving Image Industry Incentive Program — commonly called TMIIP or simply the Texas film incentive — is a grant program administered by the Texas Film Commission that provides a percentage of qualifying Texas production spend back to productions that meet the eligibility requirements. Unlike the transferable tax credit programs used in states like Georgia and New Mexico, Texas operates a direct grant: the state writes the production company a check for a percentage of what they spent in Texas. No credit brokerage, no transfer mechanism, no haircut from a tax credit buyer. What you qualify for is what you receive.

The program covers feature films, television series (both episodic and non-scripted), commercials, video games, and digital interactive media. Qualifying projects must spend at least a minimum threshold in the state, use a specified percentage of Texas-based crew, and apply before principal photography begins. That last point is critical — the application must be filed with the Texas Film Commission before you start shooting. You cannot retroactively apply for a project that is already in production.

Grant Rates: How Much Can You Get Back?

The base incentive rate under TMIIP is 5% of qualifying Texas spend. That base rate increases based on two factors: the percentage of Texas below-the-line labor in your crew, and whether the production is shooting in an underserved media market (a county outside the major metropolitan areas).

The tiered structure works as follows:

• Base grant: 5% of qualifying in-state spend for productions meeting the minimum Texas spend threshold
• Texas crew bonus: Productions with at least 70% Texas resident below-the-line crew receive an enhanced rate. At 80%+ Texas resident crew, the maximum applicable rate increases further.
• Rural/underserved market bonus: Productions shooting primarily in counties outside the Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin, and San Antonio metro areas receive an additional percentage on top of the base and crew bonuses.
• Maximum grant: The combination of base rate plus bonuses can reach 22.5% for productions meeting the highest thresholds across all categories.

For a Houston-based production with strong local crew utilization, a realistic incentive expectation is in the 10–17.5% range of qualifying Texas spend. On a $2 million production with $1.5 million in qualifying Texas spend, that's $150,000 to $262,500 back to the production — real money that can fund additional shoot days, better post-production, or simply improved margins.

Who Qualifies?

Qualifying project types include:

• Feature films (narrative and documentary) with at least $250,000 in Texas qualifying spend
• Television series (episodic, mini-series, non-scripted) with at least $100,000 per episode or a series minimum — the Film Commission can clarify current thresholds for your project type
• Commercials and branded content with at least $50,000 in Texas qualifying spend (this threshold has varied; confirm the current minimum with the Commission at application time)
• Video games and digital interactive media with qualifying development spend in Texas

Productions must be primarily intended for a paying audience — either theatrical distribution, broadcast or streaming release, or commercial/branded content with an end client. Student films, internal corporate content, and productions not intended for public distribution generally do not qualify.

What Counts as Qualifying Spend?

Qualifying spend is Texas-based expenditure on goods and services used directly in production. Key qualifying categories include:

• Texas resident crew wages and benefits (this is typically the largest qualifying spend category)
• Purchases from Texas vendors — equipment rental from Texas companies, expendables from Texas suppliers, catering from Texas vendors
• Texas location fees, permit fees, and related on-location expenses
• Stage facility rental from Texas production facilities
• Transportation costs for vehicles rented or operated in Texas

What typically does NOT count: above-the-line talent compensation (director, writer, principal actors), post-production expenses incurred outside Texas, expenses for non-Texas crew and vendors, and spending that occurs outside the state even if the production is based in Texas.

The definition of "Texas resident" for crew purposes has specific requirements — crew members must demonstrate Texas residency through documentation the Film Commission will specify. Bringing in crew from out of state, even temporarily, does not make them Texas residents for incentive purposes.

How Local Crew Directly Affects Your Incentive

This is the practical point that productions sometimes miss: every dollar you spend on qualified Texas resident below-the-line crew is qualifying spend. When you hire Houston-based grip, electric, camera assistants, locations personnel, art department, and technical crew — including DIT and VTR services from Texas-based operators like Rayvn Films — you are simultaneously keeping the production running smoothly AND building your qualifying spend base that determines your incentive return.

The incentive calculation creates a direct financial argument for hiring locally that supplements all the practical arguments. A Texas-based gaffer who costs the same day rate as a Los Angeles gaffer on travel generates qualifying spend; the LA gaffer's travel costs, hotel, and per diem generate no qualifying spend. The net cost comparison, accounting for the incentive, often makes the local hire substantially cheaper even before you factor in the production efficiency advantages of crew who know the local geography, vendor relationships, and practical logistics.

Productions that attempt to run heavy Los Angeles crews in Texas while trying to access the incentive often find their qualifying spend base is too low to generate a meaningful return — the above-the-line talent exclusions and the non-qualifying out-of-state crew costs eliminate too much of the spend. Genuinely capitalizing on the Texas incentive requires genuine commitment to local crew and local vendors. See our Houston film crew guide for a breakdown of what's available locally and where to find it.

The Application Process: What to Know

The Texas Film Commission handles TMIIP applications directly. The process involves:

Pre-application: Before the formal application, it's worth a preliminary conversation with the Film Commission to confirm your project type qualifies and understand the current program terms. The Commission is accessible and genuinely helpful for productions approaching the incentive in good faith.

Application before production: The formal application must be filed and approved before principal photography begins in Texas. There's no grace period. Shooting before your application is approved can disqualify the production entirely. Build the Film Commission's review timeline into your pre-production schedule — allow several weeks for the review and approval process.

Documentation requirements: The application requires a detailed production budget, a schedule showing Texas shoot days, a plan for how you'll meet the crew residency requirements, and documentation of the production company's legal standing. Attach documentation of distribution commitments if you have them — it strengthens the application for theatrical and streaming features.

Completion and final audit: After production wraps, the incentive is not automatically paid. You'll submit final expenditure documentation — payroll records, invoices, vendor receipts — for the Film Commission to audit against the qualifying spend categories. Productions should maintain meticulous records throughout production with the understanding that every expense may need to be documented for audit purposes. Working with an accountant or production controller who has experience with Texas incentive documentation is worth the cost.

Common Mistakes That Reduce Your Incentive

The most common mistake: underestimating how stringent the crew residency documentation requirements are. Having a crew member's mail go to a Texas address does not make them a Texas resident for TMIIP purposes. The Commission looks for genuine residency documentation. Productions that loosely characterize travel crew as Texas residents find those wages reclassified during the audit, reducing the qualifying spend base and the resulting grant.

The second most common mistake: failing to maintain proper vendor documentation. Every purchase that you intend to count as qualifying spend needs a vendor receipt showing a Texas business address. Cash payments to vendors without receipts, and payments to vendors who turn out to be incorporated out of state despite operating locally, can reduce your qualifying spend during the audit.

If you're building a Houston production and want to discuss how to structure your crew to maximize Texas incentive capture, reach out to Rayvn Films. As Texas-based, Texas-resident crew, we're qualifying spend — and we've supported enough incentive-eligible productions to have practical knowledge about how the program works.