Harbor Island Studios
About Harbor Island Studios
On April 3, 2021, King County Executive Dow Constantine unveiled a new film production facility on Harbor Island. This production studio represents King County’s first major public investment to bring back a once-thriving film industry and hundreds of family wage, creative economy jobs as the region rebounds post-pandemic.
“This is about making a smart public investment to help this creative industry grow and thrive here in King County. We don’t want Vancouver or Portland – or Atlanta – to keep serving as Seattle’s stand-in. We’re ready to spotlight the amazing talent of our region.”
– Dow Constantine, County Executive
Growing Our Local Film Industry
Harbor Island Studios is a key economic development project that will strengthen King County’s creative economy. Under the leadership of Executive Constantine and his Film Advisory Board, the new film production studio will provide our film industry with infrastructure it has lacked for decades and support the growth of local film industry jobs.
Harbor Island Studios can accommodate a wide variety of projects – from feature films to commercials – many of which pay union wages to local carpenters, electricians, prop masters, costume designers, and other trades. The Studios will prioritize productions that hire our local crew members with family-wage jobs.
Transforming the Facility
In 2021, King County crews and contractors re-wired and built interior sound-proof walls, transforming an unused building that was once a flour mill into a working production studio. This massive waterfront warehouse was purchased by King County in 2002. The renovations that transformed this space into a production studio cost about $1.5 million and have already attracted several creative economy tenants. With the support of King County Council, Harbor Island Studios continues to be renovated.
Executive Constantine’s Film Advisory Board:
FILM ADVISORS:
Peter Barnes, Operations Director, Formosa Interactive Seattle
Tony Becerra, Director, DGA
Vicky Berglund-Davenport, Location Manager/Producer, LMGI
Buzzy Cancilla, Commercial Producer
Michelle Flowers-Taylor, Actor, Producer
Cheo Hodari Coker, Producer/Showrunner/Writer
Cynthia Geary, Actor
Megan Griffiths, Director
Susan LaSalle, Director/Producer, DGA
Lacey Leavitt, Producer/Director
Mindie Lind, Actor/Casting
Melissa Purcell, IATSE Local 488 Northern Business Agent, Prop Master
Eddie Rehfeldt, Producer/Location Manager/Studio Developer
Jazmyn Scott, Langston/Seattle Black Film Festival
Nasib ‘CB’ Shamah, Producer/Director
KING COUNTY TEAM:
Dow Constantine, King County Executive
Kate Becker, King County Creative Economy & Recovery Director
Tony Wright, Director of King County Facilities Management
Mark Zandberg, King County Real Estate Film Liaison
Martine Kaiser, King County Performance, Strategy & Budget
Shannon Braddock, King County Executive Deputy Chief of Staff
Ashton Allison, King County Economic Development/Economic Recovery Director
Brooke McConnaughey, King County Economic Development Equity Manager
Andrea Greenstein, King County Economic Recovery Project Manager